When did you know that you had the "right stuff"?

[gbear97]

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Hi All,

I'm interested in anesthesia for many reasons (enjoy physio/pharm, interested in postop/critical care, like teamwork/don't need ego stroking, have manual dexterity for procedures, etc.).

However, my reservations about pursuing anesthesia have to do with the fact that I don't know if I have the psychological attributes to be an excellent anesthesiologist. Specifically, I've always thought of myself as a pensive person rather than a fast thinker/multitasker/take action type. I've never had the opportunity to test myself in the latter domain, i.e., never been a paramedic, fireman, etc.

Here are my questions:

1.) For those of you who have done an anesthesia elective/rotation, does the student experience provide a realistic/adequate litmus test towards evaluating whether you could succeed in anesthesia?

2.) For those who chose anesthesia & are now residents or docs, do you feel as if one can improve their mental processing speed with training/experience or is this largely an innate talent?

3.) How do you handle the daily stress of being the go to guy/gal when things hit the fan?

I know I probably won't know till' I hit the wards (and maybe I'll pleasantly surprise myself?), but I just wanted to know if anyone else had self-doubts and what the outcome was ... thanks everyone!

 

[VentdependenT]

Here are my questions:

1.) For those of you who have done an anesthesia elective/rotation, does the student experience provide a realistic/adequate litmus test towards evaluating whether you could succeed in anesthesia? !

As a student you have ZERO responsibility. The real test comes into play once you understand WHY interventions are being performed. If you can grasp the weight on patient outcome resulting from specific pharmacological and physiological interventions then I believe you have what it takes. Too bad you have to study a bit for that to happen eh?

2.) For those who chose anesthesia & are now residents or docs, do you feel as if one can improve their mental processing speed with training/experience or is this largely an innate talent?!

If you think it, it shall happen. For better or for worse. Some people can grasp and clinically apply concepts with astonishing ease. No matter what you should always understand why you are doing what you are doing. All ya gots ta do is crack open a book. Also don't ever be afraid to ask for help. Big ego's can result in catastrophic OR events.

3.) How do you handle the daily stress of being the go to guy/gal when things hit the fan?!

The more senior memembers will best be able to handle this. However the only way I get through tough situations is to grab folks around me and ask them to perform specific goal oriented tasks (think The Wolf from Pulp Fiction) and follow my plan to the best of my ability. That's about all one can do. The more exposure one has to complex cases the more ready one will be for the proverbial $hit hitting the fan.

I know I probably won't know till' I hit the wards (and maybe I'll pleasantly surprise myself?), but I just wanted to know if anyone else had self-doubts and what the outcome was ... thanks everyone!

Of course. Thats part of being human.

 

[UTSouthwestern]

I agree with everything that Vent said above. I look back and remember that among the many things that benefitted my training were the many months of ICU that went through. As many have pointed out before, your OR is a mini-ICU except you measure results minutes after you take an action, not hours or days afterwards.

I also look at our CA-2 class and a family practice transfer we took who felt so demoralized after one month, that she almost dropped out. However, the faculty and her fellow residents encouraged her to continue to learn from her triumphs as well as mistakes and over the next 9 months, she has improved to the point that I would trust her to do any case with minimal supervision.

A healthy dose of fear is a good thing to have as an anesthesiologist. It keeps you thinking, makes you anticipate possible adverse events, and forces you to prepare for them. What you are experiencing now is no different from what I feel before and during every case. The key to succeeding is channeling that energy toward solutions quickly, effectively, and of course, correctly.