What's On Your Mind?

[rmorelan]

I meant the sleep-deprivation aspect of things. Of course, I believe this would differ by specialty, but is it really necessary for all specialties to have bad call hours (for the ones which do)? 

 

I read once in an article (I believe surgical staff was saying) that one of the reasons that the hours are tough for surgical residents is because residents should see 99 "wrongs" in order to be able to identify what is right (something along those lines..). However, is this idea also applicable to other specialties? Or are the hours like they are because of the high workloads and under staffing issues? 

sure that is a big part of things - you need lots of hours to see lots of stuff or do lots of stuff.

 

all fields are kind of like that - I mean the reason there is so much study time required in radiology is again we need to see a ton of examples to make it stick. Difference is we can do that outside of a physical OR- which is good for us as it is flexible but it can fool people into thinking it is not going on. 

 

That doesn't necessarily however mean you need to do it in 24 hours stretches for any field. That may be the right way but there are other models.

[Beacon]

sure that is a big part of things - you need lots of hours to see lots of stuff or do lots of stuff.

 

all fields are kind of like that - I mean the reason there is so much study time required in radiology is again we need to see a ton of examples to make it stick. Difference is we can do that outside of a physical OR- which is good for us as it is flexible but it can fool people into thinking it is not going on. 

 

That doesn't necessarily however mean you need to do it in 24 hours stretches for any field. That may be the right way but there are other models.

 

Yeah, I agree. I don't know why they don't do more about it, more regulation in this regard may actually make residency more enjoyable for residents. I mean, when residency is brought up, it is usually associated with difficult hours. 

[Lactic Folly]

I meant the sleep-deprivation aspect of things. Of course, I believe this would differ by specialty, but is it really necessary for all specialties to have bad call hours (for the ones which do)? 

 

I read once in an article (I believe surgical staff was saying) that one of the reasons that the hours are tough for surgical residents is because residents should see 99 "wrongs" in order to be able to identify what is right (something along those lines..). However, is this idea also applicable to other specialties? Or are the hours like they are because of the high workloads and under staffing issues? 

When they are staff on call, they may be up all night operating (or embolizing in IR, or what have you) after working a normal day as well. It would be better to have had experience doing this in training with a safety net, than for the first time in practice when all the responsibility is on one's shoulders.

[ralk]

Yeah, I agree. I don't know why they don't do more about it, more regulation in this regard may actually make residency more enjoyable for residents. I mean, when residency is brought up, it is usually associated with difficult hours. 

 

The US has been a good test case on this - they enacted plenty of regulations to improve resident working conditions, but the results haven't exactly been promising. Part of this may be due to half-measures that met the letter but not the spirit of the regulations, coupled with outright fraud on the part of some programs who didn't actually comply with the regulations. I mean one effort to get away from 24 hour shifts was restricting shifts to 16 hours, but that meant instead of regular 24 hour shift with a day off afterwards, it became back-to-back-to-back (and so on) 16 hour shifts which are WAY worse. Hard to work on no sleep, harder to work with zero recovery time.

 

The paradigm isn't necessarily that long hours are good, but that they're necessary for proper education and/or patient care. Until that viewpoint changes, we're stuck with the system we've got, or something equally terrible.

[rmorelan]

The US has been a good test case on this - they enacted plenty of regulations to improve resident working conditions, but the results haven't exactly been promising. Part of this may be due to half-measures that met the letter but not the spirit of the regulations, coupled with outright fraud on the part of some programs who didn't actually comply with the regulations. I mean one effort to get away from 24 hour shifts was restricting shifts to 16 hours, but that meant instead of regular 24 hour shift with a day off afterwards, it became back-to-back-to-back (and so on) 16 hour shifts which are WAY worse. Hard to work on no sleep, harder to work with zero recovery time.

 

The paradigm isn't necessarily that long hours are good, but that they're necessary for proper education and/or patient care. Until that viewpoint changes, we're stuck with the system we've got, or something equally terrible.

 

part of the problem too is that various specialties have widely different ends and views on the number of hours you need. We lump everything together in terms of both pay and hour restrictions - but that really doesn't make that much sense other than convenience.

[Cerena]

How is it that its only 1st year in medical school and I already feel almost burnt out?  #whinymedstudent

I started to feel like this in first year as well! And have had periods of this on and off ever since. Make sure to take care of yourself because it's a long haul. Whatever taking care of yourself means for you. You aren't alone in this, unfortunately! And you're not whiny. You're human.

[Bambi]

First Nations declare health emergency

 

TORONTO — First Nations leaders from northern Ontario declared a public-health emergency on Wednesday related to what they called a dire shortage of basic medical supplies and an epidemic of suicides among young people.

 

The declaration — essentially a desperate plea for help — calls for urgent action from the federal and provincial governments to address a crisis they said has resulted in needless suffering and deaths.

 

"We are in a state of shock," Grand Chief Jonathan Solomon of the Mushkegowuk Council said wiping away tears. "When is enough? It is sad. Waiting is not an option any more. We have to do something."

 

The declaration calls on governments to respond within 90 days by, among other things, meeting with First Nation leaders and coming up with a detailed intervention plan that includes ensuring communities have access to safe, clean drinking water.

 

http://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/canada/first-nations-declare-health-emergency/ar-BBpWu7d?ocid=spartandhp

[canucks_14]

So I registered for organic chemistry and am feeling a bit intimidated. But I also feel up to the task because math,physics and chem have always been my strong suits. Having said this it's been years since I did one of these courses. About 5-7 years.

Anyone have tips for acing organic chemistry I?

[rmorelan]

So I registered for organic chemistry and am feeling a bit intimidated. But I also feel up to the task because math,physics and chem have always been my strong suits. Having said this it's been years since I did one of these courses. About 5-7 years.

 

Anyone have tips for acing organic chemistry I?

 

ha, been awhile - organic chem is  hard because it is really two different subjects rammed together. You need problem solving AND you need to memorize a bunch of stuff. You need both - while most other subjects are kind of either or when you think about it (say physics which is mostly problem solving, or many biology courses which is much more memorization - speaking in generalizations here).

 

Often people get out of sync with one of those two parts and get tripped up. It means you can do a bunch of problems and think you have it down but then you didn't memorize everything you need because those problems are just random samples of all you need to know - now you have a new problem and you are stuck. You can memorize everything (great!) but then have no experience applying it and be too slow to use it on a test or make mistakes - ouch. The combination makes it hard. 

[rmorelan]

yet another winter storm in Ottawa Winter has picked up in its latter part.

[Symphonie]

Cant wait for winter to end.

[Cerena]

So I registered for organic chemistry and am feeling a bit intimidated. But I also feel up to the task because math,physics and chem have always been my strong suits. Having said this it's been years since I did one of these courses. About 5-7 years.

 

Anyone have tips for acing organic chemistry I?

Organic chemistry can be a very challenging, but rewarding, subject. I used to TA the subject for years, but I found that consistent practice does wonders. Also, if there are previous exams available to you, make sure to use those. I dug up an old blog post of mine, feel free to read it http://www.secretlifeofamedstudent.com/2012/01/organic-chemistry-ii-study-tip-of-week.html. Basically, don't miss lectures, practice often, build a reaction notebook or cheatsheet, hand in the assignments on time, think about getting a whiteboard, and go to office hours if you're struggling. 

 

Good luck! 

[canucks_14]

Organic chemistry can be a very challenging, but rewarding, subject. I used to TA the subject for years, but I found that consistent practice does wonders. Also, if there are previous exams available to you, make sure to use those. I dug up an old blog post of mine, feel free to read it http://www.secretlifeofamedstudent.com/2012/01/organic-chemistry-ii-study-tip-of-week.html. Basically, don't miss lectures, practice often, build a reaction notebook or cheatsheet, hand in the assignments on time, think about getting a whiteboard, and go to office hours if you're struggling. 

 

Good luck!

 

 

Thank you for the tips! Good simple resource to fall back on if I'm feeling unsure about anything.

[rmorelan]

Thank you for the tips! Good simple resource to fall back on if I'm feeling unsure about anything.

good luck!

[Cerena]

Thank you for the tips! Good simple resource to fall back on if I'm feeling unsure about anything.

Of course. Best of luck to you!

[Birdy]

I'm hosting for one of the MMI days and I'm super excited to see all th (terrified) applicants. It's hard to believe it's been only a year since my own interview!

 

We also have a few applicants coming to stay with us and I'm super excited to meet them.

 

Man it would be so much easier if I wasn't completely floored with exhaustion, though!

 

So I registered for organic chemistry and am feeling a bit intimidated. But I also feel up to the task because math,physics and chem have always been my strong suits. Having said this it's been years since I did one of these courses. About 5-7 years.

Anyone have tips for acing organic chemistry I?

Also check out Khan Academy. I found the organic chemistry videos there very helpful.

[RedLily]

 

 

Pi day took on new significance for me when I found out cheesecake can also be considered a pie

[Birdy]

 

 

 

Pi day took on new significance for me when I found out cheesecake can also be considered a pie

My birthday is tomorrow and it always annoyed me that I missed out on a Pi day birthday (which is also Einstein's!) by four hours.

 

The ides of March just isn't as cool.

[RedLily]

My birthday is tomorrow and it always annoyed me that I missed out on a Pi day birthday (which is also Einstein's!) by four hours.

 

The ides of March just isn't as cool.

 

 

Yeah, but then you'd have to deal with getting birthday pie instead of (the obviously) superior birthday cake. My brother was born on Earth day and every year someone thinks they're being super clever giving him a tree lol

 

Happy Birthday!

[Friendly Magpie]

Happy birthday Birdy!!

[Birdy]

Yeah, but then you'd have to deal with getting birthday pie instead of (the obviously) superior birthday cake. My brother was born on Earth day and every year someone thinks they're being super clever giving him a tree lol

 

Happy Birthday!

  

 

I could go for pie, but I agre, cake is superior.

 

Hey wait, I haven't had a birthday cake yet!

 

Happy birthday Birdy!!

Thanks!

[Bambi]

Congratulations to those who just received acceptances.

 

To the others, be persistent!

[Falling]

I'm accepting an offer for a PhD in Computational Biology. It was my first choice program. I'm not sure if I'm excited, nervous or a bit of both; it's really weird. Five years ago, I never thought i'd find something that I enjoyed that would also have a chance of leading to a career of some sort. 

[rmorelan]

I'm accepting an offer for a PhD in Computational Biology. It was my first choice program. I'm not sure if I'm excited, nervous or a bit of both; it's really weird. Five years ago, I never thought i'd find something that I enjoyed that would also have a chance of leading to a career of some sort. 

 

hey congrats - very, very interesting field!

[Bambi]

Muzzo, age 29, got off lightly with only a 10 year jail sentence for destroying a family by killing those 3 beautiful children and their grandfather while driving drunk (almost triple the legal limit), speeding and going through a stop sign. It is unlikely that he will need to serve the full sentence.