Squidman Posted April 8, 2021 Report Share Posted April 8, 2021 I am not a medical student but during the pandemic I have been reaching out to health care professionals via zoom to talk about the basics of their job to see if it is something I would like to try to get into. I had one physician who said that he would let me come in and shadow him when hospital restrictions are lifted (prob in awhile lol). I was just wondering if this is something that is valuable? Do med schools like this? I want to as it sounds so interesting! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ceelbe Posted April 8, 2021 Report Share Posted April 8, 2021 From what I’ve read on this forum, it’s actually (apparently) frowned upon here and people are discouraged from putting it on their applications in Canada or something. Something to do with ethics and all that, but maybe someone else can weigh in on this. But it definitely sounds interesting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheFlyGuy Posted April 8, 2021 Report Share Posted April 8, 2021 It can be a good way to figure out if you really like the day-to-day of a given speciality (which isn’t to be taken lightly, thats important to do), but yeah, shadowing isn’t valued very much in Canada application-wise. Some places even say that they actively exclude that part of your application (as the above poster said, for ethics reasons). So not to say you shouldn’t give it a try if you’re interested to see life inside a clinic, just don’t bank on it scoring you a lot of points EC-wise (unless you’re applying to the states or elsewhere). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butterfly_ Posted April 8, 2021 Report Share Posted April 8, 2021 I think it’s a good idea to get an idea of how physicians work so you can see if it’s the right career for you. Not sure if it’s something you want to put on your on your resume though. Make sure to clarify with the physician about any ethical, liability, and patient confidentiality concerns. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frenchpress Posted April 8, 2021 Report Share Posted April 8, 2021 (edited) I think talking to physicians as you have been is a great idea. As mentioned above, physicians allowing shadowing is actually discouraged by many Canadian medical schools and provincial regulatory colleges because of the privacy, liability and ethical concerns. e.g. https://www.cpsbc.ca/for-physicians/college-connector/2015-V03-05/04 I get that it can be very difficult otherwise to understand what physicians do, but as someone considering being a future physician it’s important to understand why these restrictions often exist. There’s can be a huge power dynamic at play between physicians and their patients, and particularly in hospital patients may be in much more vulnerable situations, and that can be a messy thing to navigate. But (outside of covid times) some provinces and health authorities have authorized routes for shadowing opportunities in health care you can apply for - these more formally address privacy (i.e. you often have to sign something, agree to certain policies, etc) and cover liability. And in some provinces it’s fine if you just follow certain steps. I’d research options where you are, and you maybe be able to work with the physician who invited you to see what their hospital/health authority policy is on it. e.g.https://www.cps.sk.ca/iMIS/Documents/Legislation/Policies/GUIDELINE - Medical Practice Observation.pdf https://albertahealthservices.ca/careers/page12347.aspx https://cumming.ucalgary.ca/departments/surgery/education/observerships https://www.lhsc.on.ca/student-affairs-non-medical/observerships-job-shadow Edited April 8, 2021 by frenchpress Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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