This week in the ER made me realize that your experience working at your internship is completely up to you. You'll get more out of your internship if you put more in. I realized this when I was having a particularly boring day in the ER. There were no big traumas, I couldn't enroll any patients in any of our studies, and I was quite bored staring at my computer all day. I really had nothing to do. Our trainers warned us that this might happen since our research is completely dependent on who walks in the door of the ER and what illness(es) they walk in with. Our trainers said to simply make the best of it.
It was so easy to just sit there and watch the seconds tick by but that's not why I was there. I took this internship so I could really understand what it's like to work in a hospital and what being a doctor actually entails. So I decided to take matters in my own hands and I gathered the courage to ask one of the ER residents if I could shadow him. He was so nice and was even flattered that I wanted to shadow him! I had the opportunity of seeing him interact with patients and what his daily work load is like. It was a great experience! I'm so happy I had the courage to take matters into my own hands and actually enjoy my downtime in the ER. Instead of thinking of my internship as boring, I decided to change perspectives and become more active in ER. Overall, it was a great week and now instead of dreading downtime, I look forward to it!
It was so easy to just sit there and watch the seconds tick by but that's not why I was there. I took this internship so I could really understand what it's like to work in a hospital and what being a doctor actually entails. So I decided to take matters in my own hands and I gathered the courage to ask one of the ER residents if I could shadow him. He was so nice and was even flattered that I wanted to shadow him! I had the opportunity of seeing him interact with patients and what his daily work load is like. It was a great experience! I'm so happy I had the courage to take matters into my own hands and actually enjoy my downtime in the ER. Instead of thinking of my internship as boring, I decided to change perspectives and become more active in ER. Overall, it was a great week and now instead of dreading downtime, I look forward to it!
I am also working in a hospital setting and know exactly what it feels like to be bummed about having nothing to do. I have taken a similar approach to filling my time by asking everyone if they need assistance in order I keep busy and learn as much as I can about the flow of patient care.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree, your post caught me in the opening line -- it is definitely what you make of it!
ReplyDeleteYour post caught me in the opening line--internships are totally what you make of them, so keep making the most of it!
ReplyDeleteYou make a great point about taking matters into your own hands! I definitely agree from my own internship experience, even though we are doing quite different things. Keep working hard!
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