Imagine the following scenarios:
1. Your attending approaches you one morning after rounds. You are excited because he actually knows your name and he seems to be taking an interest in you. Then he pops the question: "Can you go pick up my dry cleaning for me?" You first response to his request is:
A. WTF I am a medical student, NOT your personal assistant. Pick up your own goddamn dry cleaning!
B. WTF, I'm not your personal assistant! But since you asked me I guess I have to.
C. Anything for honors!
D. Really? You mean I get to go outside of the hospital for 45 minutes? In the sunshine? Can I pick your kids up from school too?
2. A fellow med student on your rotation tells you that she's planning on baking cookies for the team to bring in for rounds tomorrow. You immediate reaction to this is:
A. Awesome! Free cookies! I hope she's good at baking.
B. Bitch. Now *I* have to bring in something too.
C. Dammit, *I* was going to bring in cookies tomorrow.
D. You start fantasizing about lacing the cookies with polyethylene glycol. Because they all deserve it.
3. You notice that a certain male resident has been paying you a lot more attention than he does to the male medical student on your team. He's been taking the time to show you how to tie knots and teach you stuff about the patients you are operating on. You suspect he thinks you're hot. Your first reaction to this is:
A. Start dropping hints that you are happily married.
B. OMG, somebody is taking the time to teach me! He must think I am really smart and talented!
C. Flirt back. Anything for honors! Your husband will understand.
D. Quietly thank God that you remembered to leave your wedding ring at home that day.
If you answered A to most questions, congratulations, you will probably barely pass your third year clerkships.
If you answered B to most questions, congratulations, you have bought into the system and you are made to be a doctor.
If you answered C to most questions, congratulations, you are a gunner. You have learned to play the system just like the oboe you wrote about playing on your personal statement for your application to medical school.
If you answered D to most questions, congratulations, you are completely normal. What the hell are you doing in medical school?
Dresses!
6 hours ago
5 Pearls of Wisdom:
I'm not going to laugh because this is entirely too true.
Hope your "new" team works out to be much better.
HA! But seriously: What did you do about the dry cleaning? Because my first response would be to laugh in the guy's face -- "HA HA YOU'RE KIDDING RIGHT?" -- but then the sunshine is a pretty compelling argument.
I chose D for questions #1 and #3, and B for question #2. Technically, for #1 it was, "Can you get me food from the cafeteria." I took 10 extra minutes to call my husband whom I hadn't spoken to in three days. Fucking night float.
If it was food, then that's not as bad, but some attendings have asked students to get their dry cleaning or watch their kids. It is the worst situation to be put in, but should be reported. You are paying to learn, not be treated like an assistant. What do you learn from taking care of someone's shit? Nothing. This kind of crap really ticks me off because you're worried about your grade more than anything...medical education at it's finest.
Best post ever.
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