The On-time Doctor

 

When Dr. Dev (fictional name) was working as an assistant professor in the department of surgery, they used to see and treat emergency patients along with routine cases in the morning Outpatient department (OPD) clinic. Therefore, some doctors (surgeons) needed to be always present right from the beginning of the OPD clinic until its end.

Once Dr. Dev had to take a class of undergraduate medical students in the morning at the same time that the OPD clinic used to start. Dr. Dev asked one of the junior residents working in their unit to come to OPD early to attend to any emergency patient if needed. 

The junior resident said, “Don’t worry sir; I will be in OPD at the right time.” Dr. Dev replied, “Don’t be on time. Be there before time.” The junior resident quizzically looked at Dr. Dev.

Dr. Dev explained, “It is almost impossible to reach a place exactly on time. Some or another unexpected problem occurs delaying us. In addition, we frequently underestimate the time taken to reach a place. We think it will take just two minutes but it takes 5-6 minutes. Always aim to reach the place before time, so that you are never late.”

“Learn from the example of my friend Dr. JP (fictional name), who is a medical officer in the Medicine department. I find him sitting in the Superintendent's office waiting area 10 to 15 minutes before the OPD starting time. I once asked him, why does he always come before time?”

Dr. JP replied, “It takes me just 10 to 15 minutes to reach the hospital from my house. I used to reach the hospital on time even when I left home at 8.45 a.m. But once or twice it occurred that some patient came for consultation just as I was departing from my home to come to the hospital. I could not refuse to see them on humanitarian grounds, but due to that I got delayed in reaching the hospital.” 

He further continued, “Now I always start at 8.30 am from my house so that even if some patient comes at that time, I can see him and yet reach the hospital on time. When no one comes, I reach the hospital 15 minutes before time. Therefore, I wait here until the OPD starting time. These 15 minutes is my buffer time.”

As Lord Horatio Nelson said, “I owe all my success in life to having been always a quarter of an hour before my time.”

So always, aim to reach the place 15 minutes before time and not just on time.

— ND

(Based on allegedly true incident.)

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DISCLAIMER: This article is intended only for fun purposes. The author does not promote or recommend any behavior illustrated here or claim it to be useful. Use the information herein is at your one's own risk. Before trying to emulate or follow anything the reader is well advised to take into account ethical, moral, legal, and other considerations. The author recommends that Medical Practice should be of the highest ethical and moral level keeping in mind the interest of the patient as foremost. The author recommends that Medical Education should be of the highest ethical and moral level keeping in mind the interest of the patient and students as foremost and according to NMC and other Board norms. 

The Hungry Resident Doctor

 

The operation theater (OT) in AIIMS, New Delhi used to run non-stop from 8.00 am in the morning till 4.00 pm afternoon. The surgery professor was operating and two junior residents were assisting him. One of the junior resident doctors had just joined the surgery department and it was his first day in the operation theater. 

Midway through the operation, the new junior resident asked the professor, “Sir, it is 2.00 p.m. and I am feeling hungry. Can I go to the hostel and have my lunch?” 

On hearing this all movements stopped in the OT. Everyone stared at the new junior resident in astonishment. The surgery residents used to work non-stop when the OT was running and the junior most residents used to not even get time to go to the hospital canteen adjoining the OT let alone the hostel mess.

The surgery professor looked up icily at the new resident and replied, “You can go and have your meal today. But next time either don’t come to the OT or don’t ask to go for lunch during OT time.”

The junior resident went for lunch that day but never again was seen leaving the OT for food after that day.

In the same operation theater, while the operations were going in full swing, the anesthesia professor who was supervising two operation theaters entered that OT and asked the anesthesia assistant professor, “Is the patient stable? Is there any problem?” The assistant professor replied, “No ma’am, there is no problem. Everything is going smoothly.” 

The professor further asked, “How many residents are there in this OT?” The assistant professor replied, there are two junior residents and one senior resident posted here with me.” The professor asked, “Did you all have tea and something to eat with it?” No, ma’am” replied the assistant professor, “None of us had eaten anything since the morning after the OT started.”

The professor exclaimed, “What! It is nearly 1 O’clock and none of you had something to eat. Send the junior residents and then the senior resident one by one to have tea and eat something immediately. Once the senior resident has returned then you also go and have something to eat. The senior resident may call me if needed in your absence.”

It was clear that, unlike the anesthesia professor, the surgery professor had not heard ‘An army marches on its stomach’ a saying attributed to Napoleon Bonaparte and Frederick the Great. It means that soldiers cannot function properly unless they are well-fed. To be effective the army has to be supplied with good and enough food.

Thankfully, in the corporate world, there is now growing awareness and many companies are providing lavish and free food for their staff in their office campus with proper breaks in between as a means to increase employees' productivity and work satisfaction.

Some other points from the anesthesia professor’s instructions: She made sure that the junior residents were sent first for refreshments and the assistant professor last. It happens in many places where the seniors can take a break and have something while the junior most staff keep on working. When the anesthesia junior residents went on the food break, their work had to be shared by the senior resident and the assistant professor. This may be resented by them and they may not allow them to go.  

This used to happen in the surgery department also when the final year junior residents were able to take time off to go the canteen while making the first-year junior residents work non-stop without giving them even time to drink water in between cases. 

Also, the anesthesia professor took on the responsibilities and duties of the assistant professor, while she went on her tea break. It is the duty of the top management to ensure that the junior most staff get the much-deserved break even if at the cost of working in their place.

Making sure that your employees, subordinates or juniors are well-fed is good human resource management and not weak leadership.

— ND

(Based on allegedly true incident.)

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The Weight Loss Resident

 

Dr. Stella (fictional name) was a junior resident doctor in the surgery department. She met one of her friends after some time.

On seeing Dr. Stella, the friend exclaimed, “Stella! What has happened to you? You are looking so thin.”

Dr. Stella explained, “I was posted in another surgery unit two months ago. I have to work so hard in this unit that I am rapidly losing weight.

“What?’ her friend cried, “If so, then why don’t you talk to your head of the department and get yourself transferred to some another unit?”

“Of course, I will” Dr. Stella replied, “but only after I lose 10 kilos more and gain a ‘Barbie-Doll’ like figure.”

— ND

(Based on allegedly true incident.)

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DISCLAIMER: This article is intended only for fun purposes. The author does not promote or recommend any behavior illustrated here or claim it to be useful. Use the information herein is at your one's own risk. Before trying to emulate or follow anything the reader is well advised to take into account ethical, moral, legal, and other considerations. The author recommends that Medical Practice should be of the highest ethical and moral level keeping in mind the interest of the patient as foremost. The author recommends that Medical Education should be of the highest ethical and moral level keeping in mind the interest of the patient and students as foremost and according to NMC and other Board norms. 

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The 98 % Doctor

 

Dr. Jolting (fictional name) was taking the ward round with the junior resident doctors. In addition to inspecting and checking the patient’s latest status, Dr. Jolting was also reviewing the status of work completed by the junior resident looking after the patients in that ward which were instructed in the last round. They reached the patient on the last bed in the ward. Until that time the ward round was proceeding satisfactorily as the junior resident doctor had completed all the work allotted to him in the previous round.

At the last bed, Dr. Jolting got angry when he found that the resident doctor had not completed one work that was instructed to him in the last ward round. The junior resident looked hurt. He countered, ‘Sir, I have done almost all the work instructed in the last round. I have missed only this one work, I deserve praise for all the work done and not reprimand for  not doing just one small task.’

 Dr. Jolting asked, ‘Do you know what is DNA?’

 The resident looked surprised at this apparently out-of-context question but answered, ‘Of course, sir, DNA is the molecule that carries the genetic information for the development, functioning, and growth of all organisms. It is responsible for carrying and transmitting the hereditary characteristics or the genetic instructions from parents to offspring.’

‘Quite right,’ agreed Dr. Jolting, ‘And, do you know what Chimpanzees are?’

The resident looked confused at another out-of-context question but answered, ‘Yes sir, they are a type of great ape or monkeys quite similar to humans.’

  Dr. Jolting elucidated, ‘Yes, but do you know that the Chimpanzees have 98.8% DNA similar to human beings? There is a difference of only 1.2%. A tiny difference of 1 to 2% in DNA can make us chimpanzees and not humans.’

  ‘Similarly, our patients, the public, the media, the judiciary, and the world expect us to do 100% of our work with 100% efficiency. So learn to complete 100% of your work with perfection or leave the medical profession.’

— ND

(Based on allegedly true incident.)

Link to American Museum of Natural History Website https://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/permanent/human-origins/understanding-our-past/dna-comparing-humans-and-chimps

 Link to Wikipedia pages on DNA:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DNA 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Introduction_to_genetics 

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DISCLAIMER: This article is intended only for fun purposes. The author does not promote or recommend any behavior illustrated here or claim it to be useful. Use the information herein is at your one's own risk. Before trying to emulate or follow anything the reader is well advised to take into account ethical, moral, legal, and other considerations. The author recommends that Medical Practice should be of the highest ethical and moral level keeping in mind the interest of the patient as foremost. The author recommends that Medical Education should be of the highest ethical and moral level keeping in mind the interest of the patient and students as foremost and according to NMC and other Board norms. 

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