Long days are a part of being a doctor, that much everybody knows. The part that I didn't realise before starting this job was just how mentally draining it is.
My normal shifts on upper GI surgery are from 7:00am to 5:00pm Monday to Friday, so 10 hours a day. I also have roughly one overtime shift per week this term, and I worked one of them last night. So yesterday I was on duty from 7:00am to 11:00pm, which is exactly 16 hours. Our contract states that we have to have a minimum of 8 hours off site between shifts, so I was just barely meeting this requirement. I calculated that in the 48 hours of yesterday and today, I was at work for 25 of them (my registrar let me go home at 4:00pm today because we were having a non-busy day and he knew I'd worked late the night before).
I always find the evening after a 15/16 hour weekday it's best if I just unwind and go to bed early to make up for the sleep I didn't get the night before. So tonight is all about housework, TV and chilling on the couch, and going to bed between 9 and 10pm.
On the very plus side because we had a long weekend (and for once I wasn't working!) I only have 2 more days until the weekend :D
One thing that happened last night really pissed me off. The overtime shift officially begins at 5:00pm, which is when the wards are to start calling the overtime staff for jobs. Before then, the overtime staff have their responsibilities on their day jobs still to do. I got paged by a nurse at the stroke unit at 4:50pm, and when I answered, this is what I got:
Me: Hi, this is BGDino, you paged?
Nurse: Hi this is stroke unit. You need to rechart some meds.
Me: *trying to stay non-angry* Is it that urgent? I'll be coming to do a round soon, can it wait till then?
Nurse: Oh, and also, the patient in bed 1 is short of breath.
Me: *gritting teeth* Are they otherwise stable? How are their observations? (blood pressure, pulse, oxygen saturations, temperature)
Nurse: They're fine.
Me: I'll review them when I get a chance. Thank you.
Now this whole exchange pissed me off for several reasons.
1. I'm not on duty for overtime until 5:00pm, and the day team should still be on, therefore it is rude to page me, especially for a job the day team should have taken care of before they left.
2. Recharting medications is not something urgent that you couldn't have waited for me to do when I came on my rounds when I started duty.
3. The part about the patient being short of breath is infinitely more important than the med chart, and that's the first thing you should have told me.
4. You didn't give me any more information other than the patient is short of breath, how do you expect me to categorise how urgently I need to see this patient?
Le sigh. On the upside, payday tomorrow!
... home of Dino, the Industrial Strength Moral Support Dinosaur, and his lucky owner...
That sounds so frustrating!! *hugs* Make sure you treat yourself to something nice on payday!
ReplyDeleteI sure did enjoy my paycheque :)
ReplyDeleteYayyyy payday!!! Urgh I hate it when people can't use common sense. Like, you;d think the breathing thing is the most important but clearly they didn't... hrrmmmmm!
ReplyDeleteI mean I've only done basic medical training but even I know that's pretty important to tell someone! If she had to page you, could have at least been apologetic to you and said they know it's a day team job, but...
Hi RetroJetGirl! Some nursing staff (and I have to emphasise some, not all) just don't engage their brain before calling the doctors. Makes you seriously appreciate the good ones.
ReplyDelete15-16 hour work days??? I knew it was coming but boy it really has not sunk in that I'll have to be doing those hours in a a couple years. I'm not looking forward to the days when my sleep (and perhaps my judgement) is compromised.
ReplyDelete