On the hospital floor
As planned, I started working on Tuesday. The first day was pretty much occupied with admin and HR stuff. I had originally intended to work in A&E as I have not had a chance to do that in UK but was advised to do few weeks in Medicine to get to know the various departments before going to A&E. This is not really a proper rotation but a transit period before my training starts.
Its a little bit different walking in the hospital; doctors still wear white coats, most activities are senior led and nursing staff do far more than what I am used to in the NHS. I recognised few people as class mates from school or university and my first impression is that of a friendly place with colleagues who are trying really hard to make you feel welcomed. The consultant who meets all the new doctors makes a fantastic first impression and does a good job of encouraging people to turn a deaf ear to all the whining and negativity that is floating in the air. The work load is much less than RBH and you do, at times, feel the need to really make an effort to find an activity. On the management side, there are few draconian practices like finger print attendance record and HR approval of short 2 hour breaks and sick leaves.
Not bad so far.
September 27th, 2007 at 8:28 pm
welcome home dude.
September 27th, 2007 at 9:18 pm
lol @ few draconian practices like finger print attendance record and HR approval of short 2 hour breaks and sick leaves.
XD XD it is indeed, when I worked in ** hospital, hr departmentand ppl used to had fights to get thier finger print right!!! kinda funny :P
oooo Goood luck bro..
September 28th, 2007 at 5:26 pm
(doctors still wear white coats)
September 29th, 2007 at 12:31 am
Good luck doc. :)
September 29th, 2007 at 9:49 pm
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September 29th, 2007 at 9:52 pm
thanks everyone who wished me good luck :)
Sugar, white coats are a major source of cross infection and you would need to try very hard in the UK or US to find someone wearing them still.
Asheh, thank you. well, i am now whats called in UAE (+canadian+us) system a “RESIDENT” in terms of training, i meant military training rather than medical :)
September 30th, 2007 at 1:01 pm
Yay exciting! Love new places and transitions, the unexpected is always exciting, keep the attitude.
One point… if “white coats are a major source of cross infection ”
that is true then your street clothes will be just the same unless you change between patients rooms. I think there has been mixed reports on that, I would think the dangly ties and sheilas would be the bigger problem.
In Canada, people in medicine and in Surgery still wear it, I guess party because they don’t want to contaminate their own clothes by unpredictable fluids here and there. True not everybody wears the white coat, but in general they do with the exception of Psychiatry and pediatrics (not to scare the little ones with the white coat).
September 30th, 2007 at 4:51 pm
we’ve got disposable gowns.makes more sense
October 1st, 2007 at 7:10 am
i’ll receive my first white coat today :(
can you say something else about it .. more positive..
October 1st, 2007 at 3:58 pm
HLH, thanks.. you seem to have settled well in your new place.. no more needing to leave the country to advance your professional career :) i envy you for that,
I see your point about white coats I dont agree with it though - white coats dont tend to be washed as much as normal clothes and they tend to be worn lose so its easier for them to pick up nasty stuff.
Lanieres, much more sense.. but then again, disposable gowns are for proceedures not for all day long.
H@ they look cute? lol thats as much as i can say about them
October 2nd, 2007 at 5:16 pm
cute? butchers coats as theyr called down these ends ;p
ur in the contaminated area, gown on. leave, gown off.
makes codes of practice ppl happy!
October 2nd, 2007 at 6:58 pm
maybe..but i have 2 say that coats are much cuter :p
and am still in collage so i’ll enjoy my coat 4 the next few years :D
October 2nd, 2007 at 10:29 pm
:) e3ashig…I am leaving mid January…for a year though and then I will be back for another culture shock ;)
I guess you are right about not washing the lab coat as frequently…when I used to wear them, I used to wash them everyday…that explains the dozen of them in my store now.
H : lab coat can hide flows if you are a girl ;) or a guy for that matter. and if you look younger than your “stated age”, then the lab coat can give you a more matured look that makes it believable you are a doc. You can put your quick reference books, cards, other gadgets, anything… and it keeps you warm :) how about that?
October 3rd, 2007 at 5:59 pm
(then I will be back for another culture shock)
i haven’t left UAE for more than a month so am not a judge for that matter. But u guys make it sound like a brain washing period when you are away.
H - i was happy with my when i started to wear my lab coat ;p
i agree with HLH s/he’s right on the facts s/he mentioned regarding the coat. I also wash them daily so no problem in regards to cross-infection. Also, in UAE if you wear a lab coat you are a doctor :p specially when dealing with an elderly coz they can’t really read ur job title from your ID.
October 4th, 2007 at 12:45 pm
Sugar…maybe you should try to leave it for more than a month to know what some of us feel when we return, it is not only about living in another country and its system, its also about working in a totally different system. Nobody is brain washed, it is a period of re adjustment and getting to recognize and accept/live with some changes we missed during our time away and things we took for granted.
True about the elderly :)
October 4th, 2007 at 1:38 pm
HLH…thanks..(( coat can give you a more matured look that makes it believable you are a doc. )) totally true :)
suger..coats are the new Fashion in the college these days..
October 6th, 2007 at 4:29 pm
Salam,
Was wondering if you have met Dr. Ateq Ali and what you think of him. He is a consultant/general surgeon.
October 6th, 2007 at 4:35 pm
nami, i havent met him. Never heared of the name actually.
October 11th, 2007 at 9:28 am
ok, thanks for replying. just wanted to check. he works at al mafraq hospital in abu dhabi.