When aspiring medical practitioners get too engrossed into their medical textbooks and scientific concepts, they tend to forget that one of the most important qualities that every doctor must have is people skills. What does this mean? Being a doctor, you are not only expected to diagnose patients, perform operations or administer medication. The medical profession expects you not just to heal but to be well-rounded. To bring out the best in your job performance, you are expected to assume teaching and counseling responsibilities. Interpersonal skills or people skills are a must in the medical profession.
Better doctor-patient relationship
If you were a patient, how would you like your doctor to treat you? Most patients rely on their doctors to treat their medical problems. A patient would lean on them so doctors need to cultivate a patient-doctor relationship based on trust. This relations will ease the tension and allow the doctors to perform their duties more effectively. In general, patients prefer friendly and approachable doctors. Treatment is easier when a patient can explain his/her situation or forward questions to the doctor. To get a full picture of your patient’s concerns and feelings, you will need to be approachable and amicable enough to be entrusted with true feelings.
Healthier working environment
Just as keeping the doctor-patient relations is important, maintaining good working relationships with the other staff members of the hospital is necessary too. Bear in mind that medical practice and profession works best as a team – nurses administer IV fluids, hematologists perform blood tests, and radiologists operate X-ray machines. In general, only two kinds of doctors exist: the doctors we love and the doctors we love to hate. “Doctors we love to hate” designate most of their work and blame their mistakes to other people. On the other hand, “doctors we love” respect co-workers through polite requests and giving compliments for each job well done. Treat your colleagues as your equals because no matter what you do, the M.D. after your surname cannot aid you to accomplish work; you need your colleagues and team members to do your job better.
The real definition of a successful bypass operation or perfect surgical stitch suture is not sufficient to save a patient’s life. It actually starts after the conduct of critical medical procedure. Having established a reputable doctor-patient relationship can make you easily convince your patient to commit to a healthy lifestyle, and understand that the fastest way to recovery is your patient’s willingness to heal.
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It is a common thought that all medical graduates pursue medical practice. This however is not true to all graduate of medical school; some end up joining the corporate world. This does not mean though that you have put to waste what you have learned during your four challenging years in medical school. Medical education can still be maximized in a non-hospital setting. You can opt to pursue other alternative careers after graduating from medical school. Listed below are some tips you can check out on getting an alternative career after medical school.
Genetic counseling
Genetic counseling is a health profession that entails providing medical information and emotional support to families having histories of genetic disorders. Some medical students naturally excel and put more interest in genetics as a subject. If you do enjoy this subject, you will probably want to consider developing a career in genetic counseling. Being a genetic counselor, you perform a mix of doctor duties and social work: you gather information on a family’s hereditary background and analyze genetic patterns to assist them in understanding the risks of genetic disorders and their implications to birth defects.
Important courses: genetics, psychology, biology, and public health
Medical examiner
Test your interest: which do you enjoy watching – House or CSI? If you chose CSI then maximize your interest and medical education wisely by becoming a medical examiner. As a medical examiner, your job is similar to every typical activity in your gross anatomy class: to cut up cadavers. The difference is that you get paid lots of money and you are required to determine what caused the person’s death. You get highly paid because your role is very essential in forensic science; it becomes the main focus of the investigation.
Important courses: biochemistry, physiology, pathology and anatomy
When people are still kids, they dream of become great someday; a good number of kids dream of becoming doctors. This dream is founded on their ambition to do service and save peoples’ lives. Working in the hospital however is not the only way to render service. You can still apply the lessons gained in medical school to counsel people and give expert advice to different organizations and companies. This way you can still serve the people but not in the traditional medical practice.
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In medical school, all-nighters are inevitable. With voluminous work and time pressure that prevail in medical school, you are left with no choice but to pull an all-nighter. This is considered by many medical students as a “rite of passage” to be able to qualify to the medical world. This unavoidable choice has consequences, especially because losing hours of sleep is unhealthy. Below are some tips to aid you in coping with medical school all-nighters.
Limit sugar and caffeine intake
Most all-nighters take in soda, chocolate, coffee, soda, energy drinks and candy to keep them awake all night through. While this is not a healthy habit, it is practiced by medical students with the need to cope with work the whole night. However, the intake of sugary food and caffeinated beverages will affect your concentration, which can seriously affect the way you think during examinations. Instead, an alternative would be to take in protein-rich foods such as cheese and sandwiches rather than having caffeine and sweets for midnight snacks. This is a healthier habit since protein-rich food improves metabolism, boosts brain power, and develops immunities.
Find time to get more sleep
Even if all-nighters are required to be awake the whole night, it is advisable to find some time to take an hour-long nap. This is where a system such as team work in a study group comes in. Since most all-nighters are spent with a group of classmates, request one of your classmates if it is possible to cover for you while you doze off. You can also cover for your classmate the next time. Find the best way to make this possible since when you are deprived of sleep it affects your concentration and eventually your health. Lack of concentration affects your decision-making skills, and even turns you moody. Keep in mind that when you are too sleepy to work the next day, it will not give you any benefit.
It is not wise to pull an all-nighter every time a chance comes along as it is very dangerous to your health. Insufficient sleeping time will drastically impact on your Circadian rhythms, and even your short-term memory. Thus, to avoid all-nighters, make sure you are focused during classes. Recently, studies show that medical students who frequently pull all-nighters have low GPAs. In the end, lack of sleep will prevent you from reaching your full academic potential instead of improving your academic standing. So, do you still want to have all-nighters during exam weeks?
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The TV drama Grey’s Anatomy is one of the popular television shows in the US today, which focuses on surgery. Viewers who have a limited background in the medical profession will probably get confused when they watch the show because of the differing titles of the doctors. Why are Meredith and her friends called “residents,” while George remains an “intern”? Why does everyone call Dr. Webber “chief”? For the sake of the confused non-medical viewers, here is a glossary of common hospital staff terms.
Medical interns
Medicals interns are first-year residents who have recently graduated from medical school. Because they are still medical interns, they still have to gain hands-on medical experience; so they are allowed to scrub in for some minor surgical procedures.
Medical residents
Medical residents are the medical students who manage to pass their medical boards and intern exams. Further, medical residents are legally recognized doctors who practice medicine with the supervision of attending physicians. In addition to practicing medicine, medical residents also teach and supervise duties of medical interns.
Attending physicians
Attending physicians are doctors who have finished training for their medical specializations. They are the “doctors in charge” in their respective sub-departments. Attending physicians are fully responsible for the medical care of their patients as well as the clinical performance of their medical residents. Equally, attending physicians teach interns and train residents in teaching hospitals. These are done for the purpose of becoming better medical practitioners.
Chief attending
In every institution a boss is needed. In a hospital setting, the chief attending is the big boss. The chief attending is an attending physician who takes care of the overall organization of the whole hospital department. In the case of Seattle Grace Hospital surgical department, that role is given to Dr. Richard Webber.
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What qualities make doctors successful? Maybe medical doctors or even medical students themselves will have difficulty in answering when asked this question. Some may say their outstanding grades, others their excellent choice of a medical school and others their determination. These are all contributory factors toward being a successful doctor. Getting categorical answers entail additional reading and research; but if you are curious enough, here are some tips to start reading and help you become a great physician someday:
Successful doctors are excellent communicators
Active interaction with colleagues and other members of society is inevitable as well as important in medical practice. In a sample case: Dr. Cristina Yang of Grey’s Anatomy. Dr. Yang graduated with top honors from Stanford Medical School and received her PhD from Berkeley. She has excellent surgical skills and is like a walking medical textbook. Dr. Yang however is not at ease talking with her patients or able to handle well the delivery of terrible news. In this case, people skills are missing. In medical practice, a balanced medical aptitude and social skills is a must if you want to be a successful doctor. Patients are people and need special care during their unhealthy times; treating with sensitivity is necessary.
Successful doctors are keen observers
Doctors need to be observant during treatment of diseases and disorders. Some symptoms may be small or light but can be even more serious. Malaria for example starts with a tiny mosquito bite, and cancer begins with a small malignant tumor. Being keen on details is very important in medical practice as it will help you easily identify the cause of an illness of a patient or related problem. Having an eye for your patient’s situation will help you save lives. In medical practice, you have to stay alert and observant at all times before things get worse. Being vigilant helps you build a successful career in medicine.
Successful doctors are time management experts
Yes, time management is very essential to medical practice. Time management skill starts right when you enter medical school and not during medical residency only. Starting to practice time management skills during medical school does not only help you study well and get more sleep but also to build and excellent medical career. Getting well organized will help you avoid laziness and tardiness, your class schedules will be planned earlier and get you to bed on time as scheduled.
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The toughest thing to manage is being in two serious commitments at a time – marriage and medical school. These are considered tough as they both carry the same weight in needing 100% dedication and responsibility. What would you expect when you fall into a situation as this? Do you have coping mechanisms to perform both responsibilities at the same time?
Juggling spousal responsibilities and medical school work
Being a married woman and attending medical school is a very complicated situation to be in. Duties of being a wife at home and to your husband are expected of you while you are equally expected to do well in medical classes. This can really be difficult for you and would need to find some coping mechanism to reduce some of your menial load and get doing more significant responsibilities in medical school. If you can afford it get some household help. It is very helpful to plan ahead for these multi-tasks if you have had the chance as it will help you unload most of lighter responsibilities to get the chance to accomplish heavier ones.
Balancing marriage, medical school work, and parenting
Parenting is the most complicated duty to juggle with medical school. It takes a lot of energy and will power to be able to take care of your children, maintain your marriage and at the same time. You must find a way to learn how to turn your difficulties into an asset. Managing your time skillfully and having the discipline to stick to it is a powerful tool for you to succeed. Being able to identify coping mechanisms and finally making it happen will head you on to success. With your time off in medical school, spend quality time with your spouse and child. What matters most is you have time for your family in any way possible.
If you are still single, better to wait before getting married until you have graduated or during residency before having a family. As much as possible avoid things that will complicate your studies. A baby deserves more time for caring the same as starting a family thus it is always wise to plan out when to get into marriage when planning to get into medical school. This is a fair way to treat your family, your career and yourself. So control your time and do things one step at a time.
In case it cannot de avoided, plan your steps and manage your time with the discipline needed. Besides, you will need an inspiration and a warm and sweet affection from your supportive partner when coming home after a stressful day in medical school.
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Most medical students who apply for admission to medical schools are science majors who spend college years studying organic chemistry or comparative vertebrate anatomy to prepare for medical school. What then will happen if you majored in political science or journalism but realize your skill and interest lies in a medical career? Is it still possible to get into medical school?
Yes, you can definitely get into medical school. With a science major, however, you can enter medical school with the accomplishment of certain requirements as prerequisites to qualify for admission. If you are a non-science major, bear in mind that you will need passing marks in the required science courses for medical school prior to filling up that medical school application form.
Science courses required in medical school
Science subjects are required for enrollment to medical school, which you need to take up in college if you’re a non-science major. The science courses required for medical school include physics, biology, chemistry, and mathematics. Most medical schools also require applicants to take up basic psychology units to be able to qualify for enrollment. This is because basic psychology prepares a medical student for medical psychology, more so if you want to pursue a career in psychiatry. Non-science subjects such as English, humanities, and social sciences are also necessary to get into medical school.
Personal statement tips for non-science majors
In medical school admission, science majors have an advantage over non-science majors. This is true since science majors have dealt with actual dissection and other laboratory work in their lessons. This is where the challenge comes in – how will a non-science major like you be able to increase your chances to getting accepted to medical school? To increase your chances, you need to prepare and submit a well-written personal statement. The personal statement is a written appeal to the medical school admission evaluators expounding why you are worthy to become a student in medical school. Your objective is to convince the evaluators that your non-science major is essential to medical practice. Take time to recall your lessons in college and strategically associate them with medical practice.
Although science major is still preferred as pre-medical degree to get you into most medical schools, it doesn’t mean that non-science majors are not accepted. If you have finished history or fine arts but are determined to enroll to medical school, don’t give up. In the end, hard work and perseverance are success factors in medical school.
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