Shadowing

A couple weeks back I had my first real shadowing experience. Yes, I am a little slow on this one. Most students have had more shadowing by now but I guess I have spent more time volunteering.

I did work at a clinic in New Orleans for a summer years back (2006) but I did a lot of office work and since I didn't have any real experience being right out of high school wasn't allowed to shadow the doctors a whole lot. I did watch them do sutures a couple times that summer but that is a different story.

Anyway, I was assigned a physician to shadow for one of my classes and being that I am actually a medical student now he let me see what actually happens in the exam rooms. He even let me and a fellow student practice our interviewing skills on one of his patients and take a history of present illness. Overall I had a really great time and will probably continue to shadow at his office even after my requirements for class are filled.

His specialty is Internal Medicine and the office is a Primary Care office so it is very similar to what I want to do for my career. Only difference is that my specialty will more than likely be Family Medicine. In the three hours I was there I got to see patients with diabetes, bladder infections, possible STIs, minor sports injuries and even a particular interesting case of bi-polar disorder where the patient cycled 3-4 times in the span of 15 minutes. In other words, I saw a little of everything; and I loved it! It was very interesting and nice to be learning hands on instead of in the classroom.

Some of the doctors tactics were not my style. For instance, he tried to scare one patient into taking her diabetes medicine by telling her that if she did not that she would become blind and her husband would leave her! However, with other patients he was gentle as could be. One elderly patient (who only spoke Arabic) had trouble with his medications so the doctor took the time to write all the doses in Arabic on the bottles so he could take them better at home. I suppose he has decided what works or doesn't work for different patients. Not that I will adapt everything I saw but it was nice to see what 40 years of practicing medicine looks like.

Anyway, overall I had a great time and the doctor who runs the office answered any questions I had. He allowed me to do what I was comfortable with and it is obvious that he is passionate about spreading his knowledge to students. Many of my classmates said their assigned physicians just had them stand in the corner and watch so I feel lucky to be assigned to one that wants students involved and learning in his office. Since I want to be a primary care physician I think shadowing him over the next couple years will be a great way to learn outside of the classroom.