I’ve been taking a few hours away from studying this weekend to watch the first days of the Olympics. It’s been exciting to watch Shawn White and Chad Hedrick compete for gold metals.

The Olympics had me thinking about successful teams and all the people involved in achieving their goals, including medicine. Behind any good physician is an excellent staff. How many of us have been on the receiving end of a rude front office staffer at a physician’s office? No matter how competent the physician, a poor office staff can destroy our patients’ experiences in our offices. The office staff, in fact all support staff, whether in the office, the OR, or the hospital floors, are an integral part of any successful medical team.

I’m sure my experiences as a resident have not been unique in that I’ve dealt with all levels of medical staff, from attending physicians, to nurses of various levels, to residents, to students. I’d have to say that with a few exceptions, my experiences have been very positive with a respectful interchange of knowledge between all parties involved. I’ve had a couple of doozies, of course, the folks who’ve tried my patience and taught me how NOT to behave.

I once had a CNA who thought she could teach me how to put on a thigh tourniquet. A deep breath on my part and some diplomatic and respectful speech kept this from turning into a rumble in the OR!

Most of the time, however, our support staff functions as a true team for our patients’ benefit. We often take our staff for granted, but they’re often our coworkers and friends and deserve our fullest respect. What memorable experiences have you had with support staff during your training? Write in with stories, both positive and negative.

The Geriatric Bobsled Team

The Geriatric Bobsled Team takes off
 

SEND YOUR COMMENTS TO ME BY CLICKING ON THIS LINK

As with all PRESENT publications, all issues of Residency Rap will be stored on the PRESENT  website, so if you miss an issue or you want to refer back to a prior issue, it'll be at:

http://www.podiatricresidency.com/residencyrap/