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One of the less fine moments in life as a house officer- or any profession, really- is the need to inform certain matters to your boss knowing, most probably, that you will be berated for the information.
Deteriorating or collapsed patients are not included- those require immediate attention and only irresponsible bosses will refuse to heed your call. I'm talking about things in the grey area of urgency, which- unfortunately- make up the bulk of our time. Additionally, these gray-area issues contribute to a major portion of our bosses' source of anger.
By bosses I mean MOs, obviously. You don't normally immediately inform your specialists of abnormalities, do you?
There is no getting around it, nevertheless.
Sure people tell you to be resilient, otherwise don't become doctor lor, but that sentiment doesn't help much since you weren't born with the resilience of other people. Nor were you raised the same way. Upbringing contributes to resilience too.
I am a rather sensitive person. Malays may call it the tissue heart syndrome, or 'hati tisu'. Getting a scolding will probably lower my mood for the entirety of the day- so getting scolded early in the day really affects my performance.
But I've learned some adaptive maneuvers, more or less. Mind you they're not miracle solutions, nor are they magic, but they seem to work on me a little.
Okay, a lot, since people think I barely get affected by scoldings some days it's ridiculous.
And at the end of the day, I'm still enjoying my time here which means I'm not too negatively affected.
I sincerely hope this helps others too.
- Preparing/Psyching
- During this time, you should really know your case; the patient's history and progress, and why what you are about to inform can significantly impact the patient's management and perhaps their life
- Convince YOURSELF that it is important
- Tell yourself it is for the PATIENT- no one else is more important
- Before informing, make sure you have assessed the patient and done the basic steps of management accordingly. If you're not sure, try asking your seniors- yes, that includes your senior nurses who have seen the same management chain day in, day out for years. Bosses hate mere informants
- On the other hand, some bosses hate the idea of you giving your own prescription/management, so just tailor what you do based on what you know of this boss.
- Remember that your boss is not your God. And the moment of wrath, if it comes, will PASS soon enough (this is especially important with more malignant bosses)
- If the last point is not enough, believe that God is fair and those who are truly not well-meaning will get their due
- While informing
- Take deep breaths. Don't rush through it. Better to be a little slower and pace yourself rather than rushing irrelevant and potentially wrong information out of your troubled tongue
- Look ANYWHERE but your malignant boss's expression UNTIL YOU FINISH PRESENTING. Over the phone, this is made infinitely easier
- Remember to be unfailingly polite and humble no matter what. Not for the sake of the boss, but for your own and others in the vicinity
- Don't overthink your boss's reaction before it is received. Just keep your information- and the patient- in mind while you are informing
- If the boss starts asking questions in a scolding manner, just try your best to answer with what you know and bear in mind that any scolding you are about to receive is fine. It is totally fine. It is temporary.
- Remember your responsibility and your duty
- Aftermath
- If you were scolded, with no positive criticism given- throw the wrathful aspects of the session into a mental wastebasket, and chuck it into the ocean- along with your anger and disappointment. No, seriously, it works, if only a little.
- Keep any positive scraps of the scolding session into your mental scrapbook of improvement (or, you know, jot the new knowledge down somewhere safe and more tangible, like a tiny notebook or your phone, where you can easily retrieve them)
- Remember, again, that you were just doing your duty and your intentions were right (see preparing/psyching, bullet number three
- Remind yourself that you are still learning- and as a house officer, that is your NUMBER ONE goal
- Look forward to your next pleasurable activity whenever you feel like stewing over the disappointing event, preferably one far away from the hospital walls
- Remember it's only a few months of your life until you're not directly under said malignant boss!
- Remember moments when you were praised. If it's too wounded, your ego needs a boost to function. You're not entirely worthless, mmkay?
Dah.
Tomorrow is a new day!
