Wednesday, January 12, 2005
Sick as a Dog
I've just found out that there IS something worse than doing an on-call and getting zero hours sleep. And that's doing an on-call while being unwell, and getting zero hours sleep.
To be honest, the take wasn't really that busy, but being saddled with a presentation at the eleventh hour (okay, the fourth hour post noon) for the next day is always a bad thing, and so I spent most of the evening wandering between wards reading up case notes and dozing off, and sneezing. Sneezing, incidentally, can be extremely tiring and I rather suspect someday someone will come up with an exercise programme that involves a lot of snuff.
It struck me while I wandered around in my illy-insomniac haze that the house officers here are truly remarkable. These guys literally keep the hospital running in the wee hours of the morning, tirelessly (? robotically?) trawling all the wards over, and over, and over again.
Back "home" in the UK we always officially knocked off at eleven or twelve. It was The Law - part of the Calmann act to ensure adequate sleep - and thus safety - of the staff. Senior house officers (ie MOs) provided the late-night cover for the hospital, and only on demand, ie when telephoned to do chores; otherwise the hospital was run by nurses, and nurse practitioners (who worked night shifts).
I have to admire these guys for their fortitude, yet at the same time I honestly think the system needs to be overhauled.
Oh, and while we're at it, it would be nice if there were more pretty female house officers, can we make that part of the selection criteria...
To be honest, the take wasn't really that busy, but being saddled with a presentation at the eleventh hour (okay, the fourth hour post noon) for the next day is always a bad thing, and so I spent most of the evening wandering between wards reading up case notes and dozing off, and sneezing. Sneezing, incidentally, can be extremely tiring and I rather suspect someday someone will come up with an exercise programme that involves a lot of snuff.
It struck me while I wandered around in my illy-insomniac haze that the house officers here are truly remarkable. These guys literally keep the hospital running in the wee hours of the morning, tirelessly (? robotically?) trawling all the wards over, and over, and over again.
Back "home" in the UK we always officially knocked off at eleven or twelve. It was The Law - part of the Calmann act to ensure adequate sleep - and thus safety - of the staff. Senior house officers (ie MOs) provided the late-night cover for the hospital, and only on demand, ie when telephoned to do chores; otherwise the hospital was run by nurses, and nurse practitioners (who worked night shifts).
I have to admire these guys for their fortitude, yet at the same time I honestly think the system needs to be overhauled.
