NICU and walking with a cane (fomite issue?)

[Deleted member 1077394]

It's actually a Loftstrand crutch but I use it like a cane on the side with the leg that's giving me trouble. I have a neurological issue, have been having some difficulty walking and have started using this to help me walk as of late. (Luckily, I'm right handed and I use the crutch on my left side so I am relatively uninhibited.)

I am a soon-to-be applicant. I am a long-time children's hospital volunteer, LOVE it, and Peds or a peds subspecialty is certainly on my radar.

I feel like crutches and canes present a fomite risk. Would there be a moment on rounds for me to quick go after the part where my hand goes with a purple wipe between patients? How patient are attendings and senior residents with that? (That's what I do now with my PHO volunteering.) The last thing I want is to seem like a "princess".

Would being unable to stand and use both hands simultaneously cause me problems? I can use my dominant hand while standing.

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[oldbearprofessor]

There would be challenges, but it's doable. Look up Dr. Jennifer Arnold at Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital (<i>The Little Couple</i>) as an example of what someone can accomplish despite physical challenges.

 

[SurfingDoctor]

Crutches a fomite risk? Doubtful as they are nonporous and easy to wipe down. I mean, there's plenty that people come into contact to in the hospital that is a much bigger transmitter of disease than crutches. Door handles are straight up gross...

As an aside, I saw the chief of Neurosurgery rounding on crutches this weekend...

 

[mvenus929]

While I realize this isn't the same... I broke my ankle last year and was non- or minimal weight bearing for 3 months (before and during COVID...it was a long year). I had a scooter that I used in the hospital and wiped down in between patients and it worked out fine (that thing made it really difficult to navigate in some areas of the hospital too...).

Using a crutch that can be wiped down is an easy accommodation to make. There's usually a line during rounds to use the hand sanitizer anyway. Depending on your style, you may have to get a little creative with how you carry things, but certainly doable.