Although I am not dreading my upcoming four months in Internal Medicine to begin my Psych. residency, I am concerned. I believe that I have a good understanding of floor medicine and have done very well on all of my boards, but I just feel like I will be scrutinized everyday while I'm on medicine. Not only am I not "one of them", but I'm sure they will have this stigma in the back of their minds of "oh, he's in the psych program. Don't let him kill anyone." I am probably just being paranoid. I have about 7 weeks until I start, and am currently attempting to read Harrison's from front to cover. What should I expect? How should I prepare?
Preparing for Internal Medicine Months
- Thread starter NJWxMan
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You are reading Harrison's cover to cover???? RELAX! You aren't going to know any more or less than any other IM intern. I'm sure the service is used to people doing their required medicine months. Extra bodies are extra bodies. Maybe since you are going into psych you can work on your anxiety.
Enjoy your time off right now, you have the rest of your residency and life to learn medicine. Yeesh.
Enjoy your time off right now, you have the rest of your residency and life to learn medicine. Yeesh.
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Having completed my medicine months already, I can tell you that I too was scared and for no reason. The medicine interns, assuming you do medicine early on in your intern year, know nothing more than you do. I was just as strong and sometimes stronger because I like medicine.
It doesn't take a strong base of knowledge to just fill in those damn boxes that your quickly write down as your attending gives orders, "Increase this, d/c, hold, follow up with, etc." You're the intern, first contact, but the plan begins with the attending and trickles down to you to do the work. Just enter orders correctly, double check, fill in your boxes of work to do for the day, and then you're a star. At the end of the day, run the list again, make sure that every box has a check and then you're done. And if you don't know something, just ask.
Inpatient medicine is simple, just follow orders and they'll love you.
It doesn't take a strong base of knowledge to just fill in those damn boxes that your quickly write down as your attending gives orders, "Increase this, d/c, hold, follow up with, etc." You're the intern, first contact, but the plan begins with the attending and trickles down to you to do the work. Just enter orders correctly, double check, fill in your boxes of work to do for the day, and then you're a star. At the end of the day, run the list again, make sure that every box has a check and then you're done. And if you don't know something, just ask.
Inpatient medicine is simple, just follow orders and they'll love you.
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So - I'm hoping I'm in the same boat as most people - I have been on vacation basically for a total of like 2.5 months prior to starting intern year.
I also haven't done psych since August of 2008
And my last ward medicine experience was in December 2007
Um yea....
Only feeling slightly overwhelmed and terrified that I'm going to let me program down. Any residents out there who can console and tell me that I'm only going to feel like a total ***** for the first week or so! eek!
I will likely be that lame intern who's medical student know more than her - awesome!!!
I also haven't done psych since August of 2008
And my last ward medicine experience was in December 2007
Um yea....
Only feeling slightly overwhelmed and terrified that I'm going to let me program down. Any residents out there who can console and tell me that I'm only going to feel like a total ***** for the first week or so! eek!
I will likely be that lame intern who's medical student know more than her - awesome!!!
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Pro-tip: Letting your resident give you the code-pager overnight isn't the best idea.
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IMHO its better to do IM earlier in the academic year. You'll be just as clueless as your fellow IM residents, and will be treated & taught like one of them.
As the year goes along, you'll know less IM vs them, and will stand out as more of a sore thumb, and that increases the odds of them not giving you cases just as difficult, and more feelings of being inadequate.
As difficult as IM is, knowledge of IM will carry over to psychiatry, and will be of great help. Psychiatry emergency centers--everyone I've seen have had their fair cases of dump jobs to them from the ER doctors. You need to know your IM to debate with the ER doctor about the medical clearance of patients.
Also, liver problems 2ndary to Depakote, Hepatic Encephalopathy being confused for psychosis, schizophrenics with diabetes---etc. You got to know these things.
As the year goes along, you'll know less IM vs them, and will stand out as more of a sore thumb, and that increases the odds of them not giving you cases just as difficult, and more feelings of being inadequate.
As difficult as IM is, knowledge of IM will carry over to psychiatry, and will be of great help. Psychiatry emergency centers--everyone I've seen have had their fair cases of dump jobs to them from the ER doctors. You need to know your IM to debate with the ER doctor about the medical clearance of patients.
Also, liver problems 2ndary to Depakote, Hepatic Encephalopathy being confused for psychosis, schizophrenics with diabetes---etc. You got to know these things.
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