Wacky World of Anesthesia Part 2
Re: pimping
Anesthesia is unique in the fact that there is nothing but 1 on 1 teaching with a supervisor. Once the patient is under anesthesia and stable, a machine keeps track of their blood pressure, heart rate, oxygen and carbon dioxide levels in their blood, etc. There are alarms that sound if something goes wrong. I am making it sound simple even though its not, but the fact is there is plenty of time to talk with your supervisor.
This is where pimping comes in...the supervisor fires questions at you and you stand there looking like an idiot for the most part. Once in a while (~40% of the time) I manage to answer correctly, only to realize how superficial my knowledge really is because I can't answer the follow up questions. No wonder it takes 5 years after medical school to become an anesthesiologist!
The questions can be random: What is the size of a red blood cell? What are some causes of fast heart rates during surgery? What size tube should you put in a 85kg man? What is the normal level of carbon dioxide in the blood...arteries and veins? How much saline fluid should you give patients in surgery...how do you know? What drugs are totally contraindicated in particular patients? These are just some I have encountered so far.
I had a really helpful supervisor who sent me to the library to learn about the anesthetic implications for patient with diabetes. After I did that, we went over what I learned and the reasoning behind it. Some supervisors are not that helpful and clearly don't enjoy having a student around. I try to ask questions but when a standard reply is "Hmmff...you don't know?" (shoulders shrugging and eye-rolling included) I choose not to keep asking questions and resort to reading on my own. No dumbass...that's why I am asking you!!! It seems that these docs have forgotten what it is like to be a medical student who has limited knowledge. Seems to me they should teach me properly so that when they are old, sick and dying, I can treat them.
Ohhhhhh...the table will be turned sooner or later!
Anesthesia is unique in the fact that there is nothing but 1 on 1 teaching with a supervisor. Once the patient is under anesthesia and stable, a machine keeps track of their blood pressure, heart rate, oxygen and carbon dioxide levels in their blood, etc. There are alarms that sound if something goes wrong. I am making it sound simple even though its not, but the fact is there is plenty of time to talk with your supervisor.
This is where pimping comes in...the supervisor fires questions at you and you stand there looking like an idiot for the most part. Once in a while (~40% of the time) I manage to answer correctly, only to realize how superficial my knowledge really is because I can't answer the follow up questions. No wonder it takes 5 years after medical school to become an anesthesiologist!
The questions can be random: What is the size of a red blood cell? What are some causes of fast heart rates during surgery? What size tube should you put in a 85kg man? What is the normal level of carbon dioxide in the blood...arteries and veins? How much saline fluid should you give patients in surgery...how do you know? What drugs are totally contraindicated in particular patients? These are just some I have encountered so far.
I had a really helpful supervisor who sent me to the library to learn about the anesthetic implications for patient with diabetes. After I did that, we went over what I learned and the reasoning behind it. Some supervisors are not that helpful and clearly don't enjoy having a student around. I try to ask questions but when a standard reply is "Hmmff...you don't know?" (shoulders shrugging and eye-rolling included) I choose not to keep asking questions and resort to reading on my own. No dumbass...that's why I am asking you!!! It seems that these docs have forgotten what it is like to be a medical student who has limited knowledge. Seems to me they should teach me properly so that when they are old, sick and dying, I can treat them.
Ohhhhhh...the table will be turned sooner or later!
posted by MSI (Med Student Intern) @ 5:39 PM
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