Sunday, October 01, 2006

what was I Not in it for?

Do we get paid enough?
Before starting my first post ever I read the contract and thought wow! We get paid loads of money. Well you’d think that if you were a student and had to live on a tight budget. So I started the job with a night shift and this is exactly how it happened. I went in on a Wednesday night I was handed the page from the doctor doing the dayshift and I was thinking what am I supposed to do now?!!
I might say in a different post how the first night was, I don’t think any doctor would forget his first night shift especially if it is the first “day” of work.
Now remember I started by saying I “thought” we get paid loads of money.


First I need to be prepared for the ward round, i.e. all the patient notes are in the trolley, all their blood results are printed out, I have chased the X-ray, CT results etc. and I have carried the plan from yesterday.
So I have started at 8:30 am its 1 pm now and I haven’t had a break, on the feet taking notes listening to what the consultant is saying, laugh at the silly old jokes while your shoes are becoming so tight because you feet are puffed up. You got to be nice to your seniors, they sign your forms and they are going to offer you a job if you are “good”.

Once the round is finished you are bombarded with requests from the nurses, could you prescribe this , could you print that, oh mr smith has a chest pain could you go see him.

Nurses??, you gotta be nice to them they can make your life easy or they could make it a living hell.
So its 2pm and I haven’t had lunch yet so maybe its time for lunch huh?

NO!!
The pharmacy shuts at 3 and you have got 4 patients to be discharged so you have to fill in their discharge letters and the medications they will take home, while at the same time you have to fill in requests for any x rays CT scans, ultrasound scans, heart scans etc.

So once im done at around 3 (If I am lucky) I have to make sure all patients have the plans carried out, all bloods taken and sent away they had their scans. And those who had the scans done the day before I have to run down to the Radiology department to get the “unverified report” from the secretaries for tomorrows ward round.

That means I have to eat my lunch while Im doing something else.
I am supposed to finish at 5:45 but I never managed to finish before 6:45, Im home by 7 I need to cook, eat and rest before I go to bed to begin another day.

This is a simplified version of what I have to do during a day shift.
In addition:
I have to work 8.30am -8.30pm once every 4 weeks. I have to fill in a night shift 12 hours in Accident and Emergency 4 nights in 8 weeks, and another 3 nights of 12 hours covering 5 wards during the 8 weeks.
And what tests your strength is that towards the end of your 12 hours shift, when you are really exhausted you get a relative coming up to you, upset, demanding to know why is this patient not getting any better?!!
I am required to apologize for a mistake that I have not done, to smile to them and reassure them that we are doing all we can to help his/her relative.


while deep inside me im so angry that I want to bang his head against the wall and walk away.




but hey what can I say.. I really Love my job and all that comes with it.

and to answer me: I was in it for many reasons, one thing for sure I was not in it for the money.