Since I’m done with my first year of clinical rotations (aka year 3 of medical school), I feel like I’m finally somewhat qualified to talk about the things that would be good to know as a third-year medical student! :] Here’s to hoping 4th-year will be just as awesome (if not even more so)! Don’t lie and say you want to specialize in your preceptor’s field if it’s not actually what you want to do. I had no idea people even did this, but please don’t lie. It’s so, so far from genuine and if your preceptor finds out, it’s really disheartening. If you’re worried they’ll think you’re not interested in the field, just tell them what you’re interested in, but assure them that you still want to learn, and if it’s applicable, that you’d be especially interested in the parts of their field that pertain to the one you’re interested in! Think before you speak. I shouldn’t need to explain this one. Kindness goes a very, very long way. Because of it, I’ve managed to secure free housing in a variety of different places. I was given the days after Thanksgiving/Christmas/New Years off so that I could spend it at Please Save A Cat (aka my home away from home), and honestly, kindness just makes the world a better place. And your patients will really, really appreciate it, and you can very easily make a positive difference with this one. Perhaps more than you’ll ever know. Being a great listener + observer is key. It’ll enable you to provide better care to your patients. You will need to learn how to politely extract yourself from super-chatty patients. …I can’t say more about this one because I still haven’t developed a tactic for it. Stay out of any/all drama. It is not worth your time. Do not participate in any of the gossip. Word travels fast, and it can really only hurt you. Subjective evaluations can suck…but you can’t have everything in life. Just take it in stride, learn to pick your battles, and move on. Know that there are times where some just grade harder than others. You win some, you lose some. There’s only so much you can do for the patients who don’t want to help themselves. One of my preceptors was yelled at by the mother of a pregnant lady for telling her that smoking while pregnant was detrimental to the baby. (…) The lady chose not to listen to this and smoked all throughout her pregnancy. There are some things you can’t force, and if someone is unwilling to listen or to change, do what you can, but realize that you can’t save everyone. If your preceptor gives you the day off, it is not a trick. (Or at least, it shouldn’t be.) Thank them and enjoy your day. Go catch up on some studying. I have major issues adhering to this one because I always feel like I’m being a slacker if I do that. When this happened at the beginning of the year, I picked up extra shifts elsewhere while my preceptor was on vacation. (It was Family Medicine though, so you know I loved it! <3) You will never know everything. And that’s okay (even though it’ll never feel like it’s okay). Read up on the things you don’t know and study consistently throughout the year. Focus on doing your best, and learn from your mistakes! Written by Farah a medical student at her blog here.
