When It was my first experience for an on call duty, I learnt many things , good and bad experiences taught me what needs to be done and how well organised I must be, and how I should take care of myself so that I can take care of others in hospital . Rest, sleep and plan a day before your call, do not hang out with friends! Stay organised 1) FOOD Most important thing to pack is food , healthy food, so in the night once you get hungry ,you and that little bit of food that you have in your bag can get you be focused and help you stay awake , in some of our hospitals the cafeteria actually closes. So if you don't have something. You have to rely on vending machine food, which is no fun. So my routine every night before I have a column shift is to make some lunch. So I have some rice noodles with some vegetables and tuna in it. So go stay healthy because some protein energy bar in there keep the doctor away Keep disposable spoons so that you use one and throw it and take a new one for the next meal you're already feeling tired and stuff. So little things make a big difference 2)CLEAN PAIR OF SCRUBS You never know what's going to happen things can get messy and you know, you would never like to be stuck in that all night. Also with clothes. I like to have zip up so you can put it on and feel warm and again middle of the night you get tired. I don't know about you guys, but I get really cold when you're tired 3)STETHOSCOPE WE have to have this all the time, 4)ID CARD, ID CARD with a tag so that we hang it on our neck, 5) PEN, Always make sure you have a good working pen and actually lots of pen because we keep losing them, 6)CHARGER CANT LIVE WITHOUT PHONES, need this charger to help, when its phone battery goes dead. 7)POCKET MEDICINE . The best thing about this is, you can look at things up quickly in these books, because no one really expects you to know everything but you need to know where to find the information. So this is such a good resource and it's excellent 8) LIPBALM My lip balm , my lips gets so dry and I'm always so happy when I have this when I'm talking to a patient, I don’t want to look like one of them of course 9)EARPHONES – your best friend when you feel bored So I do pack everything into a big bang, I also bring keep a little sling bag and this is the one that I carry around on the boards with me so I can put those books into it. Oh my pens, the snack and all that kind of stuff. So I have it with me all the time Last but not the least, can't forget the pager so I clip it on onto my bag. So when I'm walking around with it, it's on me at all times and I actually I clip it on upside down so that when it actually goes off I don't have to turn it around and just pick it up and read it like that. That's what I bring in a nutshell Yeah, it’s not glamorous, but it’s a necessity Wish you guys all the best for all your ON CALLS, take rest, and eat healthy food!
