A wise man once told me, ED is like a marathon and not a sprint. So go easy, do not try to overdo things, (learn from other’s mistakes) otherwise you may loose steam much before the finish line. So here are a few tips on how to handle ED.

– Always arrive on time, and try to go home on time

– Time manaegment is the key to it all

– Have a Kitkat, Try to take a break once in a while – Even though every one tells you that a break is a must, I know in reality the some doctors, think that taking a break will make the department come to a standstill. No one person carries the department on his/her shoulder, its a TEAM effort, so dont worry, the department will be ok, Take a Break

– If you are worried about a patient, talk to some one, there is loads of experience in ED, Allied Health, Nurses and even some Doctors know more than you…….. so ‘Ask and it will be given to you’; ‘Seek and you will find’; ‘Knock and the door will be opened for you’

– Be passionate about your work, do whats right for the patient, even if your senior or other specialities think otherwise, explain to them what you think, and they will see it your way

– No on should be rude to you, specially when the other person has never cast an eye on a patient you have been taking care of

– Always write down the name of the person you are speaking with (on phone)…hopefully you will know the name when you are speaking face to face – otherwise its time to take a break

– Always write down all the conversation in your notes, some times verbatim

– When speaking with the patient, try to sit down facing them, it will make them feel that you have spent more time with them, revisit every once a while, even if just to ask how they are doing. Ask them if they are hungry and if you make them a hot beverage, and bring them a sandwich, it WILL make an impact

– Never handover a patient without a complete set of notes and always write a plan for the person who you are handing the patient to

– Don’t trust handovers blindly, especially when told “Don’t worry, all work is done, and nothing is going to go wrong”, always accept handovers with extreme scepticism, even if its from your seniors…and review all the patients soon after handover

– Remeber, you are also working in a specialist unit, and dont let other units make you think you are any less than them