Tag: day one

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Radiology Residency Day One – How To Start On The Right Foot

residency day one

Last week, I wrote about what to do on the first day on the job as a radiology attending. For those of you about to begin radiology residency, I thought it would be unfair to leave you in the dust. So, today, we will talk about what to do on day one of the radiology residency. For this discussion, we will disregard all the formal introduction courses from the hospital. Mostly, that is a passive activity. Instead, I need you to know what you must do on your first day in the department. So, let’s start!

Get To Work Early

On that first day, I recommend arriving early. Get to know the parking, the bathrooms, and the building. You never know how long things will take until you arrive. And as a resident, impressions become exceedingly important. The last thing you want to do is to arrive late on that first fateful radiology residency day one!

Introductions And Thank You

OK. This one does not differ much from your attending’s first day. Your new colleagues and faculty want to make sure they made the right choice when they selected you. So, do this right. Make sure to thank all the folks who helped to get you into the program. This gratitude goes a long way to building solid relationships for the next four years!

Don’t Stand Out Too Much

When you begin your first rotation, be careful about what you say. You certainly don’t want your attendings tagging you as the class troublemaker. That can lead to undue negative attention later on. So, if you think you may say something that may upset your new employers, I would hold back until they get to know you later!

Ask About Special Programs (If Interested)

Some radiology programs have Early Specialization In Interventional Radiology (ESIR) slots. If you do not inform your program directors early on that you maintain interest in the program, the program may fill up, and the ESIR program may exclude you. So, ask to sign up, if interested, on that residency day one.

Ask About Expectations For The Rotation

Different from starting as an attending, most of you have no clue what you should begin to do on residency day one. On day one of our nuclear medicine program, the technologist showed the residents how myocardial perfusion scans work. But, in the following days, you would sit with an attending to learn the basics. You certainly would not want to miss either of those opportunities. On the other hand, if you start on fluoroscopy, perhaps you need to watch a few esophagrams on the first day. And then, a few days later, the attending may expect you to attempt one on your own. Without these clear expectations, perhaps not in the manual, you will start your rotation at a disadvantage. It is hard to meet expectations you don’t have!

Learn The PACS

Like a new attending, you must learn how to look at cases at your institution. Therefore, it behooves you to play around with the PACS system a bit. Also, make sure to ask for tips from your colleagues and attendings. Many times, if you don’t ask at the beginning, you will only learn much later after you have wasted many hours. Remember: these tips can save significant amounts of time and headaches!

Start Learning How To Dictate

Again and again, you will hear that learning to dictate has a steep learning curve. Therefore, there is no time like the present to learn. Begin with a few simple cases. But start now if you can. As a resident, this activity is one of the most active ways to learn radiology. It reinforces the buttonology of the PACS and the learning of the basics of radiology. In addition, it can help the attending out during the daytime. So, why not start on day one?

Let Your Attending Know The Plans

On that first day, you will often need to attend several activities that are integral to starting but maybe off-rotation. As a courtesy, let your attending for the day know when and what you need to do. This act of doing this establishes a rapport between you and your faculty!

Listen Carefully To The Program Director (Or Associate Program Director) Welcome

Most programs have an early morning or noon conference from the program director or associate program director. This conference is crucial! Most of the time, the program directors will give you their expectations and requirements. Usually, they will not repeat the tips and advice you will get from this session. So, take notes, and don’t miss a beat!

Borrow, Rent, Or Buy Books

By the end of the first day, you should know what you will need to complete your first rotation successfully. Most of the time, you will discover what to purchase, rent, or borrow books from your colleagues in digital or print form. So, make sure to get these necessary resources on day one!

Radiology Residency Day One- Final Thoughts

As with any first day of a new job, the first day of residency can become a nerve-racking experience. But don’t let it be. Instead, try to absorb all the unique experiences that you encounter. So, make sure to take in the new situation, the people, and your place of work. And most importantly, don’t be too hard on yourself. The staff and your colleagues have low expectations for the residents on your first fateful day. Later on, you will have many more days ahead of you to stress about giving that next tumor board or taking the core exam. For today, you can relax and enjoy!

 

 

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Radiology Attending Day One: How To Get Started On The Right Foot

day one

Imagine: Your whole adult life consisted of schooling, including four years of college, four years of medical school, one year of internship, four years of residency, and perhaps one or two years of fellowship. And you will finish it all in a few days. This situation will be yours at some point. (If not at this moment!) Now, it’s day one, and you embark upon your new life as an attending.

For most, this transition is like moving from the confines of jail to the free world. No longer do you have someone to monitor you all the time. Now you become the arbiter of last resort. The buck stops with you. (All those hackneyed phrases are true!)

The transition to becoming an attending is enormous. And you want to make sure that you do it right. So, what are the most important tasks to accomplish on day one of your new job? What do you want to avoid? Assuming you have completed your administrative tasks before starting, we will go through some boxes you should check off on your first fateful work day.

Introduce Yourself To All The Staff

After the hospital orientations, ALS courses, and all that jazz has died down; you need to make a good impression on day one. The people you meet on that first may work with you for the next 30 years! So, make your introductions to all staff. That includes fellow attendings, technologists, nurses, secretaries, and janitors. By introducing yourself to everyone, you make yourself seem like a team player that is not “standoffish.” Who wants to work with someone who can’t talk to anyone in the department?

Dress The Part Of An Attending

You don’t want to stand out too much on that fateful day. So, make sure that your attire is appropriate to the department. I remember a few attendings at my prior residency that arrived at the department without a tie for the first time. The department chairman made these attendings return home and get a tie from their closet! You don’t want to start on the wrong foot in a department where you expect to work for many years.

Make Sure To Listen Carefully To Your New Colleagues

You will hear much on the first day of your new life. Sometimes, however, you will receive invaluable advice from your colleagues that you may never get again. So, pay attention. And, take notes if you don’t have a photographic memory. You are better off having the information you will need now than having to find someone to get the same information later on when you become really busy!

Stake Out The Joint

The first days are the time to explore your surroundings (Don’t break into the chairman’s office, though!) Discover the locations of the best bathrooms, cafeteria locations, local restaurants (if at an imaging center), physician and secretarial offices, reading rooms, interventional suites, and more. Become as familiar with the surroundings as you can. This is your new home!

Ask Lots Of Questions

OK. You don’t want to ask too many indiscriminate questions (It may seem like you don’t know anything!) But you do want to ask lots of important and relevant questions. Get to the practice’s expectations, pitfalls, and more. After the first day, your colleagues may become less attuned to answering these questions, as you will no longer be the new kid on the block. Get those questions in before it is too late!

Discover Your Boundaries

Especially on that first day, you do not want to step on anyone’s toes. Ask first if you want to help with a study that may not be in your daily expected routine. The last thing you want to do: is dictating a case only to find out that the clinical attending wanted a read from someone else. It does not look good for you or the practice. So, get to know and ask what you can and cannot do.

Get Dictation Standards

Different practices have specific requirements for all radiologists’ dictations. Some want structured reports, and others need the impression at the beginning. Make sure to ask your colleagues what exactly they expect before beginning your work. You certainly don’t want to rock the boat too much!

Learn The PACS and EHR

The PACS and Electronic Health Records systems have become crucial for relevant and quality reports. In addition, knowing these systems will significantly help your efficiency (You want to get out of work on time, don’t you?) Therefore, you need to spend your first day working to make sure that you get to know the PACS and EHR well. A little time now will save tons of time in the future. Think of it as an investment.

Work Slowly And Deliberately

As a fresh radiologist right out of fellowship, you don’t want to be known as the gal who does careless dictations. So, especially on that first day, slow down. Make sure everything you dictate is correct. You have years and years to pick up speed with your work. Now is not the time to rush, and newbies make more mistakes. Don’t add to the reputation!

Radiology Attending Day One- Final Thoughts

The first day as an attending is tough. You are transitioning to a new world, just like the many worlds you had transitioned to before. So, go forward and welcome the changes with open arms. Believe it or not, you will find your comfort zone one day. It just takes a bit of time!