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How much do preceptors expect


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I'm starting clinical rotations on Monday and I am so nervous it's making me nauseous. The thought of having to suture, intubate, give shots, etc when I haven't done it before scares the hell out of me. How much do you really do while on rotations? Is it more watching and observing or are you seeing/treating patients alone and pretty much doing it all? Thanks!

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we will walk you through everything the first few times and then look over your shoulder the first few times you do it on your own, don't worry.

By the end of the rotation you should be able to do simple stuff with minimal preceptor oversight and more advanced stuff with them by your side. my students usually start off with suturing I+D's, etc and end up with using slit lamp, doing LP's + fx reduction, etc

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Preceptors are there to teach you, so although you will have opportunities to see patients on your own, they will be looking over your shoulder and making sure you're doing what you need to. For some things my preceptors have had me follow the "see one, do one, teach one" mentality, which I really like. My first central line my preceptor was standing there and placing my hands where they needed to be, passed me things, helped me set stuff up, I did one the other day and my preceptor was gowned standing next to me, but I did the entire thing start to finish and they stood by in the event they needed to step in. I tend to seek out opportunity, so if there is a procedure to be done, I'll ask to do it. Others on here will agree, rotations are really what you make of them, you can sit back and breeze through them or you can go at them full speed and try and make it the best experience possible for you. If you don't feel comfortable with something then ask, that's the beauty of being a student, we're not expected to know everything. Have fun!

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Started my first rotation this past Monday. Just internal medicine so far, so haven't really had any procedures. Basically, the first day they told me to grab a chart. You take the chart, read through it, research what was done last time, what the dx are, what plans were made, etc, then you go see the patient. There you do your interview, get your history, ROS, etc, then do your exam. You go back and depending on the doctor, you will either make up a plan and have them change or approve it, or else you walk through the plan with them. Then they go in and see the patient as well, make sure you didn't miss anything, etc. That's how it's been going so far for me. Some cases I've been comfortable enough to come up with a plan; others I've asked for help on. In some of the specialty clinics, they have us go in the room with the residents and work together on cases.

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