Here We Go Again

Last week I took care of a lovely woman whose husband turned to me, face etched in mock concern as he asked, "We managed to squeeze in her illness before all those new doctors start, right?"  

By now the first of July has come and gone, hopefully without a nationwide spike in mortality attributed to the crop of new doctors beginning their intern year.  While it's true that people are routinely cautioned to never get sick in July, less they fall victim to some woefully inexperienced junior MD, it's also true that interns do operate under supervision.  Last July 1st the attending pulled all the staff aside, and in a lowered voice and explained that if anything, anything, the interns ordered seemed odd, to come straight to her.

So don't worry patients, your treatment won't hurt the new doctors a bit.  I'm crossing my fingers and wishing them good luck.  Remember, everybody's got to start somewhere.