5 answers
Angel
Student
Aiken, South Carolina
1
Question
Updated
606 views
How do you manage a life outside of healthcare What are some tips and tricks you have managed to learn throughout a life in healthcare??
I am a senior in high school and want to pursue a career in healthcare!
Login to comment
5 answers
Sebastian Conti
Vascular Surgeon
1
Answer
Seattle, Washington
Updated
Sebastian’s Answer
Balancing a medical career with personal life is important. Make sure to spend time with family and friends, as they bring joy and support. Try to leave work at the workplace and not bring it home.
Explore new interests. For example, I went back to college to study creative writing while still working in healthcare. Now, I proudly say I’m a writer, with surgery as my hobby. I’ve written over 130 short stories and poems and am working on a novel and memoir.
Explore new interests. For example, I went back to college to study creative writing while still working in healthcare. Now, I proudly say I’m a writer, with surgery as my hobby. I’ve written over 130 short stories and poems and am working on a novel and memoir.
Garrett Cuppels, MD
Orthopaedic Surgery
26
Answers
Miami, Florida
Updated
Garrett’s Answer
Managing your time well is really important. When I had to study for an exam, I went to the library at 8 in the morning on both Saturday and Sunday and studied for four hours straight. This approach helped me graduate at the top of my class. The time management skills you develop in college will help you in the medical field and make a difference every day.
Lauren Ellis Triemstra
Physical Therapist Assistant
29
Answers
Joliet, Illinois
Updated
Lauren Ellis’s Answer
Hi Angel!
I've come to learn the terms "compassion satisfaction" and "compassion fatigue" in healthcare. I thrive off of compassion satisfaction. I love what I do. I love helping people. I feel job satisfaction. I put my compassion for others into my work and making a difference in their lives makes me feel satisfied. I am driven to help people. At the end of the day, when I'm tired, I still feel good about helping the people I encountered that day and am happy and honored to be the bright spot in it. That's what keeps me going.
HOWEVER, compassion fatigue - or also physical burnout - is real. So as a healthcare provider, you may give so much of yourself emotionally to your patients that it drains YOU emotionally. You hurt for your patients. You feel bad for their situation. You may see hardship and loss. If you're going into healthcare, it's because you CARE. So witnessing or being a part of the care team for patients that suffer can get to you, understandably.
But, it also depends greatly on your occupation and setting. I would guess that nurses and doctors that work in hospitals, ER, hospice care, neonatal care, cancer clinics, and the like, that see patients in greater need or towards the end of life, experience that compassion fatigue strongly. They can burnout from that or can grow to be resilient, but it's still draining.
I am a physical therapist assistant. I spent 11 years in an outpatient orthopedic setting, which means that patients are healthy enough to come to you and spend an hour-ish with you and are capable and safe enough to go home. I enhance people's quality of life, improve their function to complete activities of daily living, improve mobility and reduce pain. But I'm treating an orthopedic injury or ailment, nothing that is generally life threatening. With that being said, they do come to me as a healthcare provider because of a need of theirs, which could be severe pain. They could be having a rough go personally or professionally because of their injury/ailment also. Because I work so closely with patients, regularly over a span of time, it builds rapport and I grow close to them, and being their healthcare provider, they put a lot of faith and trust in us. So I still feel for patients and their struggles, but I don't generally encounter life loss.
I am physically burning out, from the physical demands of a career in physical therapy - go figure! My body is gets sore and tired. I'm often working on my own body and ailments. There's a lot of bending/lifting required as a physical therapy provider that is taxing on MY body.
So I guess with all this being said, the best way to manage your life outside of healthcare is to take care of yourself physically and emotionally DURING your job in healthcare. It would be worth investigating what type of healthcare career you would like and how you think you would tolerate the physical or emotional burnout to preserve yourself the best you can. What type of population of patients or setting would you like to work in (kids, elderly, all ages; hospitals, Dr offices, operating rooms, nursing homes, home health, etc.)? There are so many choices and is sure to be an option that would make the most sense for you in order to juggle that work/life balance. Good luck!
Observe in any setting that you're curious about. Contact an office or clinical site and ask if there are observation opportunities to learn more about that area of healthcare.
I've come to learn the terms "compassion satisfaction" and "compassion fatigue" in healthcare. I thrive off of compassion satisfaction. I love what I do. I love helping people. I feel job satisfaction. I put my compassion for others into my work and making a difference in their lives makes me feel satisfied. I am driven to help people. At the end of the day, when I'm tired, I still feel good about helping the people I encountered that day and am happy and honored to be the bright spot in it. That's what keeps me going.
HOWEVER, compassion fatigue - or also physical burnout - is real. So as a healthcare provider, you may give so much of yourself emotionally to your patients that it drains YOU emotionally. You hurt for your patients. You feel bad for their situation. You may see hardship and loss. If you're going into healthcare, it's because you CARE. So witnessing or being a part of the care team for patients that suffer can get to you, understandably.
But, it also depends greatly on your occupation and setting. I would guess that nurses and doctors that work in hospitals, ER, hospice care, neonatal care, cancer clinics, and the like, that see patients in greater need or towards the end of life, experience that compassion fatigue strongly. They can burnout from that or can grow to be resilient, but it's still draining.
I am a physical therapist assistant. I spent 11 years in an outpatient orthopedic setting, which means that patients are healthy enough to come to you and spend an hour-ish with you and are capable and safe enough to go home. I enhance people's quality of life, improve their function to complete activities of daily living, improve mobility and reduce pain. But I'm treating an orthopedic injury or ailment, nothing that is generally life threatening. With that being said, they do come to me as a healthcare provider because of a need of theirs, which could be severe pain. They could be having a rough go personally or professionally because of their injury/ailment also. Because I work so closely with patients, regularly over a span of time, it builds rapport and I grow close to them, and being their healthcare provider, they put a lot of faith and trust in us. So I still feel for patients and their struggles, but I don't generally encounter life loss.
I am physically burning out, from the physical demands of a career in physical therapy - go figure! My body is gets sore and tired. I'm often working on my own body and ailments. There's a lot of bending/lifting required as a physical therapy provider that is taxing on MY body.
So I guess with all this being said, the best way to manage your life outside of healthcare is to take care of yourself physically and emotionally DURING your job in healthcare. It would be worth investigating what type of healthcare career you would like and how you think you would tolerate the physical or emotional burnout to preserve yourself the best you can. What type of population of patients or setting would you like to work in (kids, elderly, all ages; hospitals, Dr offices, operating rooms, nursing homes, home health, etc.)? There are so many choices and is sure to be an option that would make the most sense for you in order to juggle that work/life balance. Good luck!
Lauren Ellis recommends the following next steps:
Rita Chuang
Physician
253
Answers
Henderson, Nevada
Updated
Rita’s Answer
I don't think there is anything that will prepare you for a life in medicine. It was one of the most difficult things I have ever done.
I think the best thing is to learn from others in the field. I recommend every person interested in medicine work as a medical scribe. Why? First, they pay you but this is not important. Second, you get to actually see what doctors do. You are writing their notes so you get to see how they think, how they handle difficult patients, how much work is involved. Third, you can ask the doctor questions. Fourth, when you learn the language and thought process of medicine, it will make your life in medical school much easier. The medical students who worked as medical scribes were so much sharper which added to their confidence and they received better grades. Unfortunately with AI, I think the medical scribe jobs will be decreasing but you can probably still find a job and work for less. It's not about the money but the experience to see what doctors do. I also challenge you to go to work when the doctor starts work and leave when the doctor leaves. If after working there for 6 months and you just want to go home, the medical field is probably not for you.
The burn out in medicine is very high. I had my own practice and I burned out. I was seeing 40 patients a day, working daily (not seeing patients daily) but going through the computer charting, refilling, reviewing. My empathy was nil. When patients complained they were tired, in my mind, I was saying, "So am I. " During my vacation, I would bring the computer to work. You don't what to expect in the medical field until you do it. That's why I challenge you to work with the doctor you are scribing for so that you know what you are getting yourself into.
You also need to learn how to set boundaries with patients and deal with difficult patients. I was in primary care and it's probably one of the more challenging fields because there's so much to do. What do you do when a patient comes in with a laundry list of problems? What do you do when a patient calls in asking to be "squeezed in" for a simple problem? What do you do when a patient just walks in demanding to be seen? Unfortunately or fortunately, my personality is a people pleaser. It was good for the patients initially but then I was seeing 40 patients a day, returning telephone calls, having patients with multiple problems and I couldn't do it and I retired. You need to learn to set limits and when patients are upset, be ok with them being upset. You will never please everyone.
The burn out of physicians is real. I read an article that the average doctor was spending 60 hours a week working. This is not seeing patients but also documenting, returning telephone calls, refilling, answering questions etc. The majority of doctors bring their work home. How is your family going to deal with you always on the computer? In the next 10 years, there is going to be a shortage of primary care doctors because most doctors are thinking of retiring or cutting down. I hope this will change medicine for the positive.
I think the best thing is to learn from others in the field. I recommend every person interested in medicine work as a medical scribe. Why? First, they pay you but this is not important. Second, you get to actually see what doctors do. You are writing their notes so you get to see how they think, how they handle difficult patients, how much work is involved. Third, you can ask the doctor questions. Fourth, when you learn the language and thought process of medicine, it will make your life in medical school much easier. The medical students who worked as medical scribes were so much sharper which added to their confidence and they received better grades. Unfortunately with AI, I think the medical scribe jobs will be decreasing but you can probably still find a job and work for less. It's not about the money but the experience to see what doctors do. I also challenge you to go to work when the doctor starts work and leave when the doctor leaves. If after working there for 6 months and you just want to go home, the medical field is probably not for you.
The burn out in medicine is very high. I had my own practice and I burned out. I was seeing 40 patients a day, working daily (not seeing patients daily) but going through the computer charting, refilling, reviewing. My empathy was nil. When patients complained they were tired, in my mind, I was saying, "So am I. " During my vacation, I would bring the computer to work. You don't what to expect in the medical field until you do it. That's why I challenge you to work with the doctor you are scribing for so that you know what you are getting yourself into.
You also need to learn how to set boundaries with patients and deal with difficult patients. I was in primary care and it's probably one of the more challenging fields because there's so much to do. What do you do when a patient comes in with a laundry list of problems? What do you do when a patient calls in asking to be "squeezed in" for a simple problem? What do you do when a patient just walks in demanding to be seen? Unfortunately or fortunately, my personality is a people pleaser. It was good for the patients initially but then I was seeing 40 patients a day, returning telephone calls, having patients with multiple problems and I couldn't do it and I retired. You need to learn to set limits and when patients are upset, be ok with them being upset. You will never please everyone.
The burn out of physicians is real. I read an article that the average doctor was spending 60 hours a week working. This is not seeing patients but also documenting, returning telephone calls, refilling, answering questions etc. The majority of doctors bring their work home. How is your family going to deal with you always on the computer? In the next 10 years, there is going to be a shortage of primary care doctors because most doctors are thinking of retiring or cutting down. I hope this will change medicine for the positive.
Susan Burg
Surgical Technician
27
Answers
Torrance, California
Updated
Susan’s Answer
I've been in the field for 34 years. I'm sure organization has had a lot to do with it. When I shop for necessities for my home I buy doubles or bulk. For example, when I buy bath soap I buy more than one. That way I dont have to worry about replacing any right now. I dont run out. I do the same thing with toilet paper, shampoo, etc. I always have an extra. I'll shop at Sam's Club for bulk items like toilet paper, paper towels, tissue. This way there's always some there. I never run out. This does involve planning to shop on my day off. Shopping this way is extremely helpful.