2 answers
Ashley
Student
Thornwood, New York
1
Question
Updated
232 views
How can I learn to be the best at what I do to save the people under my care?
I currently work in the health care field at a level one trauma center, we juggle multiple patients at once and it can get a little intimidating at times.
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2 answers
James Hanson
Pediatric Intensive Care Physician; Consultant
266
Answers
Oakland, California
Updated
James’s Answer
I like Frank's answer.
As an intensive care physician, I also have had to constantly juggle competing crises. One must learn to build a reliable team using reliable best practices to manage most things. Work to improve the processes of care so there is less chaos and less wastefulness. This increases the time and focus you have for each patient.
Learn from what goes well and what does not. The team debriefing is important - with no blame, just humility and the desire for all of us to be better.
You are still a student. Much of what you hope to achieve in managing the chaos of an ED or similar area will be learned through ongoing observation and practice. The more you learn about physiology, pathophysiology, pharmacology, process engineering, procedures, and patient management, the easier it gets to succeed in such environments.
Take the time to assure you are getting healthy food, exercise, and sleep to keep you functioning well.
Give yourself kudos when you do good work - often in ED environments others (including the patients) are not thinking about thanking one another while they are frantically trying to save lives or seek care. Which also means you should make an effort to acknowledge the efforts of others who are similarly struggling.
We all need people who are willing to take on the stressful work of EDs. I hope you learn to love it.
As an intensive care physician, I also have had to constantly juggle competing crises. One must learn to build a reliable team using reliable best practices to manage most things. Work to improve the processes of care so there is less chaos and less wastefulness. This increases the time and focus you have for each patient.
Learn from what goes well and what does not. The team debriefing is important - with no blame, just humility and the desire for all of us to be better.
You are still a student. Much of what you hope to achieve in managing the chaos of an ED or similar area will be learned through ongoing observation and practice. The more you learn about physiology, pathophysiology, pharmacology, process engineering, procedures, and patient management, the easier it gets to succeed in such environments.
Take the time to assure you are getting healthy food, exercise, and sleep to keep you functioning well.
Give yourself kudos when you do good work - often in ED environments others (including the patients) are not thinking about thanking one another while they are frantically trying to save lives or seek care. Which also means you should make an effort to acknowledge the efforts of others who are similarly struggling.
We all need people who are willing to take on the stressful work of EDs. I hope you learn to love it.
Frank Wong
Project Manager
19
Answers
Dalian, Liaoning, China
Updated
Frank’s Answer
Master the basics: Know your core protocols cold. Reliability beats perfection.
Prioritize ruthlessly: Ask, “Who could crash in the next 5 minutes?” Re‑prioritize constantly.
Control your stress: Slow your breathing, focus on the next right action—not the chaos.
Debrief often: After tough cases, ask what went well, what was unclear, and what you’d do differently.
Learn from calm experts: Watch how experienced clinicians think under pressure.
Accept limits: You won’t save everyone. Judge yourself by sound decisions, not outcomes.
Take care of yourself: Fatigue and burnout reduce safety, self‑care is part of competence.
Prioritize ruthlessly: Ask, “Who could crash in the next 5 minutes?” Re‑prioritize constantly.
Control your stress: Slow your breathing, focus on the next right action—not the chaos.
Debrief often: After tough cases, ask what went well, what was unclear, and what you’d do differently.
Learn from calm experts: Watch how experienced clinicians think under pressure.
Accept limits: You won’t save everyone. Judge yourself by sound decisions, not outcomes.
Take care of yourself: Fatigue and burnout reduce safety, self‑care is part of competence.