I’m by now a full-fledged ‘Medical MO’, a tag that is not without its sense of pride. After making that crucial decision to ease out a furlough from Emergency Medicine, I have now completed the transition, so to speak, to assuming the bigger role of a medical officer in the Department of Medicine. The process (of transition), of course, is by no means an easy one.
Working in the Emergency Department versus toughing out in the cramped environs of in-patient wards is very different. I had to relearn many bedside procedures that I have not performed in years, not to mention rounding the entire congested ward that is more aptly described as a refugee camp.
Believe it or not, doing rounds alongside a house officer who dictates your management orders and who is quite literally the footman who runs your errands was until recently a novel modus operandi to me. There is still not a moment when I consign my house officer to some ‘scut work’ that is not filled with guilt and awkwardness.
I am lucky to have become adapted to my new workspace, in spite of the inevitable hiccoughs during the first few weeks of my arrival at the department. I will miss Emergency Medicine, surely. But at the present, my priority is MRCP. So, the exposure as a Medical MO is invaluable.