What if I don't know what to do? Questions about the first days as a doctor

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By Dr Ollie Burton

Doctors.net.uk invited medical students to put their questions about the first year of foundation training (FY1) to Dr Ollie Burton, a clinical fellow in neurosurgery. He weighs in on everything from resolving rota disputes to when it’s too late to embark on a medical career.

What if I don’t know what to do?

Will I ever be left alone with a really sick patient? What if I don't remember or know what to do? I’m picturing the middle of the night and I’m the only doctor on the ward.

Yes, this will happen.

You don't need to know the diagnosis. You need to call for help, keep the patient alive, and not make things worse

When it does, remember what Samuel Shem wrote in The House of God : at a cardiac arrest, the first procedure is to take your own pulse. It remains good advice. Panic is the enemy of thinking, and thinking is what your patient needs from you.