Yes, dear, it could be worse.....

Yes, dear, it could be worse.....

But at least it is almost over!

My DrH has had a very long residency and while I am happy to note that his training has made him into a fine surgeon, the program has many faults. Hence, my wanting to remain anonymous, to protect the innocent. Of course, the guilty just happen to get to be under the umbrella, too.

A lot of promises were made in this program. For starters, it was highly noted that a paternity leave was offered to residents. It was certainly never noted that NO ONE ever has taken it because they were told NOT to take advantage of this program. So, the paternity leave involved my DrH being allowed to drive us home and then going back to work immediately after dropping us off. Side note, this is obviously one of those things that we should have inquired into further from the get go. While, this is not a huge shock it is indicative of other aspects of this program.

The average work week hours rule is a joke here! Residents are told to make sure their reported hours average the correct amount which means no one is able to report the actual hours they work. It also means that residents doing Q2 for a week or more is not unheard of and schedules have not always “fair” amongst residents. Side note, a sort of hazing took place when my DrH wrote his practice boards- he was given Q2 for two weeks to see if he could cut it. He did but it really didn't matter because it was a practice test and I would argue that he was not better for the experience- we at home certainly were not!

This program also really challenges the skill set of the residents. They are often expected to do procedures with little or no guidance. On one hand it is good to be pushed to achieve these skills. On the other hand, would you want to be one of the patients? Again, I am sure this happens in other programs but it is a rather rough and stressful reality for many years here.

Interestingly enough, with all the garbage that has gone on in this program, the one thing that DrH is really upset about is the administration and their handling of our insurance. Upon signing it was made clear that any and all extra  expenses that were not covered in our insurance (for which we pay huge amounts) would be forgiven.  So we were both disgusted when our daughter needed treatment for her condition and when our insurance ran out the administration refused to even allow us to pay out of pocket on a schedule. I mean, seriously?! They cut out her treatment and told us we could bring her back when the next calendar session started! Needless to say, we took her to a private facility and continued her treatment and drained our savings account. Money well spent but had the hospital administration done what was promised it would have been appreciated!

My DrH constantly tells me that there are far worse programs. I am sure there are- perhaps, one that implements medieval torture devices?

On the plus side, this program has tested far more that DrH's skills. It has tested us as a family and we have persevered through out it all. We are a stronger family than when we started out in this program and have managed to keep our senses of humor- granted, some people may find our humor to be more twisted now! All in all though, I am very glad to be saying good-bye to this place and DrH will not be letting the door hit him on the way out!