Footnotes - Summer 2022 - 21

practice them on your friends and
family. It is really helpful not only to
practice these techniques but talk
with your colleagues on what you're
testing for. For example, if you are
practicing the Thompson test, don't
just squeeze your friend's calf. Ask
yourself and say out loud, what a
positive test looks like and what the
testing is for. (Lack for plantarflexion
is a positive test and it is positive
for Achilles tendon tear or rupture).
Practice techniques you have
learned, like bandaging and suturing
as well.
Also practice talking about things
out loud, it helps to better formulate
your presentation to the attending
and to get you more used to saying
medical terminology and proper
anatomical description of certain
pathology. Additionally, practice
going through a SOAP note a few
times with your friends. Knowing
the order and having practiced
each section will help you to feel
more confident when presenting to
attendings. Also, while practicing,
always make sure you remember
which foot the pathology is in (if
not bilateral). It sounds simple but
students usually have the sides
mixed up.
Always remember practice makes
perfect in all aspects of the clinic,
the more you practice ahead of
time, the less time you will have
to spend practicing outside of the
clinic.
Dear Abbey,
I am so worried about hurting
a patient or cutting someone. I
accidentally cut myself when I was
in anatomy lab, and I am worried
that my hands are steady enough
to do procedures. I am also so
worried that my anxiety about
hurting someone will make patients
not trust me. What do you think
I should do?
Sincerely,
Shaky Hands
Dearest Hands,
When I was first in the clinic,
I was also worried about hurting
someone. However one of the
attendings told me: " do not
constantly freak out thinking that
you are going to hurt someone.
There is nothing, no mistake, error,
or accident, that you can do that
the clinicians cannot fix or handle.
Otherwise, they would not let
you do it, they would be doing
it themselves. " This is true, if a
patient's case is especially difficult,
the attending or resident will step
in and help you.
Worrying about hurting a patient
may make you come off as nervous
to the patient. Try to have some
confidence when you go into a
patient room, patients can sense
when you're nervous and it will
make them uncomfortable. Making
a patient feel comfortable is your
primary priority. From there you can
ask all the questions you want and
perform all the examinations and
tests needed. Without the patient's
trust in you, you aren't going to
get far. You should be confident
and compassionate without being
arrogant. Finally, if you are nervous
or uncomfortable performing a
procedure, that is okay! You can
get a patient complaint and do a
physical exam and then excuse
yourself from the room to ask
for help. Do not be afraid to ask
(fourth years, residents, clinicians)
if you are unsure of something, or
for a demonstration on how to do
something. We know that you are
overwhelmed and even months
into it there will still be things you
haven't done and there are people
there to help you.
Overall, it is okay to be nervous and
take things slow, there are a lot of
people around who will help you,
and you will eventually watch and
assist with enough procedures that
you will gain the confidence to do
procedures by yourself.
Dear Abbey,
I am not the best student in my
class. I often forget things or get
nervous if I do not have time to
prepare for questions that might
be asked. I am really worried that
the attendings will think I am an
idiot because I am unable to answer
questions. What is your advice
if I do not know the answer to a
question?
Sincerely,
Unforgettable
Dearest Unforgettable,
First of all, it is not realistic that you
will know or remember everything.
We are students and we are in the
clinic to learn, not to be perfect.
It's okay to not know something
and trust me, you won't remember
everything you learned in your first
two years of classes. You may be
put on the spot a bit but as long
as you research the subject matter
afterward and follow up with
the clinician who asked you the
question, everything will be fine
and you will have shown initiative
and a willingness to learn.
However, if you are working with
a clinician who runs a class or
recently gave a lecture on a topic
make sure to know this material or
make more of an effort to keep up
with it. They will probably ask you
questions. This is not to shame you,
it is just to help you learn. Applying
knowledge makes it easier to
remember later on.
SUMMER 2022
footnotes 21
Footnotes - Summer 2022

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