What makes a great paediatrician

I have been a nurse for 9 years.

8 of those in pediatrics, with the most recent in pediatric critical care. I work with COUNTLESS resident physicians and we receive a new batch of them every June. To say I am biased would be fair.

I have my favorite doctors. I can honestly say it’s not fair to judge a physician in residency, but there are some signs that make for amazing pediatricians.

In my humble opinion:

1.      Humbleness. There is nothing worse than a doctor who thinks he knows it all. Does he know more than Jim Bob who works on a tractor and hasn’t gone to high school but has held his newborn baby for three weeks every night while he has seizures? Sure. From a book. From a previous patient. But Jim Bob knows his own baby more than this doctor ever will. Those who are humble enough to give the parents the right to feel like they know their own child will be fantastic physicians.

2.      Be a human. Often times, especially with new doctors, there is such an obvious line drawn in the sand between “them” and everyone else (including nurses and staff and patients). It’s weird when I work next to you saving a life of a newborn but when I see you at the supermarket you act like you don’t know me. We all are on the same level of caring for people- your education is just different than mine. I could have gone to med school but decided to be a nurse instead. I know what I do, but don’t think I couldn’t do the same as you if I tried. That goes for your patients as well. When you treat others as humans and not those who are beneath you, you will be a fantastic physician.

3.      Perfect your bedside manner. Get on the child’s level. Learn about the new movies or what kids enjoy. Spend time talking to the parents for a moment about where they are from or how they feel today. This will take you far and they won’t forget it. They will ask for you.

4.      Be gentle with yourself. You’re not perfect. The work you do is terribly exhausting and mentally straining. It’s ok to say “I don’t know” or “I’m tired”. It’s ok to cry. The best doctors I have worked with have been gentle with themselves on their own limitations and feelings.

        Refer: Sara Craw