There have been some questions about what the OTM fellows do all day.  We show up once in a while in white coats, and other than that are largely scarce.  Do we actually do anything to earn our keep for this extra year?

It’s true that we are largely expected to be present and accounted for from 8-5 every week day; it’s also true that every day is different.  The mornings are generally busier and less variable than the afternoons, so I like to think about the week of mornings and the week of afternoons separately.  This is an example of what all was going on in OTM Fellow World last week:

Monday morning:  Department meeting & technique session discussing upcoming classes, labs, practicals, and other sundry details such as dress code, sign in sheets, things going on at other schools, and basically planning ahead for the week & the year in general.  Also fellows’ meeting to talk about projects & assign duties for the week:  who’s setting up the lab, who’s running the computer/camera, etc.

Tuesday morning:  First-year lab 8-10 and second-year lab 10-12.  Let me tell you what, by that time lunch is really sounding good.

Wednesday morning:  No scheduled meetings, so it’s good time to check in with the other fellows & physician mentors & generally catch up on writing lectures, gathering research papers, or whatever other projects are ongoing (which is always more than you think).

Thursday morning: same as Tuesday.

Friday morning: Reserved time for didactics; this particular week we spent a couple of hours with Dr. Collins learning about diagnosis & treatment of the feet.  This one-on-one time with the physicians (or, ok, 6-on-one time) is really invaluable and always profitable.

Afternoons are a little more scattered and more individualized.  Generally you can plan on counting one full afternoon for research, one for shadowing, and one for Fellows’ Clinic.  There are also practice sessions at least once a week, and we usually spend at least a little time brushing up for that; lately we’ve also had afternoons committed to helping with school physicials for the Complete DOctor course.  Have you been counting?  Research, shadowing, clinic, DO class; that’s four afternoons right there, so good luck finding time to keep up with all the other little projects that always come up, plus keeping the big projects going, plus rotating hospital call or (gasp) tutoring.  It’s very do-able, but very rarely a dull moment.