Alright, let’s break down a weekend cover shift as a surgical resident.
This one was an 8 AM to 8:30 PM marathon, and let me tell you, it was busy. Cover shifts mean you’re juggling multiple surgical units, putting out fires as they pop up, and praying for a window to grab food before the next page buzzes in.
The Day Begins: Racing the Clock
Like most of my shifts, this one started with me racing the clock to get to the hospital by 8 AM (why is it so hard to be on time?!). First up: the ward round. Cover shifts mean you’re responsible for a whole buffet of surgical specialties—Urology, Vascular, ENT, Neurosurgery, Plastics, and Orthopaedics during the last few hours.
Basically, you’re the go-to for all surgical patients across the hospital. Think of it as medical whack-a-mole: one patient’s blood pressure is through the roof, another needs their meds sorted, and someone else’s catheter is playing up. You sort one problem, and boom—another pops up. It’s all about keeping the plates spinning.
Layers and Pockets: Underrated Heroes
Let’s take a second to appreciate hospital jackets. They’re cozy, they’ve got pockets for days, and they’re basically perfect for freezing hospital wards. If you ever get your hands on one, hold onto it like your life depends on it. Trust me—comfy jackets can make or break a shift when you’re running around all day.
Independent, But Not Alone
Cover shifts are where you really get to flex your problem-solving muscles. You’re the first responder for patient issues, which means plenty of autonomy. But, if things get tricky, you’re never on your own—registrars and consultants are just a call away. It’s like walking a tightrope, but with a solid safety net below.
It’s a bit like night shift, where you’re the main person on-site. Problems arise, and you’re there to figure it out. It forces you to think on your feet, troubleshoot, and learn to trust your gut.
The Never-Ending Jobs List
Once the ward round wraps up, the grind truly begins. There’s a stream of jobs: updating notes, reviewing patients, and responding to pages. One patient arrived from another hospital with an infection, so I had to sort out his antibiotics and arrange an ultrasound.
Pro tip: weekend ultrasounds are strictly for emergencies—think testicular torsion or ovarian cyst accidents. For everything else, you wait until Monday.
And here’s where I realised I’d made a rookie mistake: I forgot to pack food. That left me running on hospital coffee, a bakery almond croissant (which, honestly, hit the spot), and an endless supply of raisin toast from the doctor’s lounge. Shoutout to raisin toast, the unsung hero of junior doctor life.
On-the-Job Learning
Cover shifts are great for teaching you the limits of your own decision-making. You learn when to escalate, how to manage deteriorating patients, and how to stay calm under pressure. At one point, I had a patient with a neck swelling who might’ve needed surgery, so we prepped them just in case. These moments push you to think fast and act decisively.
Wrapping Up: Handovers and Downtime
By the end of the shift, with all the patients reviewed and notes done, it was time to hand over to the night team. Now you're done and dusted. After a day like that, you’ve earned some downtime. For me, it’s all about collapsing on the couch with Netflix—or maybe one more slice of raisin toast.
That’s a weekend cover shift in a nutshell. It’s a hectic, non-stop kind of day, but it’s also where you learn and grow the most as a junior doctor. Time to recharge and gear up for the next one.
Watch the video for a deeper dive:
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