Day in the life of
Emergency Physician – Dr. Celine
As an emergency physician, I lead other health professionals in the emergency department in seeing patients and stabilizing medical and traumatic emergencies. I am responsible for performing procedures to save lives and limbs, as well as identifying the sickest patients that need immediate surgery or admission to the hospital for treatment. For patients who are stable and can be managed in an outpatient setting, I ensure that they follow up with their primary doctor. I help coordinate care with families and other specialists. I am also responsible for navigating through an electronic health record system. This means I write notes to reflect my evaluation and care for each patient.
There is no typical day working as an emergency physician. There can be a bus crash at any moment or the beginning of a worldwide pandemic.
Pros
Working as an emergency physician is extremely rewarding. I get to interact with patients from all walks of life, at their lowest, and treat their ailments. I like to think that for the most part, my interactions are positive. I also like the diversity of medicine in which I practice. And since we don’t have our own patients, it is nice to not be on call after our shift is done.
Cons
Being an emergency physician is also extremely challenging. You have to juggle limited resources with an unexpected patient volume, work long hours with no breaks on your feet, and be selfless. There are no nights, weekends, or holidays off. Ultimately, the worst part of the job is that not everyone can be saved. Seeing tragedy and delivering bad news requires a great deal of resilience.
