STS Resident Symposium 2014
His advice to trainees entering practice entails the following three recommendations: "1) Make patient care your absolute top priority. 2) Treat everyone around you with utmost respect and dignity. Care about and find value in all team members, even those who are not the strongest members. Always have your team member’s back and never openly criticize anyone. And 3) embrace your new institution and new team members." These suggestions are useful for trainees entering their first job; however, they are also incredibly practical advice for anybody working on a medical team, regardless of the environment or their role on the team.
Dr. Francis C. Nichols, from the Mayo Clinic, in Rochester, Minn., gave a great update on the new ICD-10, explaining key differences between previous coding systems and the new one.
He provided attendees with a helpful understanding of the importance of appropriate coding and billing strategies, and offered tips for accurately optimizing one’s ability to bill for provided services.
Finally, this wonderful series of brief lectures was finished off with a top-notch presentation from Dr. Elizabeth A. David of the University of California, Davis, who spoke about the various means of developing your career in the early years. She provided insight and details about developing reasonable, achievable 5- and 10-year plans; finding mentors (both within and outside of one’s institution); and how not to fail as a junior attending. The most important thing that you should do as a junior attending, according to Dr. David, is to make sure that your patients do well. She recommends, "Check everything, be vigilant, make sure your outcomes are yours, and be available to your patients and your referring physicians."
When asked what she wishes she’d known before venturing into practice, Dr. David states, "I wish I had known how hard I was going to work as a junior faculty member. People had told me that the first year would be a hard year, but it never really sunk in until I was experiencing it." She continues, "my first year was definitely a challenging year, but like all things you work hard for – it was very rewarding!"
Likewise, the symposium was incredibly rewarding. States Dr. Michelle Ellis, a finishing fellow at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, "I enjoyed the symposium very much. It was timely and relevant. I would definitely recommend it to other residents and fellows. I especially liked the break-out sessions which allowed for detailed discussion."
Dr. Antonoff is a second-year, thoracic-track trainee at Washington University in St Louis.
