Job Summary
Predominantly ward junior doctor work
On calls days and nights are spent in EAU (Emergency Assessment Unit) clerking new admissions
Weekend on calls spent on EAU or rarely on the ward
Laburnum ward specialises in cardiology and CVAs, Juniper ward in ID and gastroenterology. The medical short stay ward is for general medicine and is attached to EAU. Over a six month period you will rotate through each ward. You will cover one team per ward.
Location(s)
The Horton General Hospital, Banbury
Shift pattern (lates/nights/weekends etc)
10 week rotation
Approximately 1 in 5 weekends worked – either day or night
Approximately 1 in 6 on calls
Long shifts/on calls are 13 ½ hours
Nights are split so that you do weekend nights, then post nights recovery, then a float week which often people take as annual leave, followed by weekday nights. This can mean you do weekend nights then have almost two weeks off prior to starting weekday nights.
Top tips for extra opportunities (e.g. teaching / skills )
There is general medical teaching for trainees once a week
There is the opportunity to attend clinics but this needs to be organised to ensure day to day duties are covered
Book leave early!
Highlights
- Lots of pathology
- Recurrent exposure to common medical problems that will be seen in GP leads to confidence building
- Friendly teams, friendly consultants, small community
- Rotation around the different wards varies exposure
Challenges
- Lack of continuity and working with different colleagues frequently – makes handover very important
- High turnover of patients
- Sometimes it can be difficult to attend teaching or clinics due to ward commitments
- Balancing on call and ward duties can be challenging. It can be difficult to get out on time.
- Swapping shifts is difficult
- Rarely have full team due to rota for on calls and annual leave.
The details are correct at the time of writing but are subject to change.