Written by: McMaster Medical c2023 Student, Hamilton Campus Where was your placement and what specialty was it in?
Psychiatry, Brampton Civic Hospital [cc2] How did you get to your placement? I got MacCare funding to commute to the elective. If you move closer to the hospital you won't need a car. On the first day I parked in the visitor lot and bought a parking pass. On my way out, I wasn't charged for my first day. Parking was $45 for the month. Describe a typical day at your core. I worked with Dr. Salim for the month, he follows patients on the mood disorders inpatient unit in the morning and then has an outpatient clinic in the afternoon. I would usually get there for 8am and start seeing a few patients in the morning. I would then review with Dr. Salim and then we'd see the patient together. He would give me time to dictate my notes afterwards. In the afternoon during his outpatient clinic, I could ask questions to the patients. There were three call shifts - two weekdays and one weekend call (8am-11pm). During those shifts I helped with emerg consults and any ward issues that came up. What level of responsibility did you have as a medical student? I did a lot of the information gathering for patients on ward, including new patients. I would also suggest management plans to my preceptor after seeing the patients. For emerg consults, I also got to ask a lot of questions and lead the interviews. I dictated notes for any patients I saw. Overall I felt like I had a lot of independence, especially on the inpatient wards. What are some common conditions you saw? Mood disorders, schizophrenia, borderline personality disorder, assessing suicide risk/patient safety/capacity, common psych medications Do you have any recommendations for things to do in the local area? There are a lot of good Indian food options near BCH! Would you recommend this core to current students? Yes! I absolutely loved my month with the psychiatry department and highly recommend this location! They have pretty high volumes and you will get a lot of exposure to bread and butter psychiatry cases.
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Written by: Patrick Kim c2023 Student, McMaster Medical School Hamilton Campus Where was your placement and what specialty was it in?
Brampton Psychiatry [clerkship core] How did you get to the placement? I stayed in an AirBnB very close to the hospital (maybe 5 minute walk). I still drove anyway because January 2022 was so cold, but very walkable any other month! Public transit seemed good around the hospital but I didn't take it personally. Got MacCARE funding for almost $900. Parking is $45 for the entire month. Describe a typical day at your core. I was with one preceptor (Dr. Salim) for the entire month (excluding call shifts). Day starts at 8:30-9:00AM, I had patients assigned to me to see every morning. By the end of the rotation it was maybe 3-4 people depending on admissions and discharges. I would also see any new admissions, sometimes alone and sometimes not. Afternoon was outpatients; I would sometimes join my preceptor for any interesting /notable cases. Otherwise I would do the dictations for the morning inpatients and join him afterwards if he was around (he often left in the afternoons for UHN in Toronto). There is a nice physician's lounge with free snacks and drinks where you can do dictations. I left every day anywhere between 2-4 pm. No weekend shifts except for one call shift on the weekend and two weekday night shifts. Most preceptors don't stay for the whole call shift so I was usually out early. What level of responsibility/exposure did you have as a medical student? I got to be more independent throughout the rotation. By the second week, I would see patients on my own and give my preceptor my impressions and discuss management. I also got to work with allied health (mostly social work) independently. I was also doing consult, progress, and discharge notes alone in the afternoons. Overall I'd say you get to have as much responsibility as you want to have. What are some common conditions you saw? Do you have any resource suggestions? Mostly depends on your preceptor and the ward they work in. There is adult mood/anxiety vs schizophrenia/psychosis, and also some pediatric units. I saw mostly depression, bipolar, and BPD, although I did also have some patients in the intensive unit who were query delirium. Toronto Notes would be a good level of depth to come start the core with. What is your most memorable experience? The vibes are 10/10 with the staff in Gen B. What was one thing you didn’t like? There isn't a ton of food diversity in the area. I personally like Indian food, but outside of that and big chains like fast food or Swiss Chalet your options are kind of limited. |
Brampton Civic Hospital Entrance, background credit: insception.com
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