Dear QMR,Welcome to our advice column!
Read about some of the questions the QMed community has asked QMR about Kingston, QMed, and life in general. Have a question? Ask QMR in the field below! |
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Dear QMR,
How did you deal with debt after medical school? Were you able to start paying back your loans right away with a resident salary, or does it all kind or build up until after residency? Sincerely, No Money Mo Problems Dear No, The key to smart financing is responsible budgeting. Some residents will save over half of their earnings, while others will dig further into their line of credit. The sooner you are able to accumulate wealth and investments, the sooner you will be able to compound your earnings (aka “make your money work for you”). At the same time, if you ignore your line of credit, your debt will also accumulate and compound through interest. Realistically, most of us will make enough money once we start working to have no trouble paying back our loans. The people who may run into issues are those who live outside their means in medical school and continue this trend throughout residency. Remember that other expensive things (like cars, kids and mortgages) may also come up, so plan accordingly if these are part of your life plan. That being said, the only thing you need to do at this stage is to make your best attempt at living frugally. Give yourself a budget every month and try to stay within it (you can try tools like YNAB or Mint). Carry this trend throughout residency and into early practice. If you live like a resident for the first two years of in independent practice, you can be financially set for life. While it really isn’t about the money at the end of the day, think about how much less stress you’ll carry if you’re working for fun when you’re 50, instead of working to pay off your mortgage. That said, don’t forget to enjoy your life too – if you want to travel the world, you should probably do that before you get that bilateral knee OA.
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Dear QMR,
I want to provide feedback for my instructors and our classes, but I am not sure if the feedback forms on Elentra are anonymous. In addition, not all classes or professors have feedback forms available. What are other ways I can provide feedback that will be heard? Sincerely, Feedback Freddy Dear Freddy, The feedback forms on Elentra are kept anonymous. UGME recognizes that students might feel uncomfortable giving feedback to instructors otherwise, often for fears of repercussion. You can rest assured that your feedback will not be held against you. Please fill out these forms – whether your experience has been positive or negative. This feedback is taken seriously; you’d be surprised at how quickly some of the comments are addressed. Remember – problems won’t be fixed if they are not addressed. Similarly, instructors want to know if and what they are doing well. This is especially true for newer instructors. For classes or professors that do not have feedback forms, you can provide feedback in other ways. Your Academic Reps and Course Reps are good people to contact. They will collate information from many of your peers, and their ability to act as a third party allows for communication without putting you directly in the line of fire. Dear QMR,
I've heard medicine is a lonely career. How can I make sure I prioritize my relationships so I don't lose them over time? Sincerely, Don’t Wanna Be All by Myself Dear Don’t, Thanks so much for your great question. Regardless of whether we are trying to maintain relationships with friends, family or partners and whether these individuals are in our own homes, classes, cities or afar, relationships as a medical trainee take work! So here are a few tips and tricks to try to make that work more manageable. 1. Double-up: Certain items in our schedules, like hanging out with friends, tend to get cut from the roster more liberally than others. Try to circumvent this by integrating relationships into unavoidable components of your schedule. For example, call a family member while walking home, or have a friend join you to grocery shop or meal-prep together. 2. Make it a date: It can sometimes be helpful to have a recurring event in your calendar to look forward to and (hopefully) stick to over time. Whether this is a weekly workout class with a classmate or a monthly brunch date with an old friend, having a regularly scheduled event can help to keep your relationships on track. 3. Patience: While balance in all aspects of our lives at all times would be ideal, we sometimes need to be patient with ourselves. Maybe we won’t be up for every class party or make it back in time for every family member’s birthday. This does not make anyone lame nor does it mean we don’t care. It is ok to forewarn those important to us as to when a busy stretch is upcoming. In fact, it can sometimes be helpful for those who care about us to know that our radio silence is not us ignoring them, but rather is sometimes a signal that we may actually need a bit of added support from them. Having this conversation ahead of time can be really helpful. These ideas are just a start, and while at times they may be tested, your most meaningful relationships will only grow stronger with the strains of Medicine! Dear QMR,
Does having research in the specialty you're interested in really matter? What do you think is the biggest difference maker for schools to pick you for residency? Sincerely, Researching how to survive CaRMS Dear Researching, Many schools consider research a “strong” asset [read: requirement]. However, the impression I get from many residents, preceptors and program directors, is that research is research. I would not [and did not] worry about doing research in a specific field. No one expects you to know in your preclerkship years which specialty you’ll end up in [except maybe plastics *sighs audibly*]. Just find a fun project and learn something new. Dear QMR,
I have a cute boyfriend in medicine, what are some tips I can use to maintain the relationship into residency? Sincerely, Crazy in Love Dear In Love, Medicine is hard, but relationships can be harder. A while ago, my boyfriend transitioned from medical school into residency while we were dating (long distance with a six-hour time difference!). I wish I had a schema, or mnemonic, or magic shortcut that could guarantee your relational success, but at the core of all successful relationships are hard work and sacrifice — I don’t think there’s any way around that. They say relationships should be 50/50, but I think 100/100 is better. After all, we all go through different life “seasons” where we need different forms of support and care. My advice is:
Dear QMR,
Is residency really that bad? I hear scary stories of burning out and a lot of crying. Sincerely, Clerk and Afraid Dear Clerk, Just like the rest of life, residency has good and bad days. You will finish some days feeling on top of the world, and you will also finish some days at your lowest. It’s okay – it happens to all of us. In your days at QMed, you will establish relationships that will last you a lifetime. Hopefully somewhere in this wonderful group of people (and among those in your personal life), you’ll find a few close friends that will support you through your worst days. Hold on to these people. To echo the wise advice of Dr. Murray, it’s not such a bad idea to have a “failure friend.” In addition, figure out the things that keep you well and set aside time in your day to make them happen. Whether it be yoga, rock climbing, running, swimming, innertube water polo, Dragonboating, reading, or your dog, don’t let these things fall to the wayside when life gets busy. It’s also a good idea to step back from time to time and actually ask yourself whether or not you feel well. If you do, reflect on the things that are helping to keep you well, because this way you’ll know what to fall upon in the future. If you don’t feel well, you should actively work to change that -- recognizing when you are beginning to burn out and nipping it in the bud is key. Do you need a vacation? (You probably do.) Use every single one of your vacation, education, and lieu days. Get good sleep. Above all, remember this: you had a hard day today because medicine is hard, not because you are bad doctor. |
Thank you!Thank you to all our contributors to this column. All advice and opinions belong to our QMR contributors and do not reflect the opinions of the Queen’s Medical Review.
If you don’t see your question here, look for your question in our next issue. Questions and answers may have been edited for length or clarity. Categories |
