Commencement 2014:
On To The Next Phase

This past week was the graduation for the Western University College of Podiatric Medicine class of 2014. As our second graduating class, this event still retained the excitement of our inaugural class from last year. As in all things, commencement marks a bitter sweet time in the lives of both my students and myself. I'm happy to see them move on to their residencies, but I'll also miss each of them.

This time of year has me thinking about moving on to new things, and, like my students, many residents around the country are also about to make an even bigger change: starting active clinical practice. So, for those of you residents reading this blog, this one's for you. Here is some advice from me to all my new colleagues about to start practice.

Tonight's Premier Lecture is
Placental Tissues: The Gift of Life for Chronic Wounds
William Li, MD

You're on a first name basis – After you graduate, you're a colleague and not an instructee. That means you can call your old attendings and teachers by their first names (unless explicitly prohibited from doing so by an individual – some people are just stuffy). It's hard to get used to at first, but with practice you'll become more comfortable.
Keep learning – Remember, being a doctor requires lifelong learning to stay sharp. One way to do so is to keep going to conferences, but sometimes they can get stale if you go to the same one each year. I'll happily recommend any of the various PRESENT conferences. You'll get a chance to see lots of regular national speakers and some new speakers as well, which makes these conferences fresh every time. I learn something new with almost every lecture I see.
Keep teaching – If there's any way for you to stay involved with a residency, then do so. Every surgical case you do alone is a wasted case for the podiatric resident community. If you do a surgical case with a resident, make sure they prove themselves to you before handing them the scalpel. You might want to be the cool attending that lets them do everything, but remember it's your butt on the line and your patient that suffers if a mistake is made.
Stay involved – There are so many ways to be involved with your chosen profession. Consider a position with your local podiatry society or your state component. Remember, the APMA has a young member's group that can be very helpful to those starting out. ACFAS is also very welcoming to new members. There are practice management, wound, sports medicine associations, and many others. Podiatry's a small community, and knowing others will help your career.
Start working towards board certification on day one – This one is a two-fold recommendation. First, if you don't already know, then you should be aware that the ABPM has waived the case documentation part, which means you can take the certification exam the year of your graduation. You can become board certified almost immediately after graduation. How good of a deal is that? Second, the ABPS certification does require case submissions, so you should start getting to know the process and collecting your cases on day one. Remember to gather all of the patient information (charts, op notes, hospital charts, radiographs, etc.) and keep them in a safe and secure location. If you were to leave your first job (this happens reasonably often) you could potentially lose access to those files. This will make your life much harder, so don't make this mistake.

One final piece of advice – With all the distractions (starting practice, making money, boards, hospital privileges, etc.) it's easy to forget to take the best care of two groups of people: your patients and your family. Remember, you became a doctor to help people, and your family is the most important thing in your life. Neglect them at your own risk.

All in all, starting practice is scary, exciting, and fun if you relax a bit and let each day evolve as it will. Best of luck to every graduate on your next endeavors.

Best wishes,

Jarrod Shapiro, DPM
PRESENT Practice Perfect Editor
[email protected]