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I remember
graduation day well. I felt the thrill of achieving my goal
and anticipated beginning the awesome life I had envisioned
for myself as a doctor. In my mind, I felt set for life. I
paid my dues and now I had arrived!
Little did
I know that that was just the first step in the marathon
that I like to think of as my career. More than 10 years
later, I’m still running the race, still perfecting
technique, and discovering how much more there is to learn
about myself, my patients and how to be a more effective
doctor.
Dreaming…and Planning
Making the transition from school to
professional life was made more difficult because of
expectations I had after all those years dreaming about what
my life as an optometrist would be. I won’t discourage
dreaming, but I strongly encourage future and new ODs spend
time planning.
It’s great
to have career objectives; necessary even. When you look at
various practice opportunities, besides considering the
money offered and the length of the commute, consider just
as important the personal satisfaction a specific
opportunity might give you. Consider if the opportunity
would challenge you on many levels. We all know there are
practice situations that can crush your spirit and deaden
your razor sharp clinical skills. If they don’t fit in with
your career objectives, you shouldn’t
consider them for more than temporary fill-in
work.
The wonderful thing about optometry is that
you can make it as much or as little as you want it to be.
We are gifted with a profession that’s alive and dynamic and
changing continually. Your first few years in practice are
your first few steps in the marathon of your career. Don’t
lose sight of the big picture by wallowing in the details of
the here and now.
If the only opportunity that presents itself
after graduation offers you neither challenges nor
professional satisfaction, you can look at it two ways.
First, you could give up: “This is it. My career is
depressing and nothing like I dreamed it would be. What a
disappointment after all that hard work.” Or, you could
think: “I’m going to learn everything I can from this
situation while I put all my energy into developing a plan
for change.” A plan for change doesn’t necessarily mean
changing jobs. Some bad situations can be made great with a
little tweaking. The attitude you bring to a bad situation
can make or break you as a doctor. Stay positive.
Keep
Learning
For
perspective, seek out older optometrists at CE or society
meetings. Sit down next to one and strike up a conversation.
For them, the marathon race is in the home stretch. Ask for
advice and ideas. Listen. Make a friend. It’s eye opening to
listen to where our profession was 50 years ago or more.
Dream with them about where you’d like your career to go.
Making the transition from school to practice is tough. I
thought having my diploma was all that I needed. It’s funny
how the more you know, the more you know you don’t know.
There’s still a lot of learning to do.
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I distinctly remember the day I received my
diploma from optometry school. I recall thinking, “Oh my
gosh…finally, I’m a doctor.” Little did I know the social
responsibility that would accompany this title.
I’m a
doctor!....This is great…I think?
As I look
back, I’m intrigued at how differently people viewed me then
and now. Almost overnight, I could sense the challenge that
I would be faced with in finding my own identity. In one
sense, it was exciting receiving the increased amount of
respect that my doctor title gave me, yet on the other hand,
the responsibility that accompanies such a title was
overwhelming. For instance, people were asking me for
professional advice. These same individuals were trusting
me to have the answers to their problems. Overnight, I
suddenly became the expert doctor who had all the answers.
Little did my patients know that I was scared to death at
all of this responsibility. I spent eight years in school
dreaming of what it would be like to make my own
professional decisions for my patients. Finally, I had the
autonomy that I dreamed of, but the truth was that all of
this autonomy was overwhelming. The responsibility of the
doctor title was a lot to digest. I suddenly had the feeling
that this title made me different, almost super-human in the
eyes of my patients.
Yes, I’m a
Doctor! But Wait!
I had no
idea how different I would be treated socially as Dr.
Kerksick. For so long, I was accustomed to people viewing me
as “the starving student.” In the blink of an eye, I went
from “the starving student” to the image of the “well-to-do
doctor.” The ironic thing was that my bank account reflected
no change in lifestyle. The $18.26 total in my checking
account as student Kelly remained unchanged as I became Dr.
Kerksick. I could tell that the sympathy factor that I once
received from my acquaintances quickly disappeared. People
now associated my title with success and wealth, but my $18.26 total net worth reflected quite the
contrary.
Where Do I
Go from Here?
It took some time to find my comfort zone
with my title. One challenge you’ll face as a new grad will
include these social challenges. To me, this aspect of the
doctor title has been a lot more challenging than the
optometry side of my profession. As new graduates, your
education has given you the tools you’ll need to be
technically successful. To achieve the same amount of
success professionally, I have a few key suggestions for the
new graduates.
Practice with confidence.
Speaking as a new practitioner, I can promise that you’ll
ask yourself daily, “Did I do the right thing for that
patient? Did I initiate the appropriate treatment plan for
another patient?” Even though you may find yourself
questioning your decision-making skills, always practice
with confidence. A confident doctor will put the patient at
ease and will give the patient confidence in you as their
doctor.
Always
remember the power behind your professional recommendation.
Patients will rely on your expertise for
their eyecare needs. Never underestimate the power of your
professional recommendation. Patients come to you because
they trust your knowledge and value your insight. Don’t be
afraid to give the patients what they want – your
professional opinion.
Carry
yourself with confidence but remain “approachable.”
The social challenge of being the doctor for me was the most
difficult part of becoming a new professional. It is
important to carry yourself well, no matter where you go.
Patients truly appreciate a doctor who is down to earth and
easy to talk to. Over time, I’ve found that the feeling of
needing to be super-human was in fact, pretentious. Even
though I still believe that society expects more of you as a
doctor, I’ve found that patients appreciate the fact that
you are a human being. I truly believe that has been
the key to my success – patients take solace in my confident
attitude, they have grown to respect my professional
recommendations, and they truly appreciate the approachable
nature of my personality. |
