What is your experience as a medical intern?

After graduating from medical school, I opted for a 2-year gap before completing my one-year post-graduate internship training. The decision for such a gap is beyond the scope of this article. As a medical intern and fully licensed physician, I was ethically and legally responsible for all aspects of patient care. In retrospect, my internship full of strenuous work and challenges made me become more mature and competent.

First off, solid clinical knowledge and skill, the cornerstone of clinical practice, take hard work to master. Without clinical knowledge and skill, a physician cannot practice independently. During my one-year internship, patient care and studying textbooks indeed comprised my entire day, which equipped me with the weapons needed to take care of patients. I prescribed medications and ordered diagnostic tests for patients based on my independent assessment and feedback from attending physicians. In addition, I treasured any opportunity to enhance my clinical skills. Thanks to the experience, I was able to perform various invasive procedures under indirect supervision, including central venous catheterization and endotracheal intubation.

Secondly, an urgent situation is not only a challenge but also an opportunity to grow. During one of my night shifts, I encountered a patient sustaining cardiac arrest and was able to initiate chest compressions before the code team arrived and handed the patient over to the senior resident. That was the first time that I dealt with a critical patient condition. After the night shift, I consulted my supervisor and reflected on what precautions should be taken beforehand and which of my management steps could be revised. Because of the experience, I was more confident in my following night shifts and more prepared for any unexpected situation.

To sum up, the one-year internship marks the first time I practiced medicine with full responsibility. Through strenuous work and challenges, I became more confident in my clinical skills and established the ability to deal with critical patient conditions during night shifts. I will bring these weapons to the next stage of my career.

Highlight (2021/08/01-2022/07/31): As a medical intern and fully licensed physician, I was ethically and legally responsible for all aspects of patient care. I prescribed medications and ordered diagnostic tests for patients based on my independent assessment and feedback from attending physicians. I was able to perform various invasive procedures under indirect supervision, including central venous catheterization and endotracheal intubation. During one of my shifts, I encountered a patient sustaining cardiac arrest and was able to initiate chest compressions before the code team arrived and handed the patient over to the senior resident. The one-year internship marks the first time I practiced medicine with full responsibility. I became more confident in my clinical skills and established the ability to conduct system-based practice in both inpatient and outpatient settings.