Edit: I would just like to say that having worked with the person in this post for more then a year now I have to say there is nothing wrong with her work ethic. She is one of my favourite people around and has never shot me down or not been obliging when I've had to phone for help or advise. Perhaps the first conclusion is more appropriate.
You could spot them from a mile away - so out of place at seven-forty-five-ish on the cardiac morning round. Surrounded by Trainers and Crocs and the occasional cheeky sandal, they looked as at home as a slinky catwalk model in the middle of a 'Vroue Federasie' AGM.
The female obsession with footwear is not poorly documented. Most of us dream of a shoe-closest like Carrie in 'Sex In The City'. I love having a reason to slip on a pair of heels (not just because they add a few centimeters to my shortness) but because they make you feel more ... I don't know...stylish and grown-up. It's the way they finish an outfit, the way they sound when you walk in them, the way they show off a pretty pedicure and most importantly, make legs look skinnier. No one pulls off a power suit in pumps.
But they are made for women who do a fair amount of sitting. After a few hours they start pinching, and feet start burning and muscles start aching. That's why they come off when the party gets going, why they are work shoes and occasion shoes, not holiday shoes, or weekend shoes.
They certainly aren't intern shoes, or ICU shoes, or call shoes. In fact, they aren't hospital shoes.
This is not a job where you get to sit a lot. This is a job where you do a lot of standing, and walking, and every now and then when people stop breathing, occasional running. These are not 8 hour days, they are sometimes 12, sometimes 18, sometimes 28 hour days.
It just concerns me when someone has been around in the profession long enough to have an MBChB and a Fellowship Qualification, and then doesn't choose their shoes with the same wisdom they apply in choosing antibiotics and inotropes.
I know they say you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover, and probably in the same vein a doctor by her shoes - but I cannot help but wonder about the person who willingly chooses heals over flats in this profession.
I have to assume that
The female obsession with footwear is not poorly documented. Most of us dream of a shoe-closest like Carrie in 'Sex In The City'. I love having a reason to slip on a pair of heels (not just because they add a few centimeters to my shortness) but because they make you feel more ... I don't know...stylish and grown-up. It's the way they finish an outfit, the way they sound when you walk in them, the way they show off a pretty pedicure and most importantly, make legs look skinnier. No one pulls off a power suit in pumps.
But they are made for women who do a fair amount of sitting. After a few hours they start pinching, and feet start burning and muscles start aching. That's why they come off when the party gets going, why they are work shoes and occasion shoes, not holiday shoes, or weekend shoes.
They certainly aren't intern shoes, or ICU shoes, or call shoes. In fact, they aren't hospital shoes.
This is not a job where you get to sit a lot. This is a job where you do a lot of standing, and walking, and every now and then when people stop breathing, occasional running. These are not 8 hour days, they are sometimes 12, sometimes 18, sometimes 28 hour days.
It just concerns me when someone has been around in the profession long enough to have an MBChB and a Fellowship Qualification, and then doesn't choose their shoes with the same wisdom they apply in choosing antibiotics and inotropes.
I know they say you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover, and probably in the same vein a doctor by her shoes - but I cannot help but wonder about the person who willingly chooses heals over flats in this profession.
I have to assume that
1. They have no idea what is about to hit them, in which case shame for them, or
2. Their work ethic is going to be a problem, in which case shame for the rest of us.
