Reclaiming Joy in Medicine Starts With Trying Something New

Babies are great teachers. They are always curious and ready to try something new. Through the process of exploring, they find out what works and what does not, what is pleasant and what is not. There is no restriction of limitation. As the babies grow older, small children start to have reservations about things. They start to think about what others would think, if something is a social taboo, if something is embarrassing.

We are never too old to try something new. New ideas or new ways to do something. When you believe that you are too old to try something, barring any physical limitations by your body, you are limiting yourself. Sure, it is alright not to try everything under the sun. You get to decide what you try and what to avoid.

Even though it is beneficial to try new things, it does not mean that we are supposed to do something new all the time. The emphasis is on doing something you enjoy or making something better. You may try cautiously, one thing at a time, or openly try multiple things. More often than not, when we are open to explore different possibilities, more doors will open. Not everything works out. When things do not go our way, we learn a lesson from it.

Our hospital started using a new electronic medical record system 2 months ago. I am getting more and more used to the EMR but still not as comfortable as I was using the old EMR system. One of the things I missed about the old system is that going from room to room and using the computer in each room was almost seamless. In the old system, I was able to use my ID badge to log on to any computer, and the start screen of the computer would be where I left off in the other room. That really enhanced my work flow and efficiency by not having to type my username and password every time I switch computers. Our new system does not have the ID badge log on built into the program. In the beginning, I would just stick with using one computer – the one in the charting room. When I went into the exam room to see a patient, I would go without logging on in the room. I would write down some key findings on a piece of paper to remind myself what certain results were. Then I would write my note back on my main computer.  For me, it would be more efficient to type in the exam room while the patient is telling me what is going on and what the concerns are.

Then I discovered the button called “secure”. The “secure” button is to lock your screen where you left off. The idea is that, when you next log on using another computer, the last screen from the other computer will pop up.

That sounds good. Although I still need to type in my username and password, it is a possible alternative, a better alternative than to document entirely outside of the room. What did not work so well was that, as I was navigating my way in the new EMR, the “secure” button did not seem to be working as planned. There were instances when I was logged out. One time it said I had too many attempts to log on. A few times the exam room computer drove me out.

By trying new things, such as new ideas and new ways of doing things, we find out possibilities. We get to know what works and what does not, what is better or worse. Trying new things is especially important in medicine. Do you try a new drug within your specialty when it is newly approved by the FDA? If you do not have any restrictions from your organization, will you explore more new ways to treat patients or where to send them? Possibilities are endless when we are willing to try new things.