Junior doctors to be called resident doctors

Hospital medicine is hierarchical though and for a good reason. DD recently showed me her rota, she's now often the most senior doctor on duty with the consultant on call and at home when working nights or weekends. The rota tells her the level of each doctor on duty that she's responsible for, it also gives information about procedures that they are trained to do on their own. Her job is not just to care for patients (currently a 28 bed ICU) but also to ensure it is run safely whilst giving doctors junior to her the opportunity to train and get experience. All the patients are very ill, deaths are part and parcel of the job, so supporting distressed relatives is an everyday occurrence. She's just taken another batch of exams (at her own cost) to register as a Fellow and enable her to apply for consultancy posts. It's such a long and difficult path from F1/F2 to becoming a consultant.

The consultant who treated my husband always referred to the rest of his team as colleagues. There was never any suggestion that they were in any way inferior. We used to point out that his title of Doctor was only a courtesy title anyway as he hadn't got a PhD, unlike our daughter. He said he had the same problem with his father in law who was a physicist with a PhD. If we got deep into a discussion about treatment he would offer to go and look for a "real" doctor for us Looking back on the way his entire team looked after us both I would have felt it was very insulting to refer to any of them as Juniors.

Jennerdysphoria

I'm glad about this. 'Junior' gives entirely the wrong impression, and probably undermined public support for their pay claim.

So true.

Junior doctor is so misleading

Mamie

I think resident doctors means that they are hospital based and not community based. I am pleased they are doing it, for doctors who have been in training for many years in their specialism the junior title seems wrong.

They have completed a medical degree and can have up to nine years' of working experience as a hospital doctor, depending on their specialty, or up to five years working and gaining experience to become a general practitioner (GP).

All resident doctors work under the supervisor of a senior doctor.

Aveline

Caleo In Edinburgh in the 1940s and 50s the doctors mess was very grand and had its own butler! My Dad used to reminisce.

These days they don't even get their own canteen, often they can't park anywhere near their hospital and the amount they need to know for each specialism keeps increasing with each improved procedure, new drug etc yet some people still seem to resent them being paid a decent wage which reflects their level of training and unsociable work hours.

Caleo In Edinburgh in the 1940s and 50s the doctors mess was very grand and had its own butler! My Dad used to reminisce.

Oreo

Will being renamed make them happier?

The BMA did a survey in the spring and 91% voted for the change.

You can tell the level of your doctor by the colour of the ribbon holding the name card. The NHS is a very hierarchical organisation. There should be a poster explaining the different bands. If it matters …..?

Will being renamed make them happier?

To my mind, more important than this is for Physician Associates to be clearly identified to patients as they are not doctors in any shape or form.

Apparently these non- doctors are based both in hospitals and GP practices, with most patients unaware that they are being treated by an unqualified person.

I'm glad about this. 'Junior' gives entirely the wrong impression, and probably undermined public support for their pay claim.

error:I mean simply 'doctors'

Early 1950s, late 1940s ' Edinburgh, 'residents' were more senior doctors who actually lived on hospital premises and were on call. There was a building called 'the Residency' where they lived.
Not all the doctors were residents. Most of them were a more junior grade and were called 'simply doctors'.

My daughter is what would have been called a "senior registrar" when she's on nights she does a 12 hour shift but it is always at least 13hours with handovers, the hospital is over an hour away from where she lives so she is effectively away from home for nearly 16 hours for three shifts on the trot. It's not worth going home so she books and pays for a room in the hospital and sleeps there during the day. When she's on long days she sleeps in her camper van in the hospital car park. Is that why she's going to be called a resident doctor?

I do think it helps to know more than just the generic "doctor" title.
I would not want to be operated on by someone with a PhD in philosophy.

I agree. A resident in hospitals, a GP in surgeries, and then psychiatrist, cardiologist etc. I am pleased that they are no longer being called junior doctors.

Locums of yore.

I agree. Junior doctors wasn’t the right term.

I don't care what they are called as long as they are there, and they lose their attitude that they are doing their patients a huge favour. Nurses aren't like this.

In my young day (many years ago ) residents were the house doctors in their first year after graduating. They had to stay in the hospital day and night when on call, which could be around 100 hours per week in some cases. At least now the hours are a bit more sensible.

grandtanteJE65

Changing the name is surely just window-dressing. What about giving these hard-working people a better salary, or failing that better working conditions?

I think it is what the "junior" doctors wanted and was part of the settlement of the pay dispute. To be referred to as junior doctors, when some are in very responsible positions after years of training, does seems wrong.
I do think it helps to know more than just the generic "doctor" title.
I would not want to be operated on by someone with a PhD in philosophy. 😂

In Canada I think Residents are people still in training and have not fully completed all the necessary for their license.
I saw a Resident this past Monday. After the appointment and before I left the office the Resident needed to go over my file with my Doctor.
I like them because they tend to be very thorough.

Its an archaic name and its important to be given a title you can be proud of.

Changing the name is surely just window-dressing. What about giving these hard-working people a better salary, or failing that better working conditions?

The term houseman wouldn't work these days. They'd have to be a houseman, housewoman or houseperson.

M0nica

How many people currently know the specific grade of a doctor treating them in hospital? i suppose consultants could wear a funny hat or something to show they are the Top Doctors, but below that, who cares - they are just 'doctors'

For internal purposes they can have as many grades as they like and call them what they will, but a group word, for a collection of hospital doctors is - 'doctors -.

The last one I saw told me he was Mr M's registrar.
Mr M was in an adjacent cubicle, dealing with endless questions from a patient's son. I could hear every word. 😴 Such patience by the Consultant!

The registrar was very efficient.