Is there a better time of year to get sick or need surgery? One nurse seems to think so.
In the shared video Tick tockNurse Asha (@ashahotcakes) is urging people to avoid hospitals as much as possible throughout July.
That’s because new recruits in the surgical department may do more harm than good in their mission to provide care. In her experience as a nurse, she said she has seen an increase in the need for surgical revisions in July to correct the work of surgical residents.
Should I have the surgery in July?
“As a nurse, don’t do surgery in July,” she says in the video. “Don’t go to the hospital in July. July is when new residents start their surgical rotations. July is also the month with the most surgical revisions, where they have to redo everything that went wrong in surgery because of the residents. In July, every instruction is wrong. Every medication is wrong. Every surgery goes wrong. I get it. They have to practice. They have to learn. They’re going to fail. But it’s not my fault. Every year, out of nowhere, someone says, ‘Why is everything so messed up these days?’ and someone else says, ‘It’s July.’ Every year, everything goes wrong in July, without fail. [expletive].”
And she encourages surgical residents to take the time to learn before surgery to reduce complications and problems for patients and hospital staff.
“If you’re a surgical resident, you don’t know what you’re teaching them. You’re not going to be ready in July,” she said. [expletive] We are ready. The whole program is confusing and [expletive]but please take your time. I work in radiology and all the instructions are wrong. I can’t even get the instructions right. You guys aren’t ready to start in July. How about you shadow until September or so? Give it a try.”
The Daily Dot reached out to Asha through direct messages on TikTok and comments on her videos.
A surge in deaths at teaching hospitals
Asha’s observations are not unfounded. 2011 ABC News ReportMortality rates in teaching hospitals increase by 10% in July, when many surgical residents undergo their first surgery.
Patients will be asked to bring their own prescriptions to hospitals if possible, and may be asked to choose an entirely different hospital if their nearest hospital is found to have a high infection rate.
Some viewers recommended avoiding teaching hospitals and medical trainees at this time.
“Or find a non-teaching hospital,” one commenter wrote.
“Make sure to ask what role the resident will play in my procedure/surgery and let them know you don’t want them involved in my care,” another commenter wrote. “July is the worst.”
“They won’t practice without your permission!,” one commenter wrote. “They always ask my mom first. You can literally say ‘no.'”
Follow A heartfelt thank you from a tired nurse.
Other viewers who say they work in the medical field offered their own take on Asha’s claims about surgical residents.
“This is misleading. You’re right about the sequence, but what about the surgery?” one commenter wrote. “Residents are never allowed near a scalpel.”
“LOL. I’m a nurse and I was talking about this with my doctor at work today,” another commenter wrote.
“I work at a hospital and have been really frustrated with my job lately,” one commenter wrote.
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