Thank you in advance for your commitment to training our Acting Interns who rotate through our general medicine service. The feedback from our students has been extremely positive.
This guide outlines best practices, expectations, and recommendations for working effectively with Acting Interns to ensure a valuable educational experience while maintaining excellent patient care.
You can also listen to this guide in Audio-Podcast format with a 6-minute listen here: Working With Acting Interns 6 Minute Podcast Overview
Carrying 3-4 patients with direct resident supervision, with gradual increase in responsibility
Serving as the Front Line Provider (FLP) for assigned patients
AI Schedule
Duration
4 week contiguous experience at one campus
Weekday Call
Should follow the interns weekday call schedule
Weekend Responsibility Is responsible for one weekend in the 4 week experience
Unique Situations
Step Down
For SDU patients followed by an acting intern, they can be the front line provider. This is the one exception where an intern must also evaluate the patient on a daily basis.
RRT Activation
If an RRT is activated on a patient under an acting intern, they should go to the bedside and immediately notify the resident (or cointern if the resident is unavailable), who should then report to the bedside for support.
Clinical Codes
In the event of a code on a patient followed by an AI, the code team leader can best decide on the role of the AI in the process. The AI should ensure that their team resident is aware of the code activation.
These guidelines for special situations ensure that Acting Interns receive appropriate supervision during high-acuity events while still allowing them to participate in these important learning experiences. The goal is to balance educational value with patient safety.
Students Corner: Acting Internship
Clerkship Representatives' Advice
What our acting internship clerkship representatives want you to know
Set Clear Expectations
Please set clear expectations at the start. Clearly outlining our responsibilities in direct patient care, expectations for presentations, and how we can contribute to teaching the team helps us step confidently into our role.
Front-Line Role
Let us serve as the front-line provider (with backup). We're here to practice being the first call for our patients including writing notes, calling consults, helping with discharges, coordinating patient care, and drafting orders while still having a safety net.
Share Clinical Reasoning
We learn the most when you highlight your thought process. Pointing out which details shaped your diagnosis or management decisions teaches us how to prioritize key information and refine our clinical reasoning during rounds.
Contact Preferences
Let us know your communication preferences. Knowing when you'd like to be contacted directly and which platform you prefer (secure chat, text, or phone call) helps us communicate more smoothly and effectively.
Include Us as Team Members
Include us as part of the team. We learn the most when we're brought into discussions, teaching points, and decision-making with the rest of the team.
Addressing Concerns With Acting Interns
Important Reminder
Do not wait until the end of the block to address concerns with an Acting Intern.
Lastly&Remember Feedback Is Not Only Critical It is Mandatory
Scheduled, specific, and clearly labeled feedback gives acting interns on the medicine service structured guidance to support their growth and performance.
