To address gaps in knowledge, after you’ve come up with a plan, it’s reasonable to tactfully educate the parent about alternatives to ringing up the on-call doctor. The message that parents hear on our after-hours call number includes a reminder to check our practice website for answers, if it all possible, before paging us. There are instructions on the website about common illnesses, basic care, and guidelines for when to call. Introducing those supports has greatly reduced the number of calls we get at night.
Keep in mind that both the parent’s strong emotions and yours come from a dedication to taking good care of the child. And in cases in which the child isn’t the real reason for the call, they likely have another very significant problem making them raise an alarm.
Sometimes, we physicians don’t do a good job taking care of ourselves in the service process. If you have a lot of trouble being exhausted from being on call, consider negotiating a better call schedule, such as being off the next morning or simply spacing out your call nights in a different way.
Some other things that you can do to experience less distress about anxious parents in the middle the night is to look in the record, if it’s a patient from your practice, or contact their primary care doctor to find out more about the family and why they might have made a call when it didn’t seem warranted. That may or may not make you more sympathetic but will definitely make you better prepared next time you’re on call when you’re pretty likely hear from them again.
Debriefing aggravating calls with a colleague also can be helpful in several ways. Just having a chance to ventilate can relieve stress. Sometimes, a colleague will see things in the case that you didn’t. In any case, it will help prepare them for that same anxious parent the next time they are on call!
Finally, follow up with the family to find out how the illness turned out. You may even hear an apology for that 3 a.m. call or, better yet, a thank you!
Dr. Howard is assistant professor of pediatrics at Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, and creator of CHADIS. She has no other relevant disclosures. Dr. Howard’s contribution to this publication was as a paid expert for Frontline Medical Communications. E-mail her at pdnews@elsevier.com.