My current rotation is Internal Medicine, and one of my favorite things about IM is the long hours.  I have discovered so many benefits of working 14-hour days, so I thought I had better share them.

1.  You won’t get skin cancer.  You arrive at the hospital well before the sun comes up and you go home long after it has gone down.  Who likes the sun anyway?

2.  No traffic.  Let’s just say there aren’t a lot of people on the road at 5 am.  And all the people with 9-5 jobs are getting ready for bed while you are driving home.  At least when you fall asleep at the wheel you are less likely to hit somebody.

3.  You will lose weight.  If during your long shift on call you somehow find the time to grab a bite to eat, chances are it is something sketchy in the resident room fridge and even though you’re starving, you’re not that desperate.

4.  Avoiding your baby.  Finally you get a day away from those chubby cheeks, that annoying smile, and those tedious snuggles.  If only you could work 14 hour days every day, then you could avoid her altogether.

5.  You only have to wait 10 hours before you get to do it all again!

Clearly, I kid.  But working a 14-hour day is surprisingly not as bad as I would have thought.  The day seems to go twice as fast as the 11-hour days I had during family medicine, which probably means I am enjoying myself more.  It’s hard, especially when I don’t get to see Anika, but I really like Internal Medicine.  I don’t dread going to work, I like the other members of my team, and my preceptor is actually a pretty nice guy.  Overall, it’s a really awesome rotation.