From Cringe to Competent: Surviving Intern Year

Behind The Knife: The Surgery Podcast

Science, Health & Fitness, Medicine, Education

4.8 • 1.4K Ratings

🗓️ 16 June 2025

⏱️ 31 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Intern year: where the learning curve is steep and you’re not sure if the patient is crashing or you are. In this episode of Behind the Knife, our surgical education fellows reflect on what they wish they had known before Day 1—and all the humbling, hilarious, and genuinely formative moments along the way.

From getting lost wheeling a critical patient through the hospital, to triple-scrubbing just to be acknowledged, to accidentally spraying TPA into your own eye (yes, really)—this episode is a candid conversation about the highs, lows, and everything in between. Whether you're gearing up to start your intern year or reflecting on how far you've come, this is the episode we all needed.

Hosts:

Elizabeth Maginot, MD – General Surgery Resident, University of Nebraska Medical Center @e_magination95
Nina Clark, MD – General Surgery Resident, University of Washington @clarkninam
Ayman Ali, MD – General Surgery Resident, Duke University
Michelle LaBella, MD – General Surgery Resident, University of North Carolina
Emma Burke, MD – General Surgery Resident, Baylor College of Medicine @emmaburke017

Learning Objectives:

Identify common misconceptions about intern year—and how to manage expectations
Understand how to approach early mistakes with humility and resilience
Recognize the importance of teamwork and asking for help
Reflect on what makes a strong, dependable intern

References

BTK Intern Survival Guide: https://app.behindtheknife.org/podcast-series/medical-student-and-intern-survival-guide
Institutional pharmacists (seriously, call them—they’re the unsung heroes)

Check out our Medical Student and Intern Survival Guide HERE: https://app.behindtheknife.org/podcast-series/medical-student-and-intern-survival-guide

Transcript

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0:00.0	Behind the Knife.
0:24.6	This is Patrick Georgoff.
0:25.7	I want you to imagine this.
0:27.2	It's 2 a.m.
0:28.1	And you're rushing a hypotensive trauma patient to the operating room for exploration.
0:32.6	Maybe you need to go into the neck, the chest, or the abdomen.
0:35.8	Are you prepared for what you might find?
0:38.1	Trauma educational resources are extremely limited. and that's why we created the trauma
0:41.7	surgery video atlas.
0:43.8	24 challenging scenarios with high-yield text, beautiful illustrations, and stunning,
0:48.3	professional grade video that walks you through the approach and management of devastating
0:52.3	injuries in a step-by-step fashion.
0:54.9	Check out the link in the show notes.
0:56.1	For more, there are group discounts available as well.
0:59.2	Now, enjoy the episode and dominate the day.
1:03.6	Hey, everyone, and welcome to another episode of Behind the Knife.
1:06.3	Today we are joined by our Behind the Knife fellows and we'll be discussing what we wish we knew before our intern year started.
1:12.1	Everything from the mistakes that humbled us to the lessons we learned from them and the surprising ways we grew.
1:17.7	Whether you're gearing up for your first day as an intern, deep into the trenches of your first year, or looking back at those chaotic early days as a senior or an attending, this episode has something for you.
1:27.4	We're joined by the fellows
1:28.5	who've been through it all and are shameless enough to share their most cringeworthy intern moments
1:32.9	and the lessons that stuck with them. Why don't we introduce everyone? I'm Elizabeth. I'm a president
	...

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