To reject trainee surgeon?

This is how I feel after a very bad experience with a surgical registrar involving my child.

I do expect them to ask questions. I have myself, most recently when I had surgery for breast cancer. But the op is making ridiculous assumptions that the doctor is not qualified and refers to them as a ‘trainee’ which is just ridiculous. Do you think they let just anyone loose with a scalpel ?

How do people get experience?

It wouldn't be someone unqualified OP. It will be a fully qualified doctor with years of experience who is on their way to qualify at consultant level.
I can understand why you are worried but I think it will be fine. We need our future doctors to have training and experience. Under the close supervision of a consultant of course. Which is what would be happening for your son.
Hope it goes ok 🙏🌻

We aren't talking about students here.

Resident doctors (e.g. not consultants) are still highly trained and highly experienced. They just aren't operating completely independently yet.

Why shouldn't someone ask questions? If someone is operating on me then I have every right to ask whatever I like. DH didn't like the answers he got from his consultant so changed to a different one, why should he have someone he doesn't trust operating on him?

So you think no patient should be able to ask questions? How do you expect them to give informed consent then? We ask so we can gain understanding.

Exactly!! Op hasnt a clue , hence questions and misunderstanding!! 🤦‍♀️

Probably not qualified, and yet questions how these things work ?

I never consent to students, no matter how experienced they are. If I'm not asked for consent, I question why I wasn't asked & order students out of the room. I once consented to a student anaesthetist, never again. I'd assumed there would be a certain level of competence before they're given actual humans. Unfortunately, I was wrong. No way would I let one near any person I value.

FFS - they are experienced surgeons and they won’t be operating without a consultant present. How do you expect people to learn or are you just happy for that to be down to other people ?

Why do you keep calling them a student? A student is someone still in medical school. The registrars are what the American system calls resident doctors or fellows. The term junior doctor has completely undermined a whole cohort of doctors for a generation.

Patients worry they are getting some nervous nelly operating when its usually someone whose wholly competent and actually well versed on the surgery having commited many hours to it.

With your csection you would've most likely had a registrar and a more junior colleague. Maybe even a gp trainee rotating onto the obstetrics and gynaecology for experience.

You are getting someone well experienced.

Sending love. I hope the surgery goes well. Can imagine how worrying this all is for you.

One hundred percent NOT being unreasonable! I would insist on an experienced surgeon! You can't replace an eye.

This happens in most surgery. The consultant or registrar will stand back for a period and let someone more junior take over - this is not unusual at all. It is how progress is made and new surgeons are available for the future. It is happening every day, everywhere.

The surgeon will not be handing your child over to some unqualified person to operate on unsupervised. Please be reassured about this. I know you are anxious - who would not be? - but I really do not think you have anything to worry about.

You can choose to have a particular surgeon in NHS, I've done it. Amended tbe paperwork I was signing after discussion. Somebody had already buggered it up first time so wasn't risking it a second time.

I wouldn't be happy with a student doing this either, if that's what they've said - and you can say no to students. Based on what other PP's have said though, I would call the secretary for his consultant and clarify who this student surgeon is, what his experience is so that you can have all the facts and information first. It might be that he's fully qualified.
I don't think it's unreasonable to have a preference who does your surgery and to voice this - many people do this in the NHS, and if it's possible I've seen it be accommodated. This is for things like elective surgeries etc but definitely on the NHS. if you have a concern about the person who's doing it I'd definitely be asking questions - I'd at the very least expect reassurance that they are qualified enough to do it, and if it's just a miscommunication then so be it - you can at least know for sure.

OP. Whilst I take your point, how do you think surgeon's get experience in surgery if not by operating on patients. The Consultant will be supervising them, they are not being left to do it on their own.

How do surgeons become experienced without operating?
The procedure will be performed under supervision, he is not going to be left alone to get on with it.
The risk is no greater than with any other surgeon.
Fully understand your concerns around the surgery but the person doing the procedure doesn't need to be one of them.

In both of these cases, I imagine it was one 'consultant' with little oversight doing the operation. I bet that paediatrician was less likely to conducted unsafe procedures when there was another surgical paediatrician in the room, even one slightly less qualified' than he was

You have no real idea if the experienced surgeon is actually a very good one. He very likely s but it is vanishingly unlikely that both the doctors will be poor ones or have malicious intent

When you have two doctors in the room, you have two people looking out for problems and sort of 'overseeing' each other. Whilst the more experienced surgeon will have the final say, the other surgeon will also be experienced and can act as an additional pair of hands to deal with any unforseen problems. The more experienced doctor will be more alert as well as he/she will want to be judged well by the other doctor.

Why do you think commerical planes have a pilot and a co pilot even on short flights where no break is necessary? Two people checking things is better than one at all times

Honestly, whenever something like this comes up, there's always a few righteous women who come along and seem to enjoy saying 'YOU'LL GET WHAT YOU GET'.

They come across like sour dinner ladies who enjoy sloping a horrible meal on a plate. YOU'LL GET WHAT YOUR GIVEN CHILD!!

Same with women who DARE say they would prefer a female gynaecologist - always a few who come along and make the poster seem unreasonable or ungrateful.