Calling Docs by their first name...

My 2cents worth!! I work in the OR and with that comes the mighty Surgeon. I like you am very laid back and very confident in my own abilities. A number of the doctors I work with tell me to call them by their first name. Of course I have a hard time with this because I started off calling them Dr. Blah!!! Sometimes I will call them by their first name but more often than not I will throw Dr. in front of their first name. In return they will call me Scrub Tech blah and just laugh as they walk off! A lot of the younger doctors are not so hung up on their titles. I guess to they realize that we know who they are and what their role is and we all share a mutual respect.

now that I think about it in our ER we call the physician assistants and nurse practioners by their first name but we call the doctors Dr so and so

Residents and fellows, always, always the first name, even in front of patients. Most attendings Dr So-and-So, except for one who has a difficult Indian name. I got to know our chief of surgery at a conference, so I called him by his first name there. Haven't seen him at work since then, but I imagine if it's a casual situation I'll still call him by his first name. Our Director of Neonatology really wants everyone to call him by his first name, but I just can't do it. He's a) a million years old, b) the, uh, Director, and c) has the same name as my dad. It's weird for me to call *anybody* that name, regardless of who they are.

I address all the residents/fellows by their first name, it's mutual, I refer to them as Dr so and so in front of patients, the attendings I always call dr so and so except if they did their residency with us and in that case they keep the first name approach

In some of the hospitals I've worked it was normal to call doctors by first name. In fact, they knew if I addressed them as "Doctor So and So" something was serious - get in here right now! In other hospitals it is much more formal, so I go with the prevailing habit.

A rather amusing situation arose when I was at one of the more formal (southern) hospitals on a contract and a doc I had worked with in the other setting moved to the hospital where I was. Our more casual, joking interchanges scandalized some of the staff!

It's so funny; I don't seem to be able to internalize the idea that just calling someone "Doctor" means, to most of them, that you're mad at them. I do it as a reflex to avoid calling them "ma'am" or "sir", which has a tendency to really irritate people. I use ma'am and sir WAY too often - it's a verbal tic. So when they come around and I just say "hello doctor" or answer a question with "yes, doctor" they get all nervous.

Funny when I worked in exclusively peds, almost all the docs were 'DR first name', it was easier and friendlier for the kids mostly. But also seemed more casual for staff, while still keeping the title.

When in big teaching hosp-was same as most have said, mostly residents/students first names, and attendings were 'Dr ___' Some that you'd worked a lot with or a long time, were first name less formal times (ie night, no family around, or committees, etc) but always 'Dr' in front of patients families.

We use 1st names for all but about 4 of our doctors and those 4 are definitely old school doctors who should really retire soon but that's a different story.

The rest get 1st names and that's at their request, either due to other doctors with the same surname, unpronounceable surnames or in the case of one doctor she's just started working at a practice and is only in her late 20s.

not much to add--

sorta the way it worked in the army-

title and last name in "public"

first name in private if invited!

tweety, that reminds me of the old story of the lady running up and down the beach screaming for a lifeguard 'MY SON, THE DOCTOR, IS DROWNING

i think that people should be comfortable with what they are called, if they want to called by their first name fine, if thay want to be called with a title frst or last name

we have a md in town he is pushing 50 but he likes to dress and act like a younger man, he has two sons they are call DR FIRST NAME

and the father is just called by first name

when you introduce a patient to his consult, i would say Dr. last name

no sense in them getting the idea that the maintaince guy is going to take them apart

I'm old fashioned and always use "Dr So and So". There is one doctor with whom I'm extremely friendly, and he's progressive about this, but I still use "Dr O", I just can't break the habit, since I'm so old I guess.

I would have to agree that if I were in front of patients I would call them Dr...I'm sure some patients would find the informality disturbing??

But in all, if they ask to be called by their first name, they'd win points with me (no I'm not really keeping track of points:chuckle). Either way, that is nice that even though they deserve to be called doc, they don't want you to feel uncomfortable.

Very respectable...I would feel like you though.

If a doctor was a Red Wings fan, I'd have a hard time calling them anything respectable too.