Laura Vater: Residents are human beings and deserve reasonable hours, sleep, and appreciation

Laura Vater shared on X:

“A resident reached out to me:       .

‘I’ve worked 122 hours this week. Had a 36-hour shift, a 50-hour shift, and no days off. We just got an email from our program director that we aren’t working hard enough.’

Residents are human beings and deserve reasonable hours, sleep, and appreciation.”

Source: Laura Vater/X

Dr. Laura B. Vater is a gastrointestinal oncologist at the IU Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center, specializing in colorectal, pancreatic, gastric, liver, and bile duct cancers. She developed the SMILE Scale™ in 2017, a tool used globally to help patients and clinicians prioritize health. Her research interests include narrative medicine to enhance clinician empathy and support caregivers in their work.