My work phone goes off. I pick it up.

"Hello?"

"Hey, are you... Katrin Hollister?" It was a woman's voice.

"Uh, yes?"

"Right." Her voice turned business-like, almost snappy. "I'm Dr. Crane (senior resident trainee of the team). I'm calling you about Bed 25. I wrote on the ward round to consult the renal team about the deteriorating kidney function and further chemotherapy for this patient. You wrote 'to clarify with resident'. What the hell were you thinking?"

"Uh." I remembered this. Oh, crap.

I read the resident's plan (for me) to write a letter to the patient's renal team because the most recent CT scan showed worsening kidney function than last time and I wasn't sure what the resident meant, particularly as the CT report literally said "No interval changes of hydronephrosis (kidney swelling) compared to previous" so it wasn't like the patient actually had worsening kidney function. So I'd written "note resident's plan to write letter to renal team but also note 'no interval change' noted on CT. To clarify with resident".

And I'd forgotten to ask her. But because it wasn't urgent -- the patient wasn't going home any time soon so they won't be getting that chemo any time soon anyway, plus the surgical teams do twice-a-day ward rounds -- I figured I could ask the next time I saw the resident, then write the letter once I know what the heck she actually wanted me to write.

But the resident was pissed with that.

"Look, I wanted you to write to the renal team because the CT literally says there was mild hydronephrosis in the last scan and this one shows mild to moderate. Plus the creatinine (kidney function marker) was going up, so this could affect the chemotherapy options."

"Right. Okay. Sorry." She could have written that in the plan, seeing as I wasn't there on the ward round. Not that she ever acknowledged the presence of the most junior member of the team during the ward round anyway (none of the residents did), so it wasn't like she would have told me had I been present.

She still sounded pissed. "So with something like this, ask me next time, okay? Don't just write some rubbish like 'to clarify with resident' and don't actually clarify with me. It's really not that hard."

"Sorry."

"Hmph." She cut the call.

I'm never sure if I should obey the 'ask me next time' line from people who are as easily-to-piss-off as Crane. There's been several residents like her I've worked with before when I'd asked questions, I'd get chewed out for asking something so simple or asking at the wrong time. And yet, when I don't ask, like this, I also get chewed out. Her sunny disposition makes her all the more approachable, obviously.