1 1 2 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • M A Y 2 0 1 9
I
f you're thinking of get-
ting a Real ID or an
enhanced ID when you
renew your driver's license,
you'll want to make your stay
at the DMV as pleasant — and
as short — as possible. Yeah,
right.
Give yourself plenty of
time. Like, take a half-day of
PTO just to be safe. Pack your patience, a snack and a Trapper
Keeper to hold all the documents you'll need to prove that you are
who you say you are: passport, birth certificate, photo work ID, Social
Security card, utility bill or phone bill, paycheck stub, W-2 form and
the badges from the last 3 surgical conferences you attended.
We're kidding about the badges, but you get the picture. And if your
name isn't exactly the same on all the pieces of required documenta-
tion — if you've been divorced and remarried and your name has
changed, or if your middle name or initial appears on some but not all
of your documents — you'll need a government-issued document that
you probably don't have as proof of your full legal name.
After standing in line for hours on back-to-back days, I finally got
my enhanced license. On my drive home, I made a list of 6 things we
sometimes endure in surgery that can make an afternoon (or 2) at the
DMV feel like a day at the spa.
• Staff meetings. Sometimes they go on and on about what we're
doing wrong and what we're going to change. These marathon meet-
I'd Rather Go to the DMV
Ever have a day when renewing your license beats working in the OR?
Behind Closed Doors
Paula Watkins, RN
• DRIVEN It took some doing, but Paula Watkins, RN, is the proud
holder of an enhanced license.
