If there were 100 tasks that needed to be done by the end of the day and there were four interns, how would you go about it?

If there were 100 tasks that needed to be done by the end of the day and there were four interns, how would you go about it?

• A. Ideally find a time after ward round as soon as possible to conduct a paper round with more senior members of the team including registrars or residents + confirming tasks to be done
• B. Get senior input into breaking down task workload and task allocation
• C. Ideally breaking into even numbers of tasks but keeping in mind that some tasks are bigger than others and may take longer than expected so numbers can still be uneven
• D. Get coffee

Answer: (C)

Distribute the work by balancing effort, not just counting tasks. With four interns and 100 tasks, it’s sensible to start with roughly equal numbers, but you must account for variation in task size and time required. Some tasks will take longer, so you should keep the total workload (in time or effort) per intern as even as possible, and be ready to rebalance if certain tasks prove bigger or slower than expected. This approach reduces bottlenecks, avoids unfair workloads, and helps ensure all tasks are completed by the end of the day. Getting senior input can help for particularly complex tasks, but the practical daily plan is to allocate by workload and adjust as you monitor progress.

Distribute the work by balancing effort, not just counting tasks. With four interns and 100 tasks, it’s sensible to start with roughly equal numbers, but you must account for variation in task size and time required. Some tasks will take longer, so you should keep the total workload (in time or effort) per intern as even as possible, and be ready to rebalance if certain tasks prove bigger or slower than expected. This approach reduces bottlenecks, avoids unfair workloads, and helps ensure all tasks are completed by the end of the day. Getting senior input can help for particularly complex tasks, but the practical daily plan is to allocate by workload and adjust as you monitor progress.