Consultants as Educators

I believe that consultants should play a role in teaching. When I ask for the help of specialists, I am not trying to "dump" work on them, but rather seek elucidation of a problem I can't solve. When I read specialist notes, I really scour them - did they ask any questions on history that I didn't think of asking (like pets or travel in an infectious disease note)? Did they pick up something in the exam which I didn't notice? What goes into their thinking process? If I see the consultants, I ask them. Occasionally I learn enough that next time I run into the same problem, I know how to start the troubleshooting. Furthermore, it is part of the professional drive to continue to learn, and consultants and referrals allow us to do so. So when I write my pain management notes, I try to outline what we are thinking, how medications act synergistically, and what side effects to expect. I don't know if the primary team really reads all of it, but I try to include some sort of discussion for them if I've learned anything interesting regarding the case.