Hey Megan! How’s it all going?
It's going well! I am still really enjoying the work which is so nice to be able to say. I think this is largely down to how supportive the team is at Airedale, and how well the hospital looks after us junior doctors. I am now working on Medicine, mainly the Covid wards so far, so it has been quite an adjustment from Surgery but I am learning more each day.
What made you want to become a doctor?
I wasn't one of those people who wanted to be a doctor since they learned how to talk. I went through my GCSEs very unsure of what I wanted to do - on my results day I planned to apply to do economics/politics/chemistry for my A Levels. Somehow, I left my college having applied for biology, maths and chemistry! I think I was reluctant to admit I wanted to apply because I was worried I wouldn't get in. I liked science and found Medicine interesting but didn't know an awful lot about it because we didn't have any medics in my family.
Did that change over the course of your degree?
Luckily for me, over the course of my degree I only became more and more confident that Medicine was for me. I couldn't see myself ever doing anything else now. The workload was challenging but so rewarding as well.
Is it different now you have graduated?
I still love what I do! I feel really lucky to be able to work as a doctor and look after people in the way we do. I also feel like all the hard work I put in during university pays off every single day, from practicing Medicine to calculations to communication skills, which is a lovely feeling to have.
Is there anything about having studied here, at Lancaster Medical School, that informs how you treat or view patients?
Lancaster focuses on the holistic view of the patient. Whilst ensuring we learn our Medical Sciences, there seems to be a much greater focus at Lancaster, compared to other medical schools, on health, culture and society/professionalism/ethics and population health. This makes you a more well-rounded person and gives you a greater ability to weigh up information and make decisions when you begin work.
Did studying at Lancaster Medical School make you think about your wider role/responsibility in public health?
By devoting time to population health from year 1 to year 5 of Medical school, we leave with a good understanding of the way in which it improves health. It is important to know why we see the things we do at work, in order to help people and make a change, and population health teaches us to recognise this.
Has the pandemic shaped/changed the way you view being a doctor?
I don't think the pandemic has necessarily changed how I view doctors. It has been an unusual time to start working for the NHS, but if anything, it has meant that I have seen all the qualities of doctors that I had imagined I’d see, in even fuller force as everyone pulls through together. Motivation to keep going; taking time to reflect; the ability to deal with uncertainty, and so much more. I have felt so supported and part of the team through every step of the way. I'm sure there are days where I don't feel this way, but I believe everything and everyone I've met so far will remind me that all this hard work has been worth it and I am very lucky to have graduated from Lancaster and be a doctor working in the NHS.
