When I think about leaving medicine, it's the people who make me stay
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Version 0 of 1. “Why do you want to work as a doctor?” someone asked me recently. It caught me off guard – I had not been asked that question for years. The last time was seven years ago and it was the first question in my interview for medical school. It was a time of hope, of promise, but also of great uncertainty. A career as a doctor lay ahead of me but I wondered if I could do it or if it was the right road for me to take. It’s fitting that seven years later, I answered that question again, this time on the day of the junior doctors’ strike. The answer was quick and surprisingly simple: “Being a doctor, my friend, is all about the people.” Being a doctor means you meet different types of people, all day, every day. The first people I meet when I start work are my colleagues – my fellow doctors and nurses. These people are the foundations of working as a doctor and without them I could not have survived or enjoyed my job. Some of my fondest memories are of colleagues supporting me before, during, and after my shifts. There are my fellow FY1 doctors, who hide a chocolate bar in the handover book or drive to pick up a takeaway after a long weekend on call. There are the nurses who offer you their secret stash of chocolate or make you laugh on a night shift. There are the consultants who teach you the intricacies of gastric surgery and then simply tell you you’ve done a job well. There are the porters and the ward clerks who offer you a lift on the bed they are pushing back. These are the people who always bring a smile to my face. Less than a year into my career in medicine, my friends and family often ask me if I feel like a doctor yet. Most of the time, when I’m on the monotonous carousel of ward rounds, chasing up requests, and writing discharge summaries, I feel a sense of betrayal to the “Dr” on my badge and the years of training I’ve had. I could spend days diagnosing, prescribing and discharging patients without spending any time with them or talking to patients. Ironically, it’s the times when I don’t do anything medically and scientifically beneficial for my patients but instead sit down and have a chat with them that I feel most like a doctor. It reminds me why I’m a doctor and puts everything I do into perspective. It puts a face to the patient, an actual person to the numbers and scans, and a real suffering to the pain and disease. It’s those times when I feel the responsibility we have as doctors to care for our patients who’ve put the ultimate trust in us at their most vulnerable time. As a doctor, I feel lucky to be surrounded by so many people every day. The main message I took from the junior doctors’ strikes was our incredible community and willingness to support and protect each other. The Harvard Grant Study, the longest study on human life, concluded as one of its points that human connection is crucial to a happy life. Being a doctor allows you that immense privilege to make a connection with someone that only the closest of friends and family are privy to. It is something so human that each and every one of us can relate to. Countless times during my short career as a doctor I’ve wanted to leave the profession, and no doubt I will continue to for the rest of my life. Then I look around me, and it’s the people I meet every day who make me want to stay. If you would like to write a blogpost for Views from the NHS frontline, read our guidelines and get in touch by emailing healthcare@theguardian.com. Join the Healthcare Professionals Network to read more pieces like this. And follow us on Twitter (@GdnHealthcare) to keep up with the latest healthcare news and views. |