4. Motivation and Interest in Medical Issues Flashcards
Why do you want to study Medicine?
In my personal statement, the phrase I used to describe my journey to Medicine was, a process of introspection and discovery. I started volunteering as a PALS officer, as a sort of break from having my head in legal textbooks all day and because I thought it would equip me with some of the emotional skills required of a human rights or immigration barrister e.g. how to speak to vulnerable people, how to adapt communication, how to build a rapport with others, based on a relationship of empathy and trust.
The ‘discovery’ was that, this was my first insight into the role of a doctor, what its like to work in a hospital environment and the nature of Medicine as a science and an art. I observed scientific dimension as your ability to conduct objective investigations into the human body, and use scientific knowledge, skills and training to form robust clinical judgements. This I felt was similar to the skillset I enjoyed exercising in my law degree, namely being able to consult evidence, effectively research and form sound judgement. What Medicine uniquely provided, was that added practical dimension.
I was also able to appreciate the artistic nature of Medicine, one that requires emotional intelligence, empathy and creativity to navigate every kind of doctor-patient interaction. This is a skillset I exercised as both a PALS officer in speaking to patients about their hardships and as a coach at KEEN London, in helping children with disabilities perform sports. In both experiences, my ability to combine knowledge and practicality to uplift others, gave me a great sense of fulfilment, and inspired me to make a difference to the lives of patients on a daily basis.
I then undertook work experience, which taught me more about the qualities demanded of a clinician and difficulties of working in the medical profession e.g. the emotionally demanding nature of the job and the intense NHS working conditions. In spite of the challenges, I felt my hardworking, resilient and giving personality would help me rise to the profession.
Through these experiences, I felt it was a profession that was unparalleled and perfect for me.
Why not Law?
Describe a time you made a lifechanging decision?
My initial career path was becoming a human rights and immigration Barrister, stemming from my desire to help others and a sense of helplessness in witnessing the discrimination and dehumanisation of refugees, political dissidents, and those unjustly persecuted. Much of my university experiences were geared towards this: for example, I established a reputation of a strong mooter, representing LSE at mooting competitions and interned at both city law firms, chambers and legal aid clinics.
My volunteering experiences that I did on side made me realise that Medicine actually provided me with what I sought in Law, and more. Both professions attract the empathetic and compassionate, people who want to help others. Both professions are similar in the artistic dimension: namely, liaising with clients and patients alike requires exercising emotional intelligence, empathy and creativity when dealing with vulnerable patients in hospital or clients in immigration/human rights contexts. In addition, I feel like the skillset in Law and Medicine are very similar: namely the ability to consult evidence, effectively research and form sound judgements. I’ve even found that the lateral and logical thinking I employed in Chemistry and Maths at A Level helped in technical modules like Contract Law.
Historically speaking, before Law was its own discipline, lawyers and judges traditionally studied science at institutions like Oxbridge and then converted into Law.
Lord Kitchin, Supreme Court Judge studied Natural Science at Cambridge.
What distinguished Medicine to me was how I liked this skillset exercised in a practical and scientific context. The judgements made in Medicine are based on investigation into the human body, your resolution of symptoms that could lend themselves to multiple possible diseases, data analysis, synergizing with medical equipment. For this reason, I felt that Medicine provided me with what I sought in Law, namely the humanistic dimension and a similar skillset, and something more, namely the scientific dimension, through which I could combine knowledge and practicality to form clinical decisions.
Why not nursing?
Nursing is an incredible profession, and it indeed serves the patient contact aspect I am searching for. and during my work experience I noted how several doctors acknowledged their nurses as the backbone of the NHS, something I observed personally in witnessing their resilience and perseverance in their effort against COVID. For me however, nursing misses one of the dimensions that drew me to Medicine in the first place, which is the skillset required in diagnosing the most complex medical conditions.
During my law degree, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the ability to conduct niche research, consulting on academic legal journals and legal textbooks to inform my decision making, taking into account orthodoxy and recent cases, probing the facts of a case presented to me, and coming to a defensible conclusion. When I was mooting, this thinking had to be done on my feet under pressure. This intellectual exercise is analogous to that of a doctor, in which they work with specialized scientific knowledge, new research and clinical training to inform the judgements they make, on their feet and under high pressure. In this way, one could frame doctors as almost lawyers for the human body, because of the skillset required of doctors and lawyers alike.
Moreover, doctors are the main drivers of the decision-making process and more likely to lead in research projects. For me then, the role of a doctor best captures the intellectual prospects I am searching for, and combined with the patient treatment aspect, bridges what I seek in a profession.
What would you do if you were unsuccessful in getting into Medicine this year?
- I would apply again. Medicine is a career that demands resilience, perseverance and patience. I aim transfer those skills in my everyday life, and remain resilient and patient even in the face of rejection.
- The biggest thing I’ve learned in university is the importance of being optimistic, seeing the best in even the most difficult of situations. If I’m not successful this year, of course I’d be disheartened, but I’d pick myself up, see it an opportunity for me to gain feedback, address my weaknesses and reapply as a stronger candidate.
- There is a lot I could contribute to in my gap year. I’ve currently applied as a volunteer in the CVOID vaccination effort in Cardiff, and there may be other related projects I could volunteer in. I’ve also pondered over setting up weekend A Level crash course for science students in deprived areas, given the disruption COVID has had on education.
Why do some people give up Medicine and never practise?
Just as you have people joining medicine based on introspection and discovery, you have people leaving the profession based on introspection and discovery too, and I’m sure 5 or 6 years of Medical school must have taught them a lot about themselves and the medical professional.
Perhaps they learned more about their emotional abilities, and felt they could no longer cope with being personally responsible for a patient’s life and death. Perhaps they feel they are no longer suited to the high-pressure nature of the job, which is of course only exacerbated by NHS working conditions.
Just as people can gain a passion later in life, they may lose it too. Having an interest in any field becomes tested when you study it at degree level; it could be that they enjoyed studying science aged 17 but feel disengaged with more complex academic literature. To persevere through would be incredibly challenging, given the lifelong commitment to learning that Medicine demands.
I think such people make a very informed decision, looking at themselves and the medical profession critically, and concluding that contrary to the person or the student they were a couple years ago, the two don’t align anymore.
Should you guarantee success in Medicine?
(1) GCG is about recognizing your own limitations, which itself means not guaranteeing 100% success in any medical treatment
(2) : Ontological: important firstly to deliver on the patient expectations you’ve set. Overpromising and not delivering means potentially diminishing confidence in healthcare professionals and damaging the trust in doctor-patient relationships.
(3) Failure to disclose a risk, by guaranteeing 100% success vitiates informed consent, and can give rise to a MM suit, as per - Chester v Afshar (2004).
• When defining success, its’ important to recognize that both parties may define success differently. For a doctor, a laser operation may be successful because it produced results beyond that which is the norm. For a patient who has not recovered his whole eyesight, it may feel like a failure.
+Incomplete information
+Physical wellbeing at time of procedure
+Patients’ response to treatment is not as predicted
+Patient compliance
- Lack of training
- Incorrect diagnosis
- Not all treatments work
- Communication
What steps have you taken to find out if Medicine is for you?
• The most informative experience was in volunteering as PALS officer, since this taught me about the emotional qualities required of a doctor, namely
o The ability to build a rapport with patients, based on a relationship of empathy and trust
o The ability to show adaptable communication
o The ability to recognize non-verbal signs in communications. Often I would look for signals in body language and eye contact, to recognize if my patient had any concerns they may not have vocalised
• Whilst volunteering at St. Mary’s, I thought I could benefit from additional experience in health and social care settings, and thus started volunteering at KEEN London, providing 1-2-1 support to children with disabilities. My role required me to adapt the sessions based on the medical needs of the athletes which, on reflection, is comparative to the role of a doctor providing individualised care for each patient. The experience also taught me the social and behavioural challenges that healthcare professionals face when caring for vulnerable patients.
- Further, I did a week placement at Weston General Hospital. The nature of Medicine appealed to me: through a colorectal MDT, I noticed the team-centric nature of medicine and the importance of critical thinking. Through observing a heart surgery, I noted the necessity of multi-disciplinary coordination between different healthcare professionals. I acknowledged the importance of building a rapport with patients and utilising emotional intelligence in outpatient clinics
- I appreciated the tension implicit in creating an optimal management plan under the time and resource constraints within the NHS. I further acknowledged the emotional resilience required of healthcare professionals when making end of life decisions in ITU.
• The experience informed me about the competencies and qualities demanded of a clinician and depicted the realities of Medicine in the NHS.
Pros and cons of being a doctor?
Career in which your expertise, scientific knowledge and decision making can make a tangible impact to the lives of patients on a daily basis. This is what inspired me most to apply to Medicine, since as a PALS officer I was able to observe weekly material difference that a doctors’ skillset in diagnosing and treating patients made to their health and in speaking to patients about their hospital experience, their happiness too.
When speaking to patients about their hospital experience I learned what a humbling and fulfilling experience it would be to be a part of that process.
Dynamic discipline which requires a commitment to lifelong learning, suited to someone like me since I’m constantly seeking to improve my ideas and methods so I can be my best academic self. For example, as a law student, I’ve enjoyed researching new cases or legal journals that fundamentally altered the shape of the law, because beauty was that it helped me recognise new thought processes or opinions, so I can make more just decisions. So too can a doctor enjoy keeping up with medical journals, treatments and research to aid their decision making and thus be part of a process that’s constantly moving towards better patient care.
Multifaceted nature of Medicine. As a doctor I would be a clinician, a student, specialising further and learning from my team, and a teacher. During my work experience I was observed an academic ward round, which taught me that even as a junior, there is prospect for me to engage in teaching. In addition, there is always the prospect to venture into something new. I’m passionate about medical ethics, and would love to engage in advisory work or further research to bring both a medical and legal perspective to this field.
- During my work experience, when sitting in outpatients clinics the doctor discussed the tension implicit in reaching an accurate diagnosis under the time and resource constraints within the NHS; in the
- It can be emotionally burdensome, for example, when breaking news to patients or in making end of life decisions. In my medical law studies, I noticed the socially contentious nature of Medicine. For example, when doctors make decisions in the best interests of incapacitated children, as goodwill they tend to get the patient’s family on board. This requires mediating perspectives from often conflicting family members, very sensitively.
- I noted the strong bureaucratic dimension during my work experience, meaning that some aspects can be more mundane and routine
- Intense working conditions in the NHS: working in settings that are understaffed, long hours, changing shift patterns and on top of that
- Looming threat of litigation in a profession that is high stakes and mistakes can be fatal
Looking forward to most and least?
I’m most looking forward to, being in a position one day where my expertise, scientific knowledge and decision making can make a tangible impact to the lives of patients on a daily basis. This is what inspired me most to apply to Medicine, since as a PALS officer I was able to observe weekly material difference that a doctors’ skillset in diagnosing and treating patients made to their health and in speaking to patients about their hospital experience, their happiness too.
When speaking to patients about their hospital experience I learned what a humbling and fulfilling experience it would be to be a part of that process.
I’m also looking forward to the multifaceted nature of Medicine. As a doctor I would be a clinician, a student, specialising further and learning from my seniors, and a teacher. During my work experience I was observed an academic ward round, which taught me that even as a junior, there is prospect for me to engage in teaching. In addition, there is always the prospect to venture into something new. I’m passionate about medical ethics, and would love to engage in advisory work or further research to bring both a medical and legal perspective to this field.
I’d say I’m least looking forward to the bureaucratic role especially at trainee level, but I do understand that even the production of discharge summaries or ward round checklists are necessary procedures to formalise patient care. Another challenging aspect that I’m looking forward to least is having to break difficult news to patients and their families, having observed a senior doctor say it’s difficult every time. This said, I hope that with medical training and through observation of more experienced seniors, I can develop into a person capable of doing this, aware that I still have a lot to learn and I’m not the finished product yet.
What are the challenges?
(1) Medicine is a profession which is high stakes, in which mistakes can be fatal, for example decision-making in acute emergencies. This requires making accurate, well informed decisions under pressure. I hope I can deal with this by building on my ability to think under pressure, something I honed strongly during my undergrad. For example, I’ve represented LSE at Mooting competitions. This requires withstanding interrogation by a judge on my legal argument, in a high pressure competitive setting, and tests my ability to think accurately, logically and creatively on my feet.
(2) Medicine requires a commitment to lifelong learning, meaning it is important to keep abreast with the latest medical research by reading medical journals, attending conferences, courses and retraining, on top of working in hospitals and sitting postgraduate exams. I think I’ve exemplified the discipline to deal with this in my Law degree. My week would entail reading legal textbooks and journals for classes, organizing Moots as Mistress of the Moots in the Law Society, competing and judging in moots, devising human rights campaigns in the Amnesty International Society and volunteering at St. Mary’s Hospital and KEEN London. And then on top of that, the Law cohort is notorious for being social, so I wanted to engage our student nights out too. Through this, I’ve learned how to balance academics and extra-curriculars, and built the organisational and time management skills to juggle multiple responsibilities.
Studying Medicine is long and stressful. What makes you think you can cope with it?
(1) Strong work ethic –> required to get through medical school, postgraduate exams and committing to lifelong learning. I always set ambitious goals and work hard to achieve them, demonstrated by my GCSE and A Level performance and in working towards a First class in my university degree
(2) Strong organisational and time management skills, able to juggle multiple responsibilities my week would entail reading legal textbooks and journals for classes, organizing Moots as Mistress of the Moots in the Law Society, competing and judging in moots, devising human rights campaigns in the Amnesty International Society and volunteering at St. Mary’s Hospital and KEEN London. And then on top of that, the Law cohort is notorious for being social, so I wanted to engage our student nights out too and I was working hard to achieve a First. The organisational and time management skills would allow me to cope with a busy day in Medical school, attending lectures, workshops and doing work for seminars.
(3) I also know my strengths and limitations –> although a hard worker, I know when its time to relax, when to seek help. I hope this insight will help me overcome some of the challenges I may face in a demanding profession, such as avoiding burnout.
