Cardiff Flashcards
Why the course in Cardiff.
one of the main reasons why I applied to Cardiff is that it has a great empthasis on clinical settings. For example, the course includes a wide range of settings such as inner-cities and rural farms locations. This will enable to develop skills in interacting with a wide variety of people which will give me more confidence in my communication and learn about medical issues that may effect different groups in society. I also like that there is a great empathis on patients which links to how in the NHS main focus is the patients in holistic care.
I also like how the C21 programme has, significant patient contact and well-timed clinical assessments to allow students to make the most of working on the wards during their final year.
Another part that attracts me to the course is the academic side to it, there is an opportunity to have student selective componments and intercalulations where you are given an opportunity to develop more on research that interests to you. this would help to be a well rounded medical student and perhaps may help when you are looking into specialities as a medic.
why Cardiff.
one of the main reasons why I applied to Cardiff is that it has a great empthasis on clinical settings. For example, the course includes a wide range of settings such as inner-cities and rural farms locations. This will enable to develop skills in interacting with a wide variety of people which will give me more confidence in my communication and learn about medical issues that may effect different groups in society. I also like that there is a great empathis on patients which links to how in the NHS main focus is the patients in holistic care.
I also like how the C21 programme has, significant patient contact and well-timed clinical assessments to allow students to make the most of working on the wards during their final year.
Another part that attracts me to the course is the academic side to it, there is an opportunity to have student selective componments and intercalulations where you are given an opportunity to develop more on research that appeals to you. this would help to be a well rounded medical student etc.
ethics,
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why is empathy important in medicine
Empathy is the ability to put yourself in another person shoes in medicine this is crucial when communicating to other people such as members in your interdisciplinary and patients.
An example when I saw doctors displaying empathy was when I shadowed a GP. At the clinic they used phone call appointments with their patients due to changes by COVID-19 to encourage more social distancing. one thing that doctors did before they continued the appointment was they ask the patient if it was okay for me to be in the as they discussed. this showed me that the doctors were able to understand that patients had different boundaries which enable patients and doctors to build a good relationship.
Doctors are required to be empathetic when working in an interdisciplinary team. As everyone comes from different backgrounds and upbringing it is important to understand individuals within a team. This then helps to prevent disputes and problems within a group which helps them to provide the best holistic care for the patient.
your understanding of a career in medicine
When it comes to becoming a qualified doctor is to study at medical school for around five years, afterwards students spend two years in foundation year medicine. Afterwards a person would spend 7 years in speciality training.
There are many pros in a career in medicine. One positive to studying medicine to me is that in medicine new scientific studies are being made, such as how stem cell therapy can be used to treat sickle cell anemia. As medicine is evidence based it means that doctors are required to learn new medical information to provide holistic care to patients. this means that doctors are continuously learning meaning to me that medicine would feed my scientific curiosity.
pros
Another thing that appeals to me is that in medicine you get to build a bond between your patient. when I was shadowing a GP they told me how they were able to care for a patient since they were a child. however, i am aware that in medicine it is the norm to face difficult situations, for example when shadowing the GP it was the norm to discuss heavy topics with patients which can be overwhelming. however the BMA have programmes to help etc.
difficult situations
why medicine
Medicine is a profession that I have been considering for a while and extracurricular and further readings made me consolidate that this is a path I want to take.
I had always had an interest in the sciences in particular, Biology and Maths. the human body biology has a unique blend of chemical biological and psychological parts to it. this interest led me to research on sickle cell disorder and explore in particular the trials for gene therapy. As medicine is evidence based medicine I would be given the opportunity to learn more which would feed my curiousity.
Maths allows me to be creative and think critically especially when I compete in maths olympiads. similar to how in medicine it is needed to be critical when giving holistic care.
I really enjoy providing help to people. which is one of the reasons why I partook in many volunteering roles. such as being a chef at a food bank. this opportunity allowed me to make a big impact on vulnerable people within my community which medicine is a career that will allow me to do that.
medicine will also give me a wide range of opportunities as well which is ideal for me as I partake in many extracurriculars. For example, medics have the chance to partake in teaching and research.
traits of doctor
communication is the ability to listen and verbal and physically connected with other people effectively. In medicine it is a person centred career hence it it is important to communicate effectively with your collegues and patients to provide good care for patients. An example on how doctors show good communication is when I shadowed a GP and what she did before before meeting her patient was to read their notes so when she spoke with them it helped her to have a meaningful conversation with them. I also say that the GP listened to what the patient said and gave them the chance to talk. which again helped to build and good patient doctor relationship.
Empathy is the ability to put yourself in a person’s shoes. An example when I saw doctors displaying empathy was when I shadowed a GP. At the clinic they used phone call appointments with their patients due to changes by COVID-19 to encourage more social distancing. one thing that doctors did before they continued the appointment was they ask the patient if it was okay for me to be in the as they discussed. this showed me that the doctors were able to understand that patients had different boundaries which enable patients and doctors to build a good relationship.
resilience is the ability to keep going even when things are difficult. when I shadowed the GPs I saw that it was normal for doctors to talk to patients about difficult situations which can cause emotion stress. Hence I learnt that it is important to have developed healthy coping mechanism. there are also courses by the BMA that focus on this.
the NHS,
abortion donating blood euthanasia 7 day NHS COVID
self-directed learning,
everyone’s experience as a medical student is different as everyone has different skill sets and what they may find easy or hard at school. this is why I tried to find as many people their experience to get an idea.
on an online summer school, I was able to speak with medical students on their experiences. the majority of students agree that there is a big leap between sixth form and university as information is not spoon-fed to you and that it is independent. one student said that it is important to communicate with your tutors and lecturers during office hours if you feel that you need extra help or work to understand. Another student said that it is important to be more organised and develop good study patterns to reduce procrastinating. This may include taking effective breaks to prevent burnout.
During my project were I research on whether medicine should focus more on preventative medicine I was required to do a lot of self-directed learning. One thing that helped me a lot was using reliable resources such as textbooks from school, google scholar. Plus, I balanced my academics and hobbies so I would not face burnout and was able to submit before the deadline.
motivation to study medicine
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communication.
I think that people at my workplace and school would say that I have a generally good communication skills. one thing that I would say that I get along well with people is because I have good listening skills. For example at work when customers meals I listen to their needs and being empathetic and understanding and requirements so they will feel welcomed and appreciated which made them regular customer.
I also developed a good skill of being able to communicate as a leader when helping at the year 8 reading club. this is because I was open to listen to ideas from the students on what books they would to read, as well as being able to speak to them and make sure that they understand their work.
As a doctor communication is key and I think I laid a good foundation on this skill.
recently I have developed my verbal communication skills when I was the leader for the year eight reading club. One thing that I learnt that students appreciated when communication goes both ways. So I always listened to their thoughts and opinions about the book that we were studying. this then allowed me to build a good relationship with the students. Furthermore i developed the skill to discuss complicate topics to students and making sure that they understand what I mean. a way that I did this is by providing notes and diagrams .
another way that I improved my communication is through non verbal communication. at work customers come from all sorts of backgrounds and may struggle with verbal words. hence i value that my tone, learning how to do signs as well helps me to provide customers with the correct meals that they ask for and provide good customer service.
working in teams,
A good team player is someone that is able to understand and perform their role within a team effectively. this is key in medicine to provide good patient care and it prevents mistakes also.
As the part of the yearbook committee I made sure that our team had meetings on a wednesday lunch time so we understood our roles and responibilities within the group and the how much work each member has completed as well.
another way that I showed that i was a good team player is that at the committee I made it a prioity to be empathetic as well. A girl decided she was unable to complete all of her work, I made it clear that I was supportive of her decision and had a constructive approach by encouraging the group to split the extra work.
There are many times where teamwork is necessary in medicine. For example when I was shadowing the GP i saw how it takes many individuals to care for a patient who had terminal bowel cancer. For example, since this person was elderly, they had a care taker and a Macmillan nurse who helped them, or the cancer specialist nurses and doctors who focused on treatments to relieve his pain.
autonomy
Autonomy means that a patient has the ultimate decision-making responsibility for their own treatment.
beneficence
Beneficence means that all medical practitioners have a moral duty to promote the course of action that they believe is in the best interests of the patient.
Will this option resolve this patient’s medical problem?
Is it proportionate to the scale of the medical problem?
Is this option compatible with this patient’s individual circumstances?
justice
Justice – in the context of medical ethics – is the principle that when weighing up if something is ethical or not, we have to think about whether it’s compatible with the law, the patient’s rights, and if it’s fair and balanced.
