Questions on motivation for medicine Flashcards
Why do you want to study medicine
. The caring nature of doctors: When I did work experience in the Paediatric intensive care ward I observed how gentle the doctors and nurses were towards the children.
There was an elderly woman with dementia going in for a hip replacement, and I witnessed the caring nature of the anaesthetist who simplified the process to her. He was very patient and consistently reminded her what he was doing, and responded to all her worries and questions.
. The complex challenges that come with it; you’re constantly learning throughout your entire career as new advances in technology are happening.
I think that its super fun to experience an era where healthcare is drastically changing and I’d love to be a part of it by possibly doing some work in the academics of medicine.
PHD students studying Ventilator induced lung injury, where it can force too much air in and damage the lungs, for example in one lung ventilation where one lung has to work twice as hard.
I find the academic side fascinating and I can’t wait to find out about new advancements.
In the hospital I had the opportunity to talk to many consultants who did a mix of academics and clinical, so universities fund them eg Imperial
. Making a difference to patients lives: you will be a part of a team where everyone has the same mission or aim to improve the quality of life of a patient, and it must be very rewarding to see patients get cured. I love teamwork, eg from doing DofE bronze, silver and gold
What inspired you to pursue a career in medicine
I think a career in healthcare first appealed to me during the pandemic when I was able to see the heroic nature of my best friends parents continuing to go to the hospital to work every day as doctors.
It was incredible to see how selfless they were by putting their own lives at risk to save others suffering from Covid 19.
I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go into nursing or medicine but when i had the opportunity to go to St Mary’s hospital to spend a week with junior doctors and consultants I knew that was the career for me.
Talk about anaesthetist
Talk about the positive impact on the world and how you want to be a part of it
Why Medicine and not nursing
. Nurses are vital for the NHS, and probably have even more patient contact than doctors, So in this case the impact they have on patient care could be more than doctors
. However only a minority of nurses can prescribe medication, manage patient care and treat patients.
These nurses are specialised in one area so lack the general medical training that is provided in medical school and that doctors have
. Specialist doctors can manage everything else with them outside the niche of their specialty whereas a nurse wouldn’t be able to do that
. The ultimate responsibility of being a doctor is managing patient care, and this critical thinking aspect of being a doctor is very appealing to me as I love a challenging and constantly changing environment
. Medical students do a lot more biological theory behind the body, there is more depth in the learning. I love learning about the body and hope to do lots of research in medicine and go into the academics behind it.
For example I looked at the problems of ventilators and how they impact lungs as fluid can build up in lungs, especially in single lung ventilation where only one lung is ventilated so has to do a lot more work which can damage the tissues in it.
I really enjoyed learning about this and hope to be able to do some of my own research into it which is more accessible by doing a medicine degree rather than a degree in other healthcare professions.
If you weren’t offered a place in medicine, what would you do
. I would take a gap year, and volunteer at Whittington hospital to further my social skills and gain more understanding of the profession.
I would also return to the nursing home
. Then I would reapply again
What aspects of the working life of a doctor appeal to you
. I get loads of satisfaction from helping people or working with others to achieve the same goal together. I would love to be making a difference to people’s lives everyday, and improving quality of life for people of all ages and backgrounds
. Intellectually stimulating job, where I can gather clinical skills and knowledge constantly - you never stop learning and it never gets boring. In particular I spent time with PHD students doing medical degrees researching sepsis. This is definitely something I want to contribute to in the future
. Love teamwork- Dofe improved my teamwork skills and also leadership where I was able to encourage and lead my group through the Brecon Beacons.
Being a doctor is working in a team of healthcare professionals with different jobs, and you all want the same outcome which is to improve the quality of life for patient
. Active: I love running, netball and anything sporty and I love that part of being a doctor means you’re on your feet a lot and although it is a stressful environment it keeps you interested
. Social: From Dofe volunteering at parkrun I have learned to encourage people when they’re at the worst, and also
What aspects of the working life of a doctor don’t appeal to you
. Long hours will be very draining for most people, and you’ll have to sacrifice lots of personal time and possibly family time.
However I think having a strong support network and a team of doctors, nurses, radiographers will make it a lot easier.
. It can also be quite difficult emotionally and mentally challenging. A consultant explained to me that you’re seeing patients at their worst, so of course there will be times where family members can get upset and quite angry.
. When I was doing work experience at St Mary’s i spoke to a junior and she explained that although it was junior doctor strike week, many of them were still working because they can’t even afford to pay their rent.
Can non specific science hobbies add to a persons ability to be a good doctor and why?
Can you think of any examples in your own case
. Hobbies are a great way to distract yourself from work to recharge to have the energy to go into work and put your best self forward to be a kind and encouraging doctor.
I run to clear my head, and it sets me up for a productive day and helps me manage stress from exams.
. Also, anything that improves dexterity of your fingers is helpful, such as knitting or playing an instrument.
I play the violin which will improve the muscles in my fingers, so it could be helpful in surgery when manually operating as you have to be very precise
What interests you about medicine
Doing work experience in Hammersmith, I worked with a consultant and some Imperial university students to make an AI Clinician as sepsis treatment.
Sepsis is where the body has an extreme reaction to an infection.
Intravenous fluids are currently given as treatment as blood pressure can drop very low so not enough oxygen gets to organs so they stop functioning.
However it is important to get the right balance of fluids because too much gives hypertension (high blood pressure) which can lead to organ failure and can lead to a lower cardiac output.
AI clinician calculates the optimal amount of fluid that should be given to a patient, by putting in details such as weight, height, gender.
The field of medicine is constantly changing, with new technological advancements and it excites me to one day get involved and do some academic research for it.
What do you wish to achieve from your medical career
I wish to do academic research as part of my medical career, so I can directly become a part of the ever changing field.
. I also hope to train as a consultant, possibly in neurology where I can look into dementia.
Talk about nursing home
Talk about work experience
Other options could be paediatrics intensive care unit
What excites you most about a career in medicine
. Making a difference to patients lives: I think it will be extremely rewarding to know I am positively impacting patients. I witnessed the thankfulness of a patient’s family
. Also, I like a changing environment where every day is different. Speaking to the junior doctors at work experience
. Teamwork is also very fun, I attended a communicable disease in person conference with consultants and nurses from all around London hospitals. They each brought forward interesting cases for children, and everyone put forward their opinion on the treatment that should follow.
I was able to see the cooperation between healthcare professionals from all fields. Doing duke of edinburgh helped me to improve my teamwork skills to encourage and progress to our camp each day.
What is your greatest strength
I think my greatest strength would be that I always finish what I start, whether that is Duke of Edinburgh Bronze, Silver and Gold, or I set myself the aim to do violin up to grade 5 which I made sure I completed in July.
This strength has really helped me become resilient to any changes in my environment, so I’m not a person that quits when a task gets difficult.
It’s possible that sometimes I actually fixate on a hard topic in school so much that I forget to take breaks and really immerse myself in the topic until I completely understand it. But I do understand that this can sometimes be quite harmful as it can potentially lead to be becoming burnt out so I definitely need to work on that in the future.
Because although it is important that medical students are resilient to overcome obstacles that the profession throws, it is also vital that they know when to rest and put aside time for their social life and family.
What is your greatest weakness
Asking for help
Mistake at parkrun..
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Explain a time where you saw someone else show good leadership skills
When I was doing work experience in St Marys hospital, I spent a day in the intensive care unit.
The consultant on ward took me around to show me all the different jobs and roles that make up a multidisciplinary team.
For example I had the opportunity to meet the nutritionists on the ward, in charge of providing patients with a balanced diet to ensure their body heals to give them the biggest chance of getting better again.
I was able to meet the intensive care technician who was in charge of running the life support equipment such as ventilators. This especially is an incredibly important role because machines are constantly having problems so it was really nice to learn about that role.
I believe the consultant showed good leadership skills here by recognising the importance of all the different jobs to make sure everyone felt heard and needed. Not only that but she made sure to ask about family members, and the lives of all the staff which really emphasised her caring nature so I believe a good leader should make the effort to know everyone on their team.
What makes a good doctor?
Kindness:
- I think kindness is an incredibly important trait of a good doctor, because it is a career that requires constant communication with patients and other members of staff.
I see being a doctor as being in a partnership with your patient, so you listen to their concerns and help them to trust you by being kind and polite always.
The Francis report concluded that one of the biggest problems in the Staffordshire hospitals was a lack of kindness which left patients feeling uncared for and ignored. It showed that the managers cared too much about the numbers and not about the actual people which is why the system was not functioning.
When I was volunteering in the hospital all screensavers on computers had slogans such as ‘ Be Kind’ and I now wonder that this could be a result of the Francis report to remind healthcare professionals to stay kind to their patients to deliver the highest standard of care.
What makes a good doctor?
Integrity
I think integrity is one of the most important qualities that make up a good doctor. It is important to have strong morals and to be honest with your patient and with colleagues especially when you’ve made a mistake.
In particular when I was doing work experience in St Mary’s there was a young girl who had overdosed on paracetamol. When giving the antidote, there was a miscommunication and they accidentally gave the girl double the dosage of it. Although this wasn’t actually harmful, they decided to tell her their mistake as an important part of being a doctor is owning up to any mistakes.
