After seeing all the difficulties NHS staff currently face on the news, with long working hours and staff shortages, people always think I am crazy when I say I study medicine. I have been asked by countless blank faced family members so “why did you want to become a doctor?” The short answer is I could not imagine being a swimming teacher (my current part time job) for the rest of my life. There is only so many times you can correct a child’s backstroke body position or a screw kick in breaststroke before it comes tiresome. In my profession, I want to continue to learn and come to work not knowing the scenarios I would face that day. I want to be challenged. I came to the conclusion that being a swimming teacher until I retired would just not work for me and so I applied to medical school.
That is my reason for wanting to become a doctor, but there are a variety of other fantastic opportunities including:
1. The opportunity to travel whether that is on an elective (opportunity to complete work experience abroad) or after you qualify as a doctor.
2. There are many specialities within medicine from radiologists, to researchers, to paediatrics to oncology so there is a speciality for everyone’s interests.
3. The opportunity to complete research within a field that interests you whether this opportunity is within medical school or as a foundation doctor or a consultant.
4. The option to teach medical students when you qualify as a doctor.
5. Learn life-long skills such as team work and communication skills through working as part of a multi-disciplinary team.
6. A useful “ladder” system for career advancement so that each doctor has the ability to be challenged to their full potential.
Individually each of these opportunities would make any job more appealing. However with medicine you get all these job opportunities in one profession. So next time a someone asks you “what do you want to do in the future?” don’t rule out being a doctor!
By Emily Hagan
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