Archive for 2016

Written by Sam Forde

Hi guys! These are some additional things and a summary from my video on personal statements. Hope its's helpful :)

Till next time!

Sammi

XOXO

BASIC LAYOUT - each title = a paragraph

Opening statement - nice catchy, interesting and unique statement

Avoid the following:

From a young I have wanted to do Medicine..
I have always wanted to do medicine...
Growing up, I always had an interest in medicine...
I want to help people...
I like help people...
I like science...
I like the human body/ human biology...
Medicine is a science and an art...
Avoid anything that describes what Medicine is

Try to do the following:

If you start with a quote/ statistic, try not to be be pretentious
If you start with a statistic, make sure its true!

2. Why medicine? - specific to you

Avoid telling the reader why people want to do medicine in general. Make this specific to you
Describe the ONE THING that made you decide that medicine is the right thing for you then expand on it
You will be asked about this at interview

3. Why not anything else?

Describe here the unique things that medicine offers compared to any other career choice
Usual things are obviously diagnostic skills, practical skills, ability to know what to do when things take a turn for the worst

Things to avoid

Helping people
Saving lives
Learning science

You can do all the above in other career choices.

4. What have you done to make sure this is the right pathway?

Work experience
Volunteering
Looking after relatives
Shadowing
Summer school
Research
Have you spoken to med students/ doctors
Do you understand the challenges/ limitations of medicine?

5. What have you done to prove that you're good enough?

Leadership
Strong academic profile
You have passed your exams first time, every time
Have you done more than the generic number of subjects - not a requirement but if you have then write about it!

6. Are you a well rounded person?

What do you do in your spare time
Do you have a life outside school/ academics

7. Conclusion

Something that lingers in the mind
What would it mean to you to be given the opportunity to study medicine and to ultimately be a doctor?

GENERAL NOTES

1. 4 Medicine Choices, 1 Back Up

Applying for Medicine on UCAS gives you a maximum of 4 Medicine choices and 1 non medicine, back-up choice. Most people apply to Biomedical Science/ Medical Science so their personal statement will cover for these choices anyway. But if you want to apply for something completely different, e.g. Maths, then you need to incorporate something about Maths in your personal statement. This is difficult given the limited space you have.

2. UCAS Basics for personal statement

At least 1000 characters
Maximum 4000 characters
Maximum 47 lines

Write your statement in a WORD/ PAGES/ iNOTEs/ WHATEVER document and then transfer to the UCAS portal. Note that non Microsoft word formats may be difficult to transfer directly to the UCAS portal because some characters are not recognised... Be mindful of this and read your statement from start to finish once you've uploaded onto the UCAS system.

3. Don't lie!

Its very tempting to make things up to make your statement stand out but you are easily caught out by the admissions tutor! You need to be prepared to talk about EVERYTHING on your statement at interview IN DEPTH and if you can't, you are unlikely to be offered a place.

Written by Sam Forde

Happy with my current state of affairs (including my now lack of a fringe/bangs!)

Hi peeps! Today's post is a bit of a personal one hope that's okay with you!

So, one of my old school mates got in touch with me a few days ago. It'd been about 3 years since we last spoke/met and after the normal pleasantries her next question was 'are you married yet? It took me by surprise slightly because I didnt expect it from her. Her reasoning was that last time we met, I had a boyfriend whom I was more than likely going to be with forever so marriage was the next step for me. She's about six months older than I am and we're in our mid 20s. She proceed to tell me that she felt left behind now that the rest of our group of friends are either in a long term relationship or married or expecting a baby.

This got me thinking about the goals I'd set myself when I was a 16 year old (naive) pre med who saw the world with rose tinted glasses. Some of the goals I set myself where as follows and I'll explain how I spectacularly failed at each one!

1. Start med school aged 18 - I didn't. I took a gap year after sixth form and so I started aged 19

2. Finish med school at 23 - I didn't. With my gap year plus my intercalated degree I'm at least 2 years behind this goal!

3. Have a baby between year 4 and 5 of med school - I didn't. I actually got another degree instead!. Although I was in a long term relationship in year 4 there was no way I was ready to have a baby with the guy I was with. I thank my lucky stars that I didn't!

4. Get married before final year so that I could take my husband's last name - this didn't happen either and again, my I have my lucky stars to thank! Had I been married to the guy I was with I'd have been stuck with his name professionally. The thought of my lucky escape makes me very happy.

5. Move in with my boyfriend in final year of med school - I didn't. My ex boyfriend and I broke up soon after final year started so I lived solo.

Those are some of my goals that I didn't fulfil at the times I set myself. When I was 16 I was incredibly focused on age and achieving things at certain time points. It didn't occur to me at that age that life does't pan out as planned primarily because up until that point, bar one major tragedy in the family, my life had followed a pretty straight forward route. While I felt saddened by failing to meet my goal at each time point I've realised now that actually had I met the goals when I hoped to have done, my life wouldn't have been as fulfilling as it is now. I was in a relationship that was toxic from the start. For the longest time I was incredibly bitter at how I wasted nearly 7 years of my life on a dead end relationship with a guy that I clearly had no future with. But, had I married him and had his children I think I'd be clinically depressed if I'd had that tie with him.

Same as my gap year and my intercalation year. Initially I berated myself for taking a year out while my friends went to university/ continued with med school but actually, I met so many nice people whom I'm still in touch with today. I learnt life lessons that I probably wouldn't have learnt had I not taken the year out.

Yes I'm in my mid 20s. Nope I'm not married, I don't have children either, I don't even have a boyfriend! But that's okay. Really it is! I've never been happier or felt freer than I do now. My goals in life are so incredibly different now especially that I've finished medical school. I'm less focussed on age. I have more than 40 years of working as a doctor to look forward to so I'm less worried about achieving certain things by age 30.

When most of your friends are married, buying houses, settling down and you're not, it's easy to feel like you're not winning in life, really it is, but honestly when you stop chasing that goal you'll realise that there is more to life than getting married or having a baby.

When you start working on your own path you'll see that you actually have much more you want to do before you achieve the conventional goals. I actually prefer how my life has panned out now. I'm glad I didn't settle for a bad relationship. I'm glad I have two degrees under my belt and a tonne of life experience. I'm glad that I'm on course to fulfilling a lot of my non conventional goals and I'm glad that my mindset is flexible enough to reset my goals.

Moral of the story - you CAN set yourself different goals at different time points - i.e. YOU CAN RESET YOUR GOALS. The person you are aged 16, 20 or even 30 is different to the person you are now, today, as you're reading this. Stop trying to live a conventional life and stop trying to keep up with the Jones! So what you're not married/ pregnant/ don't own a house/ not CEO of a company??? Honestly so what? You're not the only one so man up! The longer you spend wallowing in self pity thinking that you're falling behind in life, the more depressed you'll get. Nothing in life is set in stone and I'm a firm believer in "everything happens for a reason". Work hard at whatever goal you set for yourself but also remember that life is fluid, you can take a detour if you want and you're strong enough to accept that life happens! I didn't have baby in 4th year because had I done that I'd be a divorced 20 something single parent having to go see my ex husband every other week so that my child has access to both parents...*INSERT YOUR 'FAILED GOAL' HERE and think about it for a second. Where would you be now had you achieved it? I'd honestly rather have my current version of life than what my 16 year old self wanted!

Hope this post got you thinking about reseting some of your goals!

Till next time!

Sam
x

PS: Thank you for the love on twitter (@_samforde) on my last day as a medical student! It warmed my heart!

Written by Sam Forde

I took this picture at the top of Table Mountain. What you see on the left is Lion's Head (the mountain I climbed the the following day) and Signal Hill (another one, the day after). In the distance is Robben Island, the famous location for Nelson Mandela's prison.

Looks like its elective season! I can't believe mine was almost two years ago.. How time flies! I thought it'd be useful to write something for anyone who is planning an elective either for this year (although you're probably too late if you haven'T planned already!) or the upcoming years. Electives are fun, whatever you do. If you're interested in finding out what I did for my elective, click here! Otherwise, here are some tips on how to plan your elective.

When to start planning

As early as possible basically. Even if you're in first year of medical school (I know the elective period is in year 4 or 5 for most people), planning early means you are more likely to get a placement that you want. There are certain areas in the world that are oversubscribed and there are also certain elective types that are also oversubscribed (e.g. trauma at Tygerberg hospital in South Africa).

Where to go

This is entirely dependent on the sort of experience you want to gain (plus your budget). Do you want to put your medical skills to the test and actually get involved in patient management (like I did) - if so, then your best bet is a developing country in Africa or Asia. On the other hand, do you want to experience cutting edge medical technology or get involved in medical research - if so then a developing country is your best bet. From all the research I did, the USA, Canada and the UK will take elective students as observers. You won't get very involved in actually doing anything practical. This is useful if you just want to get an idea about something for example a field that you're interested in. I spent some of my elective at the Birmingham Women's Hospital in the UK, basically learning about all the different specialities that are affiliated with obstetrics and gynaecology. I been got the chance to participate in some IVF and Embryology as well as semen analysis which was pretty awesome!

Who to go with

Again, this depends on the sort of person you are (and also if you really want to go with someone else). I went on my elective by myself (I can't tell you how much I had to bargain with my family to be allowed to travel solo as a female to South Africa). I wanted to go by myself because I would be forced to socialise and make friends. At the time, I was the sort of person that would let someone else have the experience instead of me because I was cripplingly shy and very socially awkward (thankfully things are starting to change!). By going solo, I had exposure to every opportunity that was presented. I was always first assistant in any surgery, always the first to clerk or see interesting signs. It gave me a lot of confident as a budding medical practitioner because ultimately, when you are a doctor, you are solo at least some of the time.
On the other hand, going with someone else means you're not lonely because you have someone to be around if all else fails. Also handy because that person doubles up as a photographer! Some of my friends went with their boyfriends, some went with family...
So I say definitely think about the kind of person you are and what you'd like.

What to sort out in advance

Basically, all the important stuff need to be sorted out early on:

Travel Visa - does the country you are planning to visit need you to have a visa?
Letter of recommendation - this is usually provided by your medical school
Vaccinations - some counties need you to have some vaccinations that are not routine like Yellow Fever. Get more detail on the CDC website here
Indemnity insurance - I got mine free from the Medical Defence Union here
Travel insurance
Travel money - its cheaper to change your money before you travel and also to change it anywhere else but the airport. The post office or your own bank can have competitive rates - look at the value of your currency regularly and go change your money when the exchange rate is good
Passport and other ID- make sure your passport is valid for the duration of your elective. Some countries expect your passport to have at least 6 months left on it before they allow you in. If you need to apply for a new passport, do so well in advance because sometimes it takes a long time to get one through.

What to pack - basic items

Camera - you are going to see some of the most beautiful places on earth. Don't let a poor quality camera ruin this!
Clothes for winter and clothes for summer REGARDLESS of which country you're going to - I made the mistake of packing only summer clothes when I went to South Africa and boy did I learn! Some of the nights where bitterly cold and my pyjama shorts didn't help matters. Thankfully I went out and stocked up on water clothes!
Laptop - this was handy because it allowed me to catch up on TV shows and also to Skype people back home
First aid kit - not a full blown affair but something with basic things like antihistamines, analgesia, plasters, oral rehydration solution, etc
HIV Post Exposurre Prophylaxis - This is mandatory in some places. I had to buy some to go to South Africa. My advice is to check with the place you're going - some hospitals include PEP in their registration fee so you won;t have to spend £300 for nothing.
Driver's licence - if you plan to rent a car wherever you're going, you may need to show proof of your ability to drive
Sunscreen
Unlocked mobile phone
Other comfort items you need - I took photographs, iPod
(Food) - this is in brackets because you OBVIOUSLY want to experience the cuisine in the country that you've visited. However, if you have something that you absolutely must have, like lactose free milk for me, then its best to take enough for the first couple of days. After this, you'll know your way to the shops!

What to pack - medical items

Stethoscope (obviously)
Box of gloves
Goggles (if you plan on doing trauma surgery)
Scrubs
Crocs or Trainers
Torch (for night shifts)
Clinical handbooks - I took my oxford handbook for easy referral

Last minute tips

As well as taking a photocopy of your ID documents, save them on your dropbox account or email them to yourself so that in emergencies, you have something
On the first day you arrive, do the following

Go get registered with the organisation you are doing your elective with
Get a local sim card for your phone and contact your family to let them know you're safe
Make friends with people that are already there - handy because they know their way around

Do you best to learn the language - it makes having medical conversations easier and also allows you to keep up with ward rounds if they are conducted in different languages
Arrange pick up from the airport in advance - if possible, arrange for someone within the organisation you're visiting to pick you up. This is way easier, safer and often cheaper than getting into any taxi from the airport

Hope that's useful guys! Remember, these lists are not comprehensive, rather they are the basic of what you need to think about when you're planning your elective. If you have any specific questions, let me know and i'll do my best to answer!

Sam

Written by Sam Forde

Seems like only a short while ago when I was writing about my Medical School story, now here I am now writing about the end.

A few days ago, I found out that I had passed all my medical school exams, meaning that I am officially a DOCTOR! It hasn't sunk in yet and it feels really surreal. Yes, friends and family have been calling me Dr Sam since my first day of medical school but I never thought the day would come when actually I would be a doctor.

Its been a long and arduous process. At times I felt I couldn't do it. It was so hard and required a lot of sacrifices on my part and on my friends and family's part. I am truly grateful to everyone who made my 6 year journey possible, who stuck around through the self doubt and the tears and the sleepless nights - till the very end. To the two most important people in my life, (basically the two reasons I live) my mom and my lil sis, who stood by me through my several detours through medical school, who where always there through all my exams, all my essays, all my vivas, everything, words cannot explain how I feel, but you know! To my friends, who essentially slapped me upside the head when I panicked before exams or doubted that I could ever remember 5 years of material and actually be confident at independently managing sick people, y'all the best!

As well as finding out I'd passed, I also learned that I got into my TOP CHOICE DEANERY(!!!!) and will be doing my TOP CHOICE ROTATIONS (!!!!) For anyone who doesn't understand deaneries and rotations, etc fear not, I will be explaining soon. But essentially, I will be working in a hospital in an area that I wanted to work in, doing the specialties that I wanted to do! Again, words cannot explain how happy (and somewhat surprised) I was to have scored highly enough to not only get into the deanery that I wanted, but to also be doing the job that I wanted. Life could not be sweeter right now! So grateful to be entering this wonderful profession of life savers and even more grateful that my lil dream came true!

So, what happens now?

Time to learn to be a normal human being! I have so many things I have missed out on because I've been in education for so long, but now I plan to make up for lost time! I am in a position where I can give my many passions a lot more attention (which I'm getting used to!) so that's what I'm doing! Never has there been a time in my whole existence where I didn't have a deadline to work to or a chapter to be reading before bed!

I have a few more weeks at uni to officially finish up everything then I graduate! After graduation, I start my first rotation (which will be in emergency surgery - grateful for my trauma elective in Cape Town!) If you follow my instagram/ pintrest/twitter/ snapchat you'll know that I am in the process of looking at places to stay, home decor, etc for when I start my job!

Seeing as I did pretty well in my national exams (not to toot my own horn or anything), I will be recording some videos telling my med student readers exactly how I did it. I'll let you know when I get them up!

In the mean time, if anyone has any tips on home decor, where to buy nice home stuff (besides the holy grails that are IKEA and Dunelm), let me know!

Laters

(DR) Sam XXX (eeek!)

Written by Sam Forde

BASIC LAYOUT - each title = a paragraph

Opening statement - nice catchy, interesting and unique statement

2. Why medicine? - specific to you

3. Why not anything else?

4. What have you done to make sure this is the right pathway?

5. What have you done to prove that you're good enough?

6. Are you a well rounded person?

7. Conclusion

GENERAL NOTES

1. 4 Medicine Choices, 1 Back Up

2. UCAS Basics for personal statement

3. Don't lie!

When to start planning

Where to go

Who to go with

What to sort out in advance

What to pack - basic items

What to pack - medical items

Last minute tips

SAM FORDE

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