Case studies : Hospital doctor: David

David Bishop is a hospital doctor in his first year of a core medical specialty training post. He studied medicine and surgery (MB BS Honours) and graduated in 2007.

I always enjoyed science at school, and medicine offered me the opportunity to combine this with dealing with different people on a daily basis. My father is a GP and through him I had an insight into the rewards of medicine as a career and the varied work it provides. I felt that medicine suited my strengths academically and would be challenging. That being said, the first two years of medical school were largely lecture-based and devoid of patient contact. I found this uninspiring and hard work. It wasn't until clinical work began in the third year that I really felt that this was a career in which I could flourish.

Aside from the mandatory clinical knowledge, medical school taught me clear and effective communication techniques, ways to approach the challenging ethical situations often encountered in medicine, how to work alone and as part of a team, and how to take opportunities to learn wherever they arise.

Medicine is fairly competitive and applying to medical school is no different. Things I felt helped my application were two different work experience placements at local hospitals and a good understanding of what training and working in medicine involved. When applying for specialty training things that were valued by selectors included research, clinical audit and presentations. I took the opportunity as an undergraduate to take a year out from medical school to do a masters degree in clinical research, and managed to get three articles published in international journals, which really helped to boost my CV.

I am currently in a two year core medical training post, which I secured after undertaking the two year Foundation Programme.  As my training progresses I gain increasing responsibility for patient care, as well as having regular opportunities to teach and be taught. Working patterns have changed massively in the short space of time I have been qualified with the introduction of the 48-hour working week.

My tasks include assessing newly admitted and acutely unwell patients, performing and organising routine and emergency investigations (blood tests, x-rays, etc.), monitoring stable ward patients, communicating with families, other departments and GPs, responding to emergencies such as cardiac arrests and maintaining my portfolio, as well as preparing for professional exams.

Out of hours work (on calls) can get very stressful, especially at times when resources may be spread thinly. Sometimes when patients die on the ward it can be disheartening or upsetting. There can also be a lot of paperwork involved as an everyday part of the job. The aspects I enjoy most about my role are meeting new and varied people, working as a team and seeing treatments take effect.

I chose core medical training as I am unsure as to the specialty in which I would like to work. I am hoping something will grab my interest over the next 12 months so I can pursue a field to consultant level in the future.