Author: Lauren Kennedy

Cecilia Vinchenzo

/ Lauren Kennedy

Arriving at Lancaster on move-in day I was simultaneously very excited and very nervous . Upon arrival at my college we were greeted with friendly reps who showed me to my new room. I felt very out of my depth and it didn’t feel real moving away from home for the first time, but quickly my flat mates and college reps helped me settle in within hours, all my fears and nerves about moving to university were gone!

For me Freshers Week was a very memorable week. Every night my college hosted a different themed event – ranging from Casino Royale fancy dress to a UV paint party. A highlight for me was the university campus bar crawl as we got to see every college bar and meet so many new people. It was fun getting to know my flat mates and becoming friendly with lots of people in my own college and the other colleges on campus. There were all sorts of events going on during Freshers Week – medical and extra curricular. I went to the Freshers fair midweek, which was great, and I got to check out many of the societies the university has to offer – there are so many it was hard to choose what I might like to join!

My first clinical skills session at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary education centre was daunting not just for myself, but also for my classmates – we didn’t know what to expect because it felt like ‘real doctor stuff’ and it was only our first week! It turned out to be a lot of fun, alongside being a necessary educational part of the course, and it is now something I always look forward to on a weekly basis. Keeping it simple and basic we were taught the globally used Ayliffe hand washing technique – something we will need to use for the rest of our careers. We thought we knew how to wash our hands, but we were wrong! The essentials of personal protective equipment and correct waste disposal were also discussed.

The entire first year class were invited to attend the Medics Society Freshers ball. To put a twist on the event it had a masquerade theme. Everyone donned their best suits and dresses and enjoyed a lovely meal, getting to celebrate surviving our very first week of medical school! Many medical students from other year groups also attended which was great, they imparted some brilliant advice and were eager to meet all of the first year students. The ball was an amazing way to meet my classmates outside of the lecture room environment.

I am so glad I chose to study at Lancaster – I’ve had a brilliant start and I can’t wait to see what the rest of the year brings!

Mel Sarigul

/ Lauren Kennedy

First term complete, bags packed, presents wrapped and I am ready to return home after a busy semester.

I am now more comfortable with PBL. I still have the odd feelings of being left to drift alone in a vast, empty ocean worrying that I have missed something important but these pass fairly quickly. The learning objectives we come up with as a group on the whole match the intended learning objectives and the lectures continue to give us guidance on depth. Our group has really learnt how to work effectively together and we have a great dynamic. Aside from the educational perspective PBL has meant that students get to know each other and I have made great friends. I will be sorry to change my PBL group but also excited to work with a range of people.

I was quite late in ordering my stethoscope because I had to make the very important decision of what colour I wanted (turquoise or classic black? Smoke or brass tip?) and what to have engraved (should I include my full name or just my surname? Would ‘Life is short’ be inappropriate? Why isn’t ‘Laughter is the best medicine’ 24 characters long?!)  I was glad I waited though as often you are given a discount voucher at Fresher’s fair.  My stethoscope arrived as we were learning to do a cardiovascular examination and I got childish pleasure listening to a friend’s heartbeat. That’s one of the great things about Lancaster – medical students start their clinical training early on. Since you are practising on healthy individuals usually you can’t feel/hear much but the emphasis in first year is normality. The idea is that if you know what normal feels like you will immediately be able to identify when something is abnormal later on in your studies.

We have started Communication skills which teaches how to effectively take a history from a patient. It is nerve racking to have to get up and interview a stimulated patient with a camera and 5 sets of eyes focussed on you! Trying to uphold an image of calm and reassurance when in reality your mind is desperately searching for the next open ended question to ask all whilst nodding and maintaining eye contact. As embarrassing as it is to watch yourself back it gives you an opportunity to evaluate what you could improve on.

I feel that I am in a better position now than I was at the same time 4 years ago when I was doing my first degree. I have been practising clinical skills on anyone I could get my hands on, annoying friends with open ended questions and PBL means that I have made most of my notes already and remember the main concepts. Now comes the hard bit of learning the nitty gritty stuff in time for exams in January.

Mel Sarigul

/ Lauren Kennedy

Walking up those stairs I was nervous but excited about meeting my new flatmates. Opening that kitchen door and seeing the fresh faced bright eyed 18 year olds for the first time my first thought was… Oh my God they look so young!  I applied to Lancaster after completing my Biomedical Science degree and taking a year out so I was anxious about being the oldest in my flat and course. We soon bonded over some lasagne though which was compliments of Furness College!

The way Lancaster’s freshers’ week works is that you go out to events your college has organised for you. Furness being the best college (obviously) had a paint party, glitter party, on and off campus themed bar crawls and also events such as ‘Top of the Blocks’. At this stage I had not met many medics but used this opportunity to bond with my flatmates and the block over a couple of drinks- or more.

Medsoc is a society especially for medical students. They organise socials and also provide revision material and mock OSCEs nearer exam time.  During Fresher’s Week there was a meet and greet at Revolutions which had a great vibe. Lancaster’s Medical School is one of the smallest in the UK meaning that the medical community is very close knit. The older years were really friendly and first years were able to meet each other in a relaxed environment. Other societies such as Medsin provide volunteering opportunities such as SKIP or Teddy Bear Hospital.

The first PBL session was a shock to the system. Having being used to a lecture based course previously, I was not prepared for the freedom that comes with PBL. We had to read a scenario, pick out key points, discuss them, then make learning objectives with the focus being on the upper GI tract.  Our group initially struggled with constructing learning objectives but eventually came up with a workable list which we had to go away and research. The feedback session was useful in that not only do you reinforce your own learning by explaining concepts but can also ask about any areas you found challenging. It can be difficult to gauge how much detail we need to go into a topic but the recommended resources gives us an idea – so don’t worry if someone decides to learn some random cell pathway and you’re sat there completely lost!

I went into my first anatomy not knowing what to expect.  As it turned out the sessions were quite informal and very informative. Every week you have two hours of anatomy which are organised as 3 stations. There are lots of models to use, books and more importantly friendly and approachable demonstrators. The small groups are great as you have more contact time with the demonstrators some of which include Radiographers, Doctors and Anatomists.

So far I have enjoyed being part of Lancaster University and its Medical school. I look forward to the challenges ahead of me.

Huz Khojani

/ Lauren Kennedy

Starting 4th year

You would imagine that starting fourth year of medical school would be a daunting experience, knowing that your final university exams would be at the end of it. But as it turns out, that isn’t the case. There is a tremendous amount of confidence that comes from passing exams at the end of a medical school year, and so by the time that you’ve done it three times, you feel unstoppable. “Bring it on!” you declare to the challenge that lies ahead.

The first day of fourth year starts very similarly to how every other clinical year does; an entire day dedicated to talks that reinforce the principles of that we have been taught from the beginning, such as how to keep patients safe as well as ourselves. Then, during the final segment of the planned day, we are given the information that is most important to us; how fourth year is organised and which groups we are placed in.

In a nutshell, fourth year consists of a whistle-stop tour of the entire hospital (excluding the Accident and Emergency department). Four weeks are spent on each specialty except Medicine and Surgery, which get double the time. This makes sense, as these can be argued to be the “meaty subjects”. Because there are so many specialties to see, the year group is divided into groups that would rotate between the specialties. The concept of having “rotations” has been persistent since second year, however this year the groups are as small as five students. This means that a majority of the academic year will be spent with the same four people.

The first big change of the year that is quickly noticeable is the higher level of respect given on wards by doctors and more junior students. Along with the respect comes an expectation that we are able to perform more and better clinical skills on the wards. This means that we are given more responsibility in clinical practice, which I very much welcome. So far, the year has had me and my clinical partner running our very own GP clinic, as well as clerking patients in on a paediatric ward. Clerking a patient means that you are the first person that a patient talks to once they are admitted to the hospital. This can seem incredibly challenging as there are no patient notes and you are left with nothing but a stethoscope and your own clinical knowledge to determine what might be wrong with a patient. However, having a hands-on experience to this degree does make you more emotionally invested into the patient’s condition, resulting in remembering the features of the patient’s diagnosis for a long time in the future.

Not all clinical experiences have been rewarding however. The most frustrating time that I have had this year was when trying to examine a child who refused to let me go anywhere near them, but managed to pull at my ID badge and undo the lanyard that is attached to it from around my neck. Being particularly fond of my picture, the patient decides to put my badge into their mouth and starts chewing on it. The next half-hour is spent trying to get it back, which was a lot harder than expected.

As eventful as fourth year has been so far, I look forward to the challenges that it will definitely bring in the future. By this point in medical school, instead of seeing these challenges as problems you see them as opportunities to continue growing

Beth Stockton

/ Lauren Kennedy

First day on the ward

Our second week in hospital was the first time we were sent to the wards to speak to real patients. It was scary because there was nobody with us, and we had to approach nursing staff and the patients ourselves to ask to speak to them. You feel bad bothering them, but most patients are actually happy to have someone to speak to, and the nurses give advice on who might be better to speak to as well which was really helpful. It’s difficult to write notes the same way as we practiced in the OSCE because you can’t control what order patients tell you information. There tends to be a lot of stories that, even though they can be interesting, they aren’t what you need to write in your history. It can be hard to steer patients towards what you need to find out, but I’m hoping that will come with practice.