All entries for Monday 09 December 2013

Amy's first blog first

Hi, I'm Amy and I'm a first year here at WMS. This is my first blog post and I hope to share with you the many ups and downs of being a fresher. Before I came to Warwick, I studied Biomedical Science at Keele University and graduated in July this year. At least I have the paper to say so - it's not obvious from the first couple of blocks here! Keele is not unlike Warwick; a campus university, also nicknamed “The Bubble” by its students. It is however much smaller with around 8,000 students compared to Warwick's 23,000. I still think Warwick has that nice, compact, community feel particularly in the medical school, which is one of the reasons I chose to study here. As a Northerner, I'm also proud to be slowly making my way towards the South of the country, even if I haven't managed to escape the Midlands just yet.

I'm so excited to be studying medicine and being quite a practical person, I have so far enjoyed the clinical skills and community aspects of the course the most. Already things seem to be moving so quickly, only the other day we had a lecture on careers and specialising. I hope I'm not the only one who thought - “Oh my gosh, I've only just started!' I found Block One – Health, Metabolism and Homeostasis, incredibly difficult at first and struggled with anatomy most. Learning that many new words, a whole other language, seemed almost impossible. Now we're in Block Two - Blood, Lungs and Heart, I think I'm slowly getting the hang of it. It's amazing that after seven weeks I already feel like I can do some quite doctor-y things like take a history and do an abdominal examination, still, there's an awful long way to go.



Life is not just all work though, in my spare time I have a part-time job (so much for spare time) as a Bar Assistant at the Students Union - you know, the big building on main campus that none of us ever really venture in to except occasionally for Pop on a Wednesday night? Although the sports teams are quite rowdy sometimes (I'm looking at you rugby players) it's quite a fun and sociable job. It can be a bit of a struggle to get out of bed for a cellular respiration lecture at 8.00am the following morning though!



Aside from working, I love travelling and last year I was lucky enough to combine a trip to South Africa with some work experience in various hospitals in Cape Town. The country was really beautiful and I had a wonderful experience with people who couldn't be more willing to help out. I'd definitely recommend a trip there. I also went to Iceland for my 21st birthday that was incredible and probably not quite as cold as my house in Leamington Spa. Singing is another of my hobbies though I haven't had a chance to join a choir yet so I've been confined to the shower so far (sorry housemates). Maybe I will soon - watch this space.



Anyway enough about me for now, I'm looking forward to blogging about my first year at Warwick Medical School and really hope you enjoy reading about it.

Sarah Hill : 09 Dec 2013 10:58 |  Tags: Amy First Year Mbchb Union Warwick Wms |  Comments (0) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

An introduction to Amrit

Hello, My name is Amrit. I am in my second year at Warwick Medical School and it has absolutely flown by! This is my first post so I will tell you a little bit about my background, why I chose Warwick and my experience so far. I graduated in Sports Science in 2009 and following that I worked as a Healthcare Assistant on a care of the elderly ward for a year and as a Clinician’s Assistant in a children’s hospital for another year. Both of these jobs gave me great exposure to healthcare and medicine, and I would definitely recommend some sort of work on a hospital ward, voluntary or paid, if you are considering medicine.

I chose Warwick because I liked the idea of studying in a large cohort of graduates all from a variety of academic backgrounds and experiences. It certainly comes into its own when studying in groups, which is a big part of the learning style at Warwick. Being part of such a large group is great, and there is definitely a sense of camaraderie amongst the cohort when going through tough exam periods.

Since starting in September 2012 to now we have gone through all of the major body systems. I am in the final term of our Phase I block (pre-clinical), where we are currently studying the urinary and respiratory systems, neurobiology, pharmacology and the human life span. The learning curve throughout the course is pretty steep and the work load is high, but the fascinating topics and clinical focus of the course is really engaging; from the first week of the course it has felt like we are preparing to be doctors.

We have patient exposure pretty early on the course. In the first term we visited patients in their home and learnt how their condition affects their day to day living. From the second term we have half a day in hospital where we have the opportunity to take histories and carry out clinical examinations on patients. The whole experience is pretty nerve racking at first but you soon get used to it, and you learn a great deal, even from the briefest encounter with a patient.

Although some days it may feel like it, studying medicine is not all work. In my spare time I enjoy staying active, playing squash and running. I am also a member of some societies; at the moment I am part of the committees for the Teddy Bear Hospital, Peer Support and SLIME (Students Leading in Medical Education). My highlight so far has been working as part of Peer Support, a society run by second year medics who teach the first years. Education is something I’m really passionate and being part of this committee has been a great experience. There are loads of clubs and societies to get involved in, and if there isn’t one already set up for your sport or interest it is really easy to set one up yourself.

At the moment we are preparing for our end of Phase I exam, the final hurdle to getting into the Clinical Phase, so hopefully the next time I post I can tell you about my experience of Phase II.

Sarah Hill : 09 Dec 2013 10:57 |  Tags: Amrit Mbchb Second Year Student Warwick Wms |  Comments (0) |  Close comments |  Report a problem