Today I’m joined by Dr Tom who is a Pathology Registrar. Pathology is field of medicine that I know little about and it was great to have this discussion as he explained why he loves pathology and what the training pathway entails (00:40).  We then discuss a stress that is unique to Pathology and that is having to make “Definitive decisions” (11:02). Tom then lays out the biggest challenges of the pathology program (29:07). This leads into a bigger conversation about sacrifice in medicine and Tom Journey from wanting to do Orthopaedics and changing his career pathway based on his own reflection (33:19). I learnt a lot in this conversation and I hope you do too. Having insight into other people specialities allows to appreciate them on a different level.  I want to thank Tom for taking the time to join me for this conversation. As always thanks for listening!

Today I’m joined by Dr Lewis who is a Psychiatry Registrar. Lewis describes his journey into medicine and how his upbringing influenced his own path. Then we look at the complexities of changing career pathways and Lewis’s own experience of making the switch from Emergency Medicine to Psychiatry (07:48). Both Lewis and I completed the “Big 5 Personality Test” and reflected on our results and how our different personalities have lent themselves to our career pathway (17:18). We analyse all aspects of this test from openness to new experiences to competitiveness in the work field. Finally, we discuss the uncomfortable topic of mental health, recognising an impaired colleague and tips on how to approach the hard conversations (35:33). Lewis introduces me to a new concept known as ‘Moral Injury’ and a currently trending Japanese concept ‘Ikigai.’ This was a lot of fun to record and I want to thank Lewis for taking the time to join me for this conversation. As always thanks for listening!

Today I’m joined by Dr Kirsty who is a dual trainee in Emergency Medicine and Intensive Care. We focused heavily on Kirsty’s work as an emergency registrar and her amazing insight and reflection on the major issues that affect the Emergency Department. We first go through what drew Kirsty into ED (04:22) and her advice on how to adapt to shift work (08:32). I then ask her about the classic stereotype of the ED registrar and if this is true (15:08). Resuscitation situations is a big part of ED and Kirsty reflects on her own leadership style (19:19). One of my big gripes is how ED gets scrutinised by other specialities in the hospital and what knock-on effect this has on ED (26:21). Then we finish our discussion with having a broader look at the growing public health burden on ED (37:28). This was a great conversation and thank you to Dr Kirsty. As always thanks for listening!