A study break update

Hello to the handful of loyal readers, who continue to support me despite my paltry and irregular posting. Right now, I’m in the throes of studying for FCA Part 1 (which is more or less the same as FRCA Part 1, except South African). Obviously, my absolute need for focus means that my mind is

Who Says You Can’t Become an Anaesthesiologist?

Whether intentional or not, the article reeks exclusivism, which is something I think medicine can do without. I don’t need a superhero complex.

“Whatever You Decide To Be, Be A Teacher”

I recently had the opportunity to speak about medicine as a career at a local high school. It has been many years, and even as I narrow my fields of practice, I remain passionate about doing what I can to enable kids to make informed choices about their careers – and so that those who

Train your trainees

Sometimes, I think clinicians forget that they were inexperienced and under-qualified juniors once, too. There is nothing admirable about learning to place an intercostal drain on YouTube, without senior supervision, as many of us like to brag.

Read This Book: In Shock by Rana Awdish

“In Shock” is about medicine’s broken telephone. It is about our inherent, but often unintentional, disrespect for patients and ourselves. It is about seeking comfort in the wrong ways, and about righting our bad medical habits.

Tips and Tricks: Planning Your Elective [Part 1]

Since I’ve kind of started paying more attention to the blog again, my friend Caroline asked me to share some tips on electives. (Hi, Caroline!) You may remember the elective series I ran a few years ago. I haven’t exactly stopped the series, I just am not really in the position to seek out medical students

This one time, at badEMfest18…

Remember that time I went to a little town (village??) called Greyton, with some friends, and had a blast? It happened again. This time, not as a student, but as a doctor. Then, Greyton enriched me. This time, it may well have changed my life. Or at least, my career. (Are they really two different

FAQ: Will I Get Into Med School?

My fist response: don’t let me stand in your way.

My second response: be realistic.

Ten Books Every Lifelong Learner Should Read

I like the concept of lifelong learning. I love the idea that you are not stuck with learning only about whatever you studied in college/university; I love the idea that you can gain knowledge about almost anything if you are inspired to do so (thank you, Google). I believe I am a life-long learner; and I believe that books are at least partially responsible for that.

Dear Medical Student: Med School Is Not Worth Your Self-Harm

Dear Medical Student: medical school is worth a lot of things. I can tell you that because I went from hating medical school to loving being a doctor (well, on most days).

But it’s not worth that.