Why is teamwork important for doctors?
working in effective teams improves
-clinical outcomes
-professional satisfaction
- +provides crucial peer support
- a single health care encounter can involve interactions with several health care professionals in various clinical settings
- team-based care can improve the safety, efficiency, and quality of health care-> using the unique skill set and perspective that each member brings to the team enables us to meet patients’ needs
When have you shown teamwork/ being a team player?
DofE
Recognising the different strengths and skills of people in the team to make sure they are best utilised so we all get the best outcome
effective teamwork here meant that everyone felt valued in the team as they were contributing meaningfully, good for morale which was very important for this situation
Skills of a good leader
- communication: ability to listen to your team and adapt your approaches based on feedback
- empathy/kindness: Need to be approachable to get good feedback in the first place. Empathy for when a team member is struggling
- work under pressure: increased responsibility for decision making
- delegation is imporatant so you avoid micromanaging, leading to team members thinking that you distrust them. However important to delegate appropriately
When have I showed leadership
S: 2 hours/week for a year. Girlguiding leader. I was responsible for designing activities, helping to ensure safeguarding and wellbeing
T: Choosing my leadership style- started off more strict (‘autocratic’) but learnt from other experienced troop leaders and my experience that flexible/more democratic, involving kids in the decision making made them more willing to participate in activities
R: Saw the impact of different leadership styles. Learnt the importance of treating people equitably. Developed skills: communication as it was v important to get feedback, empathy + approachability, Later on in the role delegating tasks to other new younger volunteers -> improve morale my making them feel important too
Work Experience: Surgeon leading the team + briefing b4 surgery
Greatest weakness / What you would change about yourself
- my greatest weakness is that I sometimes find it difficult to say no to people and tend to overcommit myself. I enjoy being involved and helping others. I volunteer in school but in the past, I didn’t always recognise my own limits.
Example- in Year 12, when I took on a lot of responsibilities alongside my schoolwork volunteering, extracurricular activities, and preparing for university applications. trying to do too many things at once but as a result I became burnt out and my grades even dipped slightly in my end of year 12 exams. WEX: Dr told me about the effects of burnout with his overbooked list. Also read in BMJ
That was a real wake-up call for me. I took some time to reassess my priorities and started being more realistic about what I could take on. I learned to plan my time more effectively, communicate if I was struggling, and
->say no when necessary not out of unwillingness, but to ensure I could maintain the quality of what I committed to.
Since then, I’ve been much more balanced. When it came to y13, I managed my workload far better, brought my grades back up, and still maintained my extracurricular commitments but in a sustainable way by planning my time and reducing the number of my commitments
What I learnt: self-awareness, boundaries, and wellbeing
Relate back to med: Doctors often have to balance multiple responsibilities, learning to recognise limits and manage time effectively is crucial to patient safety etc
Greatest strength
Organisation
S: food bank organising in school
T: present to diff year groups and coordinate donations
A: manage a team and delegate tasks, keep log on sheets.
Helpful/caring/empathetic
Girl guide volunteering
Why Medicine
- Strong foundations in science and research led me to explore science based degrees (Gold crest/EPQ). Would also show commitment to lifelong learning, analytical and critical skills
- Through volunteering in a hospital setting I realised that I wanted a more people facing career
- Medicine is a perfect blend of that
- Not a choice I took lightly as /I understood that a lot of sacrifices have to be made for a job like this so I read books and undertook work experience to confirm that this would be the right career path for me
- Read this is going to Hurt which gave a frank portrayal of junior doctor life, such as the physical and mental toll of long working hours, night shifts, and the potentially traumatic cases but instead of discouraging me it gave me a more balanced view and also made me even more determined to study medicine, now aware of both its demands and rewards
- Arranged work experience- few depts eg surgery and radiology. Able to appreciate the range of career possibilities doing a medical degree could entail.
Resilience
DofE during heatwave
Me and several members of my team were struggling with fatigue/low morale
Focussed on what I could control like pacing/staying hydrated. Motivating each other also helped- its important to have a support system when facing something difficult in order to cope healthily
Important skill that I have begun developing and it’s important I continue developing. Med is a high pressure career where there will be inevitable setbacks. The ability to cope healthily is paramount for dr mental health and their ability to provide safe patient care.
Taking responsibility for a mistake
Gold Crest project
Forgot to order Petri dishes
