Coronavirus in Scotland: Graduate doctors ready to join NHS in Covid-19 fight

The new intake in coming weeks will include 200 newly qualified University of Edinburgh graduates who will have the opportunity to join the NHS workforce sooner than they would have anticipated, as part of the UK’s response to the virus.

Students from the University of Dundee and University of Aberdeen were also able to graduate early in order to start work sooner.

The scale of the crisis, and the pressure it is placing on the NHS, prompted many medical schools, including Edinburgh, to speed up the graduation process.

Read more: Coronavirus in Scotland: Thousands of student nurses and graduating doctor take up posts early to support those involved in the fight on the front line

Hannah Douglas, 23, was in Australia when Covid-19 struck the UK and was desperately trying to get home as well as being kept up to date by the University of Edinburgh Medical School.

Ms Douglas said: “We would have originally graduated at the end of June and started work in August, but it soon became apparent that we might be starting a little sooner with everything that was going on.

“We graduated on April 6 and the last week or so we have been getting our registration details through.”

Ms Douglas will be starting work today at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary following two days of induction. She will be joining the renal ward and providing support to colleagues who have been working on the front line.

She said: “We have had a pretty full on two days and as an induction would normally be five days we also have preparation and research to do online. There was some practical elements we went through along with prescribing. We also went over personal protection equipment which was very reassuring. I think people were understandably nervous about the side of things, but the information we were given certainly put us at ease.”

Read more: Coronavirus in Scotland: Generous donations of personal protective equipment help hospices and hospitals

Ms Douglas has been placed on a renal ward but it was explained to them that they may work between wards with patients who are not infected with the virus and those who are.

She added: “Even at a time like this people still have normal medical problems that need to be dealt with. I think the idea is we will be looking after people with Covid-19 some of the time, but we won’t be left alone with a patient who is acutely ill and we will be very well supported.”

After six long years of studying, Ms Douglas and her family were naturally looking forward to her starting her medical career but given the circumstances she is entering the profession, there has been some degree of concern.

Ms Douglas added: “When we first started to talk to my mum about it there was concern, but when I explained all the PPE that was going to be in place for me she became a lot more comfortable and confident with me starting. My sister is also a doctor and was able to reassure her that things are calmer than might be perceived.”

Starting work during the coronavirus crisis maybe daunting for newly graduated doctors, but Ms Douglas said helping and caring for people is why she wanted to become a doctor.

“We have been studying for nearly six years and this is what we have been working towards. It is an exciting time and this is why we want to help people as best we can and give something back to the community,” added Ms Douglas.

“We know there are a number of medical staff themselves who are falling ill and it is important we are there to offer support which is why they are bringing is in now.”

The University of Edinburgh said an accelerated registration process is allowing the new graduates to join the NHS early as Foundation Year doctors, if they choose.

This postgraduate programme is a bridge between medical school and specialist or general practice training.

Professor David Kluth, director of Undergraduate Medical Teaching, the University of Edinburgh, said they had been working on plans for the past week to enable their students to help support the NHS.

He said: "Many students have already expressed a desire to help. They are keen to do what they studied and trained six years for. I know my clinical colleagues will welcome their help and we will ensure they have all the support they need. We are lucky to have such talented doctors who can step up in this way."

Graduate doctor Tom Erlandsen, 23, said he is proud to be joining the NHS at this time. He has been placed at the Western General Hospital in Edinburgh and will initially work in general surgery.

He said: "Emergency surgery is still going ahead. We might be in a pandemic but people but that doesn't stop people having other conditions which need treated. I had chosen general surgery when my placement was originally due to start in August.

"There is a real mix of emotions starting in these circumstances, but I am very proud to be joining the NHS just now. I don't want to be stuck inside not being able to help people, I want to be able to do something at a time that is affecting everyone.

"We are starting our placements in a unique set of circumstances but we are being given such a huge amount of support. From what we have seen so far there seems to be a real sense of unity and I am just glad to be able to provide support as much as I can. There has been a great appreciation for the NHS at the moment and I am glad to be joining them."

Fellow graduate Theresa Peltz, 24, said the induction days were intense but very useful. She will be starting work today at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary.

She said: "We were involved in a number of workshops and simulation exercise where you are treating a patient. It was all very thorough.

"Personal protection advice was given including the right way to take it off so that you don't infect yourself when removing anything."

Ms Peltz has been placed in respiratory and is very keen to start.

She added: "I just want to help as much as I can and I think I am ready to get started and to help and support people who have been working through this crisis."

The newest cohort of doctors from the University of Aberdeen have also graduated early so that many of them can join the frontline and support the NHS and the COVID-19 effort. Some will begin work in a supported and supervised environment across Scotland and the UK by the end of this month.

Professor Rona Patey, the Director of the Institute for Education in Medical and Dental Sciences at the University, will be first to address the event. She said:

“Our medical graduates will begin their careers by applying their skills and knowledge to support the response to an unprecedented world health crisis. We are immensely proud of their achievements and are confident that they are prepared and ready for the challenges ahead.”

Nadia Crolla, 26, from Glasgow will be joining one of the medical wards at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary and feels ready to take on the unique challenges.

She said: “The Medical School has prepared us well for the stress and uncertainty that comes with being a doctor and although things are not functioning as normal at the minute, we have huge amounts of support from staff and colleagues.The majority of being a good doctor doesn't come from books, it comes from how you communicate with people and how you maintain empathy in the most trying of times and the medical school have done a stellar job to prepare us for this.”

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