Transitions are a natural part of life, particularly in a career in medicine. Whether that be into our first clinical placements, moving from Trainee Interns to being a PGY1 House Officer (I still remember the panic of writing my first script), House Officer to Registrar, Registrar to Trainee, Trainee/Fellow to Consultant. Bearing in mind, that list of transitions is not exhaustive.
In preparing to “step up” to being a junior registrar I thought about writing about my experience to reflect on one of the many transitions we encounter as medical professionals. I would like to preface this piece of writing by saying the following is entirely one RMOs experience, and in no means a “how to” or complete description of what it looks like to move from being a House Officer to Junior Registrar.
I remember the night before my first day – asking myself “Am I ready?”. I didn’t need to think very long about what the answer was – “No”. After a year of thinking, preparing and mentally visualizing I felt none the wiser or prepared. Nearly every senior colleague who has lent their wisdom and ear to my worries and fears about this career transition has said the same “you will never feel ready, you just need to do it”. After having heard this multiple times I felt somewhat consoled by these words – I just needed to do it.
Prior to getting on with it and “just doing it” I decided to buy new shoes. This might sound trivial – but those shoes made me feel like I’d made a change, and I was in a new role. I credit those shoes for helping to fight the imposter syndrome we all feel at one time or another.
These few months have been filled with many “firsts”. Firsts and new experiences can be uncomfortable, but slowly I became more comfortable with this feeling – I found this is the place I learnt and grew the most. Many senior colleagues shared their firsts when they had become registrars. This was more helpful than they may have anticipated as it helped me to appreciate more fully that we all go through this at some point.
Support of colleagues, whānau and friends was (and is) the most important factor in helping through the transition. Having supportive seniors who have allowed me the time and space to learn has been invaluable. They encouraged me to ask lots of questions – very quickly I got over my “silly questions”. It is better to ask the wisdom that is your seniors and learn than spend an age trying to find a half decent answer. Whānau and friends who listened at any hour but also understood when all my brain capacity was being driven into learning, and I had no reserve for much else.
The advice I was given rings true – there is much to learn and a lot of it I could not learn without doing and experiencing. Learning through doing is something we are all familiar with - see one, do one, teach one.
My tid-bits for anyone preparing for any step-up:
Share openly with your support system about what you’re experiencing
It will be uncomfortable and hard at times, and that’s ok
It can be overwhelming with lots of new information and experiences, and that’s ok
Ask questions and ask for help – it’s better to be curious than assume and never learn
Be kind to yourself and book leave! It’s going to be a busy and exhausting time, you will need time to recharge