Becoming a doctor is a long and excruciating journey with lots of sacrifices. Even after all the hardwork, the intense feeling of not being adequate in your work is something that haunts most of the young medical graduates in this country. With unexpectedly high demand for PG seats and broad perception of MBBS graduates as not-so-worthy underlings, the coveted MBBS degree has been reduced to not more than a qualifying certificate for a PG examination. No surprise, this had lead to medical students focusing all their energies on getting ready to face this mammoth examination at the end of the course, NEET-PG, instead of learning how to treat a patient, something which they had actually entered this stream for. When they pass out, they are highly proficient in solving MCQs but fail miserably in treatment of even the most common diseases found in the community.
I too was not different, PG exam was the hurdle that had to be crossed at any cost. I focused all my energies from 3rd year onwards on preparing for that examination. Fast forward to 2021, I somehow managed to cross MBBS and crack the NEET-PG examination, but couldn't correct someone's measly Vitamin D deficiency fearing I'll cause hypercalcemia in him. My clinical skills were nothing, a fever not getting relieved with Cefixime was a nightmare, all diarrheas in theory didn't require Loperamide but practically I was clueless on how to go about it. To put it in words, I was a fresh medical graduate with MBBS degree but I was nowhere near of being a doctor that I was meant to be, and this was the case when I had completed my MBBS from one of the most prestigious institutes of this country, AIIMS-Patna.
In 2022, after multiple delays in examination and counselling, I finally entered the premises of this amazing hospital. Observing complex cases became a habit, medical dilemmas became the refreshing morning coffee, finding ways out of clinical dead ends became a daily exercise, and just before I could know, the boy who hesitated to give Vitamin D capsules developed the ability to diagnose and start treatment of HLH on its own. It was not just about being able to handle what I knew, the fear of handling the unknown had also vanished. Many a times I faced situations in casualty duties when I didn't know what I was dealing with, knowing that ICU team was just a call away and all super specialties were available under one roof to consult, I was able to sail through many nights while dealing with patients of MODS coming out in the morning a much more learned person. Each time such tricky situation arrived, I learned more out of it, requiring lesser and lesser help the next time, and this journey continues till this date.
Being able to work in this hospital with some of the best doctors of this country in a resource-rich setting has been an overwhelming experience for me. Just by being around these great minds and observing how they work makes you learn so much, what to say of when you are directly working under their guidance. Thankfully I am just halfway across my journey, so much has yet to be learned, and I am lucky to be able to spend some more time doing that here. I can say without a doubt, that while my college just gave me a degree, this hospital actually made me the doctor that I was meant to be.
(This article was published in 2023 GRIPMER newsletter of Sir Ganga Ram Hospital)