Pumzile Molimi, MBCHB IV, SMU, South Africa.

At Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University, in the faculty of medicine, fourth year is the introductory year to clinical experience. It entails clinical rounds, clerkship and performing mundane in-ward procedures such as drawing bloods, inserting catheters, infusing fluids etc. However, non-clinical work is also part of the curriculum.

There are modules such as chemical pathology, pharmacology and forensic medicine to mention a few. We are expected to attend clinical rounds from early in the morning until midday, then attend online lectures for the rest of the afternoon. This is a daily routine for almost all the 6 blocks/rotations we do throughout the year.

The clinical aspect of this year was quite intimidating at first. This was the first time found ward work and it was the most challenging yet fun experience to have. I realised I had to be mentally strong in order to survive, especially with the Doctors expecting us to know everything and have all the answers to their questions.

I had to constantly tell myself that I was there to learn and that I needed to take each day as it came. I also expect a lot from myself, which can sometimes be detrimental to my mental health. But as soon as I started taking things easy on myself, I started enjoying the journey.

Balancing the clinical and non-clinical work was the main skill that we knew we had to master in fourth year. It was quite challenging to prioritise between the two as they are equally important. There is a motto that I came up with for myself whenever I had to choose prioritising one over the other, “module before block”.

The rationale behind the motto was that fourth year was the last year where I’d be doing modules, moreover, there is no re-test for a failed test. So I could afford to fail a module. However, blocks/rotations would still be continued with for the next two years, and there are re-assessments for a failed block/rotation. I only applied this motto when a test date for a particular module was falling on the same week as that of an end of block test or if the two tests were only a couple of days apart.

This year was the most challenging year of my medical school journey, which was expected. Juggling both clinical work and modules sometimes felt almost impossible. At some point my mental health was comprised, I had a burnout. I believe it was my first time having a burnout as my self-diagnosis was retrospective.

I had all the symptoms that screamed “burnout” but I had no clue. As soon as it worse, I spoke to a friend of mine about it and they set up an appointment with a therapist on my behalf. The therapy sessions were helpful, to say the least. I also had to take a week’s break from my school work so that I could recover.

If I were to turn back time, with the knowledge and experience that I have, I would ensure to check in on my mental health as often as possible and to not allow things to get worse before I seek for help. I would also make more use of my seniors and acquaint myself with them.

Otherwise, fourth year was nonetheless a blessing in disguise. It taught me to be even more resilient, mentally tough, perseverant and most importantly, it taught me how to embrace the challenges that come along the way and to enjoy the journey as it is.