They're starting med school in a health-care crisis. But Dal's class of '26 remains hopeful
'It’s good to know that I’m going to be part of the change'
The largest medical school class in Dalhousie University history started class this week in the midst of Nova Scotia's ongoing health-care crisis. The 144 students are all from the Maritimes.
The future doctors could have their work cut out for them when they graduate. Chronic problems in health-care systems in Nova Scotia and across the country have made headlines all summer.
CBC spoke to three students about their interest in family medicine, concerns about burnout and entering a turbulent health-care system.
Some of the comments have been edited for length and clarity.
Kaylin Dean
Hometown: Halifax
I actually am very interested in family med. You have two schools of students coming into medicine. There's the ones who want the big cases. They want the tumour, you know, they want that crazy acute illness. And then you have people who are really satisfied with the everyday upkeep. And I'm definitely on that team. I find preventative medicine extremely satisfying.
I think, where I'm hoping to head into a rural setting and hopefully opening up my own clinic, is that I absolutely would have a team. I don't think you can just have a doctor anymore. I think you need the health-care team. You need a nurse, you need a pharmacist on hand.
I think robust health-care teams are the future. I think the reason why we're seeing fewer people wanting to go into family med is, not only they want the tumour, but, if I go family med, suddenly I have thousands of patients in my lap. I don't have time to deal with that and I think that is daunting. I think it's more daunting than it needs to be. I think teamwork is the answer.
Eventually, we're all gonna face, 'Wow, I feel really burned out by our system, by our health-care system, by too many patients, by our aging population.' It's going to happen. I think just preparing is the best I can do.
I mean, there's the talk around stigma, you know, physician burnout, mental health. This is all sort of opening up now. It's not a crime to say, 'Hey, I am really struggling right now.'
And I think that's gonna get even better by the time I get into a situation where I'm like, 'Yep. Yeah, I haven't had a vacation in a year. I'm working 14-hour days. I signed up for this though, and these people need me. I need help and I think that's going to be OK.'
I think by the time I get to the point where I'm having that conversation, the help available will be more robust. We're gonna be more interreliant on those health-care teams. I think things are moving in a good direction. Let's say I'm hopeful.
Jacqui JnBaptiste
Hometown: Vieux Fort, St. Lucia/Halifax
I know the issue is not a lot of people going into [family medicine] so that's why things are getting so hectic. It's only going to get worse if less people actually join.
If I did go that route, it would just be a lot of encouraging others that the only way to solve the problem is to deal with it. So whether that means we're going to be stressed out for a little while, it's going to end.
We should want to be all types of physicians. We shouldn't avoid something just because it's more stressful.
I always wanted to be one of those doctors who was not permanently stationed at one spot. So I'd like to have Nova Scotia as my main base, but I also want to teach.
So, if I were to get involved in some kind of program where we go to different countries to teach different techniques, because I have experienced those things while I was home, and it is beneficial because not everyone has the opportunity to leave what they're doing and go somewhere else.
But if someone could just come and teach all the physicians a new technique that just came out and something they didn't know, they could in turn use that to better the country.
I kind of take [burnout] as a part of the career. Hopefully, it's not something that happens extensively. Because we are going to get burned out at some point, but that's why I think taking care of yourself from the start and knowing how to combat any type of stresses would be helpful. And overall encouraging people to take care of themselves because that's the only way you can take care of other people, too.
It doesn't change what I want to do or why I want to do it. The only way to really make any kind of adjustments is for more people to be let into med school. So it's nice that they've actually increased the capacity. So it might take awhile but at least we're contributing to try and solve the problem.
It's good to know that I'm going to be part of the change.
Ross Porter
Hometown: Chester, N.S.
I am interested in family medicine. Especially being a pharmacist, we get to learn all the different diseases and all the different medications that are used to treat the different diseases.
A lot of doctors tell you just to keep an open mind because we're going to be exposed to so many different specialties and something might spark my interest that I might have had no clue existed or that I might not have realized I'd be interested. So I think primarily family medicine is what I'm aiming for, what I'm keeping an open mind and other avenues I'm pursuing would be like anesthesia or hematology.
We hear in the news about more collaborative practice. So working as a team with inner professionals.
If I had a question, I would want to go to a colleague to be able to help seek advice from, especially when I'm starting my career or other specialties. Say there's a psychologist or psychiatrist that also works in that building and it would be nice to be able to talk to them and learn more from them. So, I think, like a lot of new doctors, it may be kind of daunting to be out on your own.
I worked prior as a pharmacist in my home community where I grew up, so I was one of the most accessible health-care providers. So I saw so many patients in my community and saw how important family doctors are and I think my main thing is I just want to help my community and that's something I love to do. It's something I'm good at and just really excited to learn.
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