Very few people carry the burden of the NHS on their shoulders, or should we say, on their heads. The Med Reg tops the list when it comes to this category of heroes. This post is dedicated to all the “Medical Registrars” in the NHS, we see you. Well Done!
If they’re not looking grumpy, they’re either sad or depressed, at least, the males. The females are usually not too tall, not too masculine (that’s for Surgical Registrars) and not too nice either. If that’s your perspective of a medical registrar- and surgical registrars*, here I am to say you’re wrong! Very wrong.
For starters, the Med Reg is thought to be a walking encyclopedia of guidelines. Lol.
What to do when the sats of a patient are down? Call the Med Reg. What to do when a patient develops sudden onset seizures? Bleep the Med Reg. What to do when the PR bleed on the surgical ward develops upper GI bleed, get the Med Reg. And when the MET call goes out, here comes the Med Reg and their SHOs and FY1s. Just kill the bloody Med Reg with bleeps already.
In an ever-busy, multi-specialty driven NHS, I think this set of people get the least credit for the amount of work they put in. From calls from the GP about that “chesty patient” to bleeps from the Surgical team for “urgent review”, all the way to A and E demanding that you come and be a permanent resident in their department, the Med Reg is practically an octopus, just that he has 87,5022 hands literally.
How one person manages to handle such amount of responsibilities never ceases to make me laugh. Maybe that’s why they usually have that “tired” look. But, beneath that look is a human being with a heart of gold, a brilliant mind and a selfless sense of service. To make matters worse, night shifts and weekend-on-calls can be a complete nightmare, and the Med Regs still manage to attend to those referrals in record time, albeit as politely as they can, without losing their ****.
From all of us in the NHS, we say, Med Regs, well done guys.
From the many ABGs to ECGs that you’ve helped us “cast an eye”, to the many “are you happy for me to refer this patient to you” that you’ve patiently heard us say over the phone. And when the Med Reg gives advice, trust the Obs and Gynae FY1 to write “as instructed by the Med Reg…“
Sigh.
To quote a very amazing writer @Obiora Oji, “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake, you will not be Med Reg forever“.
Dr. Femi Osunlusi
EnGw 