All Journals from Tehmeena Khan
In the current climate of uncertainty over trainee working conditions and uneasy medical politics, more and more trainees are choosing to take planned time out of training. This is no longer considered an activity that unnecessarily prolongs one’s training, and is generally welcomed by trainees and training programme directors alike.
Introduction: Survey to ascertain views of Acute Internal Medicine trainees regarding their training programme.
Methods: Online survey circulated to higher specialty trainees (HSTs) via the Society of Acute Medicine (SAM), Training programme Directors (TPDs) and social media platforms.
Results: A total of 57 trainees participated in the survey; 43.86% trainees are either ‘happy’ or ‘very happy’ with their training, 10.53% are ‘quite unhappy’ with their training. Trainees enjoy the variety of workload and the variety of specialist exposure.
Discussion: The number of trainees who responded to this years survey was significantly lower than the previous two years. Perhaps this is because trainees feel that there is a lack of change/improvement over time and hence do not feel the need to participate in such a survey.
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The transition from registrar to consultant in medicine is one that trainees feel ill prepared for and can be extremely stressful. We devised the concept of an Acute Medicine “Finishing School” for senior trainees in London training programmes and ran sessions on CV writing, a simulated consultant interview, consultant job planning, responding to complaints and an out of hospital emergency scenario. Our feedback survey indicated that our delegates’ confidence levels in all of the above aspects increased following the sessions. Both formal and informal feedback highlighted the need and appetite for such a course. By ensuring trainees are trained and supported through this transition process, we can ensure the process is a less stressful one.
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We write this letter as doctors and proud members of the Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) community from a South Asian background. Recent Office for National Statistics (ONS) data suggest that the BAME population is disproportionately affected by Covid-19.1 Observations and experiences from within our family and wider community led us to explore how cultural aspects may account for these figures. Both intrinsic and extrinsic factors are likely to contribute to this unfortunate statistic. Intrinsic factors such as pre-existing health conditions and comorbidities e.g. cardiovascular risk factors, diabetes2 and diet are likely to play a role. Extrinsic factors such as living in overcrowded conditions,3 multigenerational households and a large proportion of this population being key/essential workers,4 which are often less likely to be amenable to remote working. Faith also plays a part and the large congregational gatherings in places of worship may add to the risk in this community, as does the tactile nature of greeting in BAME communities.
Purple urine bag syndrome is a potentially alarming phenomenon caused by bacterial metabolism of urinary tryptophan into indigo (blue) and indirubin (red) pigments. We report the case of a 46-year-old female with an ileal conduit who presented with a 2 week history of abdominal pain and purple discolouration of her urine. In addition, we review the literature on purple urine bag syndrome, and identify potential new risk factors and management considerations.
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