#ImInWorkJeremy Junior Doctor Christmas Special

Working late but looking great! 

I think it would be hard to find someone more excited and happier this festive season. What a year 2015 has been!  I can hardly believe this time last year I was calling America 'home'.  A Masters thesis was written... Gary the brain cancer cell was born... Many, many adventures were had - so many adventures! And halfway through the year I returned to my little island, and spent a great deal of time feeling like a resident alien on home soil.  But this extra-terrestrial feels a lot like she's come home, whatever that means, even with a bunch of Christmas night shifts.

Zzzzz....

Sometimes I just can't believe how lucky I am to be a doctor.  No matter how much I might miss the relative freedom of research (in terms of planning your own time - not necessarily fewer hours!), the last few weeks in particular have been an absolute joy.  And that's despite a solid dollop of challenging professional situations - flying solo as ward doctor for a week and a half, a number of difficult deaths, countless complicated medical situations to tease apart, diagnose and manage, many 'I don't think your relative is going to make it' discussions, several complex family set-ups to navigate, new procedures to learn, and some really sick people during my Christmas night shifts.  Of course I've not been alone, working with other junior doctors (could you ever meet a more committed, fun, all-round awesome bunch of people?) and nurses, and of course the awesome consultants for whom I've been working - no matter how miserable the situations we've had on the ward, we've found a way to laugh ourselves silly everyday and I'm learning an enormous amount. Surely the wonderfulness of working in a hospital is exemplified at Christmas time - no-one is grumbling when they're leaving late on Christmas eve, and no-one is whining when they arrive for their 13 hour shift on Christmas morning.  What a special place to work!

Christmas, honest!

A key part of this is clearly balancing your life outside of work too, and on that score I *think* I'm finally getting the balance right.  From art galleries to string quartets, climbing walls to more than a few mulled wines, I am so lucky to have friends old and new with whom to share these adventures.  I started the year a scientist in America, and I finish it a doctor in the UK - and the life that has embellished that transition has been a rollercoaster of a ride.

I am celebrating Christmas and New Years with a stethoscope around my neck, working my way through the holiday season with many other junior doctors, consultants, nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, radiographers and many other hospital workers.  In the nicest possible way, I hope I don't see you - instead, I hope you're sharing some good vibes with the people you love.  Merry Christmas and a Happy Hogmanay!