Ionescu SCTS fellowship: two milestone years

If you ask me about my passions in life, I will not hesitate to mention cardiothoracic surgery, research and football! Combining and materialising these passions in one day came true during the Birmingham SCTS meeting (March 2016).

I recruited a team of doctors, admin staff and other health care professional from Nottingham Trent cardiac centre, and we went on to reach the final and win the SCTS football tournament in Birmingham, and I must say it felt surreal. A few days later, I received an email from Letty Mitchell, and I was informed that my application for the Ionescu SCTS fellowship was successful and I was awarded £4000 to facilitate my professional development.

It was also the year when I performed my first full CABG case under Mr Richens supervision, a truly inspirational and instrumental trainer, and then my first independent CABG case under Mr Szafranek, my current mentor who has been genuinely passionate about my training and who supported my application for the SCTS scholarship. It was a culmination of many years of dedicated training and learning opportunities in the east midlands region and in the Trent cardiac centre in particular.

Reading and being involved in research has been a passion of mine since my core surgical training days and I aspired to undertake a degree in research. Hence, the natural choice to undertake a part time Master research in applied health studies (DeMontfort University, Leicester). As outlined in the programme handbook, this MRes equips students with a holistic understanding of research, from planning to designing and formulating a research problem within an ethical and professional framework.

Research Designs in Health I learnt about the principles of research design and methods as well as an introduction to research ethics, i.e. how to design a survey. This module has a social element to it, which I found a bit challenging being a surgeon! It was an educational module, which culminated in learning how to write a research proposal as part of an assignment.

Research Dilemmas and Strategies This module focuses on research strategies and philosophical assumptions. It also covers social sciences applied to the health field. I learnt more about the pros and cons of randomised controlled

trials, and their weakness regarding external validity and caution about generalisability of the results to the broader population.

Health Policy and Strategy This was an interesting and very much relevant module. It was an opportunity to learn more about the NHS structure and policymaking challenges in the contemporary era. Understanding the politics, the fiscal aspect and research in the field of healthcare was a core part of this module.

Making Sense of Quantitative and Qualitative Data This module was one of the main reasons I opted for this masters. The module had two main components: qualitative and quantitative. The qualitative part was a bit hard to digest, but there were some learning points there. It was interesting to learn about some ways used in analysing qualitative data, namely thematic analysis, which would be useful in conducting surveys (open questions

surveys in particular). The quantitative part of the module was very educational, and although I had some understanding of statistical methods and different tests used to analyse data, this module provided me with a better understanding of handling data and statistical methods used in analysing data, also, how to report the results using standardised approaches. This was an online module with excellent course material and SPSS datasets of hypothetical and real studies.

Advanced Statistics and Data Analysis This online module built on the previous one. It extended my skills and knowledge of numerical data analysis. It strengthened my knowledge of advanced statistical tests to address research questions with a better understanding of advanced statistical methods, namely multiple and logistic regressions and their appropriate applications.

Thankfully I passed the last assignment this month (July 2018). As part of my dissertation, I am currently working on a research project on simulation training in cardiopulmonary bypass. The project is at the proposal stage and awaiting ethical approval from De Montfort University. We plan to conduct the project in conjunction with the Trent cardiac centre in Nottingham.

Overall, this was an educational degree towards my professional development, and I feel more equipped to conduct and contribute in research in the future. I believe the knowledge that I acquired during this master will help me to contribute to research activities during my upcoming one-year fellowship in Belgium (Genk Cardiac surgery Unit) starting from September 2018, a fellowship with an emphasis on learning more about full arterialisation CABG and robotic surgery.

Throughout this programme, I had overwhelming support from the unit (Trent cardiac centre) and the University of De Montfort, especially doctor Sally Ruane who has been a dedicated mentor. n

It was our privilege to lead the student team at the SCTS Annual Meeting 2018 in Glasgow. This experience provided us with a great opportunity to work behind the scenes with Isabelle and the team and deliver what has been another fantastic conference.

The Student Team is a group of medical students and allied health professionals from across the country. As a collective, the group is responsible for the smooth running of scientific presentations, the large corporate exhibition, symposia and debates. Before the conference, the student team ensures that the venue is ready - this year the student team designed the wonderful SCTS shop with all the fantastic merchandise! Throughout the conference, the student team is split and jobs are delegated. Students maintain the registration area, assist delegates and speakers as they enter the venue, maintain the speaker rooms and nursing forum and assist in the wetlabs, ensuring that they run smoothly. Keep an eye out at the next annual meeting for the student team, in SCTS polo tops, as they’re always happy to help!

Leading the student team was a very immersive experience. We worked very closely with Isabelle, Letty and Tilly and the central conference team. We acted as a bridge between the student team and the conference team ensuring that all aspects of the conference were under control. Not only that, but we ensured that this experience was educational and enjoyable for the student team members. We ensured that each student had an opportunity to attend talks they were interested

Devan & Royce

in and also get some hands-on experience in the wetlabs. We also ensured that during our time, we were able to interact with as many of the student and trainee delegates as possible. This enabled us to engage future surgeons, educating them about cardiothoracic surgery careers and enthusing them with the same passion for the field that we hold.

Working within the student team is a fantastic way to develop both professionally and personally, and is yet another way in which the SCTS engages its student members. From networking with the multidisciplinary cardiothoracic surgical team to developing your own leadership, management and organisation skills, this experience has it all. If cardiothoracic surgery is a career that you are considering, we highly recommend getting involved with the student team. It is the perfect way to meet like-minded people, make new friends, and become part of an evergrowing student network! Take a look at https://sctsed.org/students/ for more ways to get involved. n