Chapter Twenty Nine - "The Future Starts Here"

Here I am in Birmingham, having just started my third week on elective placement. Looking back over the past two weeks I have found the elective period to be an enjoyable and beneficial experience, preparing me for work in an eventual job. Not as scary as I thought.

However, before I started my placements there was the small matter of feedback on my portfolio to date. This would provide direction for this final clinical block, and highlight any necessity to obtain particular examination competencies. I sincerely hoped that I had acquired enough evidence of competencies to allow me to graduate. On the positive side, I knew that my tutor had said that I demonstrated a wide range of skills across the board. But negatively, I was aware that I had gained less ticks (if any) for some examinations. The clavicle, for instance. Was I being too hard on myself? I would have the result soon.

While I was helping out with an open day, with my lecturers around, I took the opportunity to ask about when I might be able to read my feedback. I was told that I would receive an email soon. When it arrived I opened the attachment, fearing the worst. Rather than knocking me down, however, the comments were encouraging, and it had been decided that I had demonstrated “competencies in most areas” and that the portfolio could merely be enhanced by future evidence (particularly clavicle projections). The tone of the feedback suggested that I had done enough, at least. I could go into my first week of electives without pressure, although I was worried that my skills would by hazy, considering that I hadn’t practised since December.

As I passed my first week on placement, including my first ever late shift, I began to realise that I was more capable than I realised, and a lot of the projections that I had been afraid of were actually very straight forward. It was a very profitable five days, and would set me up for the weeks ahead. When I went home on Friday evening, I certainly hoped I would have the chance to return there one day.

I spent my second week on placement at a different hospital. I had been invited to visit by a church friend, who had never had the opportunity to see me work let alone directly supervise me. Working alongside someone I knew outside of the career environment gave this period of placement a different feel. It was nice that he understood my requirements, having gone through the same things himself. He said I was the best student he had ever supervised. Although I was also the first student he had supervised - no other student from our university had ever been on placement there (at least not to my knowledge). Although I had originally planned to spend a whole week at this hospital, as with week one, various events meant that I could not attend on Tuesday or Thursday.

Tuesday was the Graduation Ceremony for last year’s students in my faculty. The choir had been preparing for this occasion since the beginning of the term, and I didn’t want to miss out. I remembered the last one we did, in the Royal Festival Hall – the atmosphere was amazing! As I watched the graduates processing in their gowns – blue and grey, or black and gold – I envisaged our year walking up, and I imagined the cheers that would come from the crowd on our special day. I hope no-one trips up! Just before I left to go home, I got talking to one of the musicians, having been told that she was doing the same subject as me - it turned out that she was in her second year. It was good to hear that she was enjoying it, although she was currently working on her dissertation, which was bound to be stressful. It made a change meeting a fellow coursemate outside of the hospital environment; if only I had been introduced sooner. Better late than never.

I took Thursday away from placement with a job interview. Having had previous experience on placement at the hospital, I felt I had an advantage going into the interview; they knew how I worked, and liked me. As I was waiting to be called in it was nice to be welcomed back by the staff passing in the corridor! They were running late, but at least the interviews were only fifteen minutes. I had prepared for something closer to thirty minutes in length, and I didn’t get a chance to say much of what I had prepared. I had to be myself.
Back to the present, I am grateful for all the prayers that have gone into the interview and the conclusion of my studies. I can’t believe I only have three more weeks left. How time flies! I should know whether I have been successful in the interview by the end of this week. I remain confident, and I look forward to what life has in store for me as I finish university.

The future starts here.