Written by on November 3, 2021

Meet Medic Student Mira Patel

Authors . Health . Media . Society . Student life

Fact File

Mira Patel being lovely
  • Name: Mira Patel 
  • Age: 21 
  • Ethnicity: British Indian/Portuguese 
  • Location: London 
  • Occupation: Tutor & Vaccinator 
  • Education: 3rd year studying medicine at King’s Collage 
  • Star Sign: Leo 
  • Hobbies: Mira enjoys most sports but especially Football and Cricket, Going to rooftop bars and trying different foods at stylish restaurants 
  • Relation: Friends of 11 years 
  • Favourite drink: Mojito 

Life as a Med Student

The Mental Ward visit: One of the requirements Mira must meet for her degree is practice or exposure to different spaces Doctors work in or frequently visit. In this case, she had visited the Mental Ward. She had actually mentioned that this part of her curriculum is fairly new and wouldn’t have existed 5 or 6 years ago in the UK; she believes these efforts are meant to make mental health more visible to those working in health. 

To her the Mental Ward was probably one of the most ‘unsettling’, ‘surreal’, ‘shocking’ & ‘impactful’ placements she had done due to lack of previous experience with patients that have mental health complications; Specifically, this stood out to her when comparisons are made between classroom and practice. In lectures, she would learn far more about physical symptoms and understand those scientifically. She had the realisation that Mental health cannot always be approached the same way in this part of the hospital. 

When talking to some of the patients at first they seemed rather stable, but as discussions went on she realised how quickly some mental health conditions deteriorate. This made her make an upsetting realisation as to why it is so common that mental health can go undetected or misunderstood: She stated; Mental Health is a mostly invisible health problem. 

Relationship with COVID/Vaccination: Being a Medical student in the UK meant Mira was entitled to the vaccine much earlier than most. Now in her current year of study, she works at a pharmacy where she vaccinates all sorts of people. At first, she felt a sense of pride giving a helping hand towards the pandemic, she felt quite sentimental after each patient as now with their jab they would be less likely to have severe symptoms or even die; she would see new stories when she would get back home from work that would mention the increasing number of vaccines given and feel good about what she was doing. However, as the months went on and the fear or mistrust of the vaccine became more apparent to her as well as the relaxed attitudes to COVID in Britain began to undermine the novelty she once felt. She does not particularly blame people for being tired as she is also tired! 

Other pluses as a Vaccinator: 

  •  When the vaccine first rolled out, patients were very appreciative and thankful, sometimes they would give gifts to Mira and her colleagues; It emphasized how rewarding the job was for her to see such positive reactions. 
  • It was a first real step into the NHS (National Health Service); It felt more helpful than with the placements she would do with the university as those would mostly be about observing other Doctors. 

Final thoughts on future professions: Mira is not entirely sure which sector she would like to work in however she is siding with being a doctor at a GP which she mentioned is quite a common path for most medicine students; around 50% of medical students choose it. Her reason for leaning towards a GP position is that other more specialised positions require a lifetime of dedication and this doesn’t feel completely right for her. She believes being a Surgeon, Nurse or Junior Doctor are very tiring occupations time-wise, mentally and physically and then on top of that, you do not really see many economic benefits of all those efforts in Britain. She admires those who are able to do those jobs but would much prefer a position that can fit in with other things she enjoys in life, a calmer 9 to 5 with a more long term patient/doctor relationship, where she can help people with small medical problems or detect potentially serious health issues in advance feels far more fitting.