thriving as a junior
recommend recent articles from Triple Helix 10 and the Medical Protection Society. 11
necessities for personal and spiritual survival Maintaining your personal relationship with God is the cornerstone to surviving and thriving through all of life’s challenges, and the foundation years are no exception. Jesus promises, ’if you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you’. 12
Though
each of us has different ways to maintain our relationship with God, we need to think how we can continue them while working. Saunders emphasises the importance of making time with God a time to be rather than to do. 13
It’s a time to be you and to remember
who you are in God’s grace. Regular quiet times can be difficult to maintain and you may need a more flexible approach. Quick ‘arrow’ prayers are a lifeline during busy days, for example while walking to another ward, chasing results or even while going to the loo! You can also use this time to read the Bible, even via your phone. You can pray through your patient list while travelling to work, which has the added advantage of helping you to remember who they are! It is vital that you develop and maintain a
network of Christian fellowship. The readers of Hebrews were encouraged not to give up meeting together. 14
If moving somewhere new,
try to settle into a church quickly – but keep contact with your established Christian friends so you can support each other. Our work offers many opportunities to
witness for Christ in behaviour, attitude to work and through speaking to people about the hope that we have. This may be as simple as mentioning church to colleagues when asked about your plans for the weekend. We are
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encouraged by the GMC to provide holistic care, which includes spiritual beliefs, so we needn’t be afraid of sensitively discussing spiritual issues with patients’ consent (do read the GMC guidance). 15
Ultimately the most important
thing is to pray for opportunities to speak to others about Christ – a prayer that God is longing to hear and very keen to answer! The most obvious personal challenges
are those of physical and mental exhaustion. Although juniors work fewer hours than previously, work can be higher intensity. In most jobs you will work a shift pattern. On call shifts provide good clinical experience, but can make maintaining a social life and fellowship more difficult. Flexibility is key to coping. You may need to reduce your commitments, but keeping up some hobbies is important in tackling both physical and mental stress. Our physical needs are important to God. Jesus himself often withdrew to be alone to pray, 16
and God provided for Elijah’s physical needs as a priority. 17 It’s easy to forget to eat
and drink enough, with a long list of jobs to do and people demanding attention. Learn to recognise the signs that you need a break, like irritability. Very few jobs can’t wait for ten minutes, and you will work much more effectively when refreshed. Starting work has the potential for a significant change in lifestyle. There is an opportunity or temptation to reinvent yourself; both positively, as we find new ways to witness to others, and negatively, with the potential to slip into bad habits. It can be easy to follow those around us who have very different world-views to our own, especially if we are tired, lonely or struggling spiritually. Our walk with God and Christian fellowship are important in encouraging us to continue to imitate Christ in our new role.
SUMMER 2011
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