www.mddus.com
PASSION: Dr Jane Simpson (back row, third from right) with her team the London Corinthians
BIG LEAGUE: Jane visits FC Barcelona’s home at the Nou Camp
patients a day with different problems can be mentally and physically draining. “What I very much enjoy about it, though, is
the continuity of care, getting to know people and families.”
Combining passions After completing her specialty training, Jane took six months out and travelled to South East Asia - taking in Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand - giving her time to think about where she wanted her medical career to go next. “I was already aware of the sports medicine and exercise masters at Queen Mary University, London, and applied as soon as I came back. It’s a full-time course over one year, which started last September. I received a training bursary from Arthritis Research UK to help with the fees, which I am very grateful for. “I am loving every second of the course as it
brings together my lifelong love of sport with my medical career. The course at Queen Mary University is the longest standing of its kind in
the UK, so the people who come to lecture are top quality. I’ll be honest, it hasn’t always been easy - the musculoskeletal part of the course in particular has been tricky, and also the research based aspect - it’s a very evidence based course, but this has been very enlightening and encouraged me to look at things differently. In particular, I find the football medicine module very interesting, which is taken by the doctor for Arsenal.”
Balancing her part-time work as a locum with study does not leave much time for playing sport, but that’s not holding Jane back. “Football is the one sport I would play in the snow, wind or rain,” she laughs. “I started playing again this year for a local team, the London Corinthians.” And just last week she began work as a
doctor for Millwall FC Academy, an under-21s men’s team in the English second league. “The job came about through the sports medicine and exercise course,” she says. “So far it’s just great, there are really experienced physios there so I know I will learn a lot, and I’m providing
emergency pitch-side treatment, which means I’m there watching all their games.” As for the future, Jane hopes to continue as a part-time GP and, once she has finished her masters course, take up a clinical role at a football club. She says: “Every GP is different and I imagine the majority will look for a specialty or something different they can do alongside their practice. It’s definitely worth looking for graduate courses available in things you are interested in - you can study all sorts of subjects which could take your career in another direction entirely.”
Link: • Find out more about Arthritis Research UK’s training bursaries at
www.arthritisresearchuk.org/ health-professionals-and-students
Rowan Morrison is a writer based in Edinburgh
PHOTOS: DR JANE SIMPSON
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