As a forewarning, I have absolutely nothing against cheddar.

I have heaps of respect for the 'mature' medics that I come across every so often. Although  I think that describing them as such makes them sound like a particularly strong cheddar, there's something really admirable about embarking on a degree later than the average student (particularly having already studied, worked full-time, travelled for several years or had children). Their extra years of 'life' experience got me thinking, is it necessary  (or even fair) to ask young people to choose the 'right' GCSEs or A-Levels and, therefore, make career choices at such an early age?

I'd hope that the majority of you would agree that five or six years is a pretty long time to be at university. Just three years in and it's only now that I've discovered that I picked my future career at sixteen. Sixteen! I'm not saying I regret it. In fact, I'm proud that my sixteen year old self was switched on enough to make such a brilliant decision. Nevertheless, I was still pretty young. By seventeen, I was preparing for that question in medical school interviews - 'So Chantal, why do you want to study Medicine?' Aged twenty-one, I'm asking myself that question again. I think my answer is more well-informed now. And by the time I'm a retired GP/Surgeon/Beyonce impersonator, I'm sure that answer will have evolved into something beyond my wildest imagination. 

I see the similarity, even if you don't.
(Source: http://iam.beyonce.com/)

One of my best friends often says, 'We're all just products of our environment.' I think she has a point, your experiences guide you and affect your outlook in all areas of your life. I've had little clinical exposure so far but from the few patient interactions I've had I feel like I'm going down the right path. Professional guidelines advise Doctors to always put the patient first. In 2010, the NHS enshrined this in the slogan 'Nothing about me, without me' (Source: Equity and excellence: Liberating the NHS). I completely agree with this. Shared decision-making is and will continue to be the way forward.  But funnily enough, there is a 'me' enshrined in the word 'Medicine' and I think it's easy to forget that. That 'me' initially wanted to do Medicine for one or two seemingly decent reasons and I hope that as I grow older, more experienced and (hopefully) more knowledgeable those reasons will increase in number and potency.

*Notice how I never tell you what my 'reasons' are - if all else fails, I'll have a go at being a politician.