What inspires me most about working in medicine is the multitudes of kind and smart people I get to interact with daily.
The doctors and administrative staff that contribute to building and maintaining our programs are dedicated individuals who take pride in the work that they do. Being able to work with such individuals is a source of joy in and of itself. In medicine, I found that my work offered me the opportunity to contribute to the greater good.
Working in medicine – especially medical education is complex by nature and is rarely monotonous. My sense is that it takes a dynamic person to succeed in such an environment. Also, my path into this field was not linear in any sense. I had completed a bachelors and master’s degree in Religious Studies, while working within the financial sector before joining the Faculty of Medicine at McGill and now UBC. My sense is that many come into the administrative side of medicine from various walks of life and a focus on transferable skills is really key in entering the field.