Jessica
Originally from Malaysia, Jessica came over to Birmingham for medical school at 19.
Published: 18 October 2017
She was selected from a big pool of applicants from Malaysia to make it to med school in the UK so she’s proud to be through. She’s one of five children in her family - her siblings live between both Singapore and Australia and parents in Malaysia - she is in constant contact with them all. Most of her family are architects, so she considers herself the black sheep of the family!
Jessica lives a life across two continents. She's extremely close to her family and she misses them hugely. They Facetime and Whatsapp constantly and she makes sure she sees them all at least once a year.
In Birmingham Jess has a close-knit group of friends who are almost as good as family, including fellow junior doctor Anna.
She loves spinning classes and cooking in her spare time.
She self-confesses to being a bit ditzy and can get things wrong and muck up at times!
She's warm, open and humble about her 'failings' but at the same time is motivated to be in medicine to help people and give back.
Q&A with Jessica
What was it about being a doctor that attracted you to the role?
I think being a doctor you get to help people. You get to be in a position where you’re able to use a little bit of knowledge and human skills to help the people around you, to make the right decisions for themselves medically. And I think being a doctor is absolutely rewarding and I’m really proud to be a doctor.
Is it something you’ve always wanted to?
I think being a doctor isn’t really something I considered when I was younger because at the time I don’t think I thought I was smart enough be one. It was definitely something that I had to work on - not just in my studies but it’s something I had to build confidence for. It was something that I’ve aspired to be later in my late teens. So I’m very proud to have gone to medical school.
What are the most rewarding parts about being a doctor?
The most rewarding thing for me is when my patients get better and they go home. To know that they’ve gone back to their regular lives - that they’ve got their lives back - you can never put a price on that. That’s the most rewarding thing for me about being a doctor.
And the most frustrating part about being a doctor?
I think the most frustrating is having some problems that you know you can’t solve. Having to accept the fact that sometimes there are things that modern medicine cannot fix. That can be very frustrating.
How has it been having the cameras follow you?
I found it quite strange at first because I’m quite a private person. So having cameras around drew a lot of attention and I’m not used to that. But after a while the staff and patients got used to it and I think it’s a very good way to showcase what doctors do and the nursing staff do. It’s not just doctors who work to help the patients - it’s a team effort. I’m hoping that’s something that the series will show to the public.
Why did you want to get involved?
When I was in medical school, Junior Doctors was something that I watched and I definitely looked up to the doctors that were on the show at the time. And I remember thinking to myself at the time ‘am I going to make it?’ And I think now that I look back, if I could tell myself something at that point in my life I would definitely have told myself not to worry as much and to just take it step by step. And now I’m practising medicine which is something I guess I never thought I could do. And I hope by being on a show like this might inspire other people to do the same.
What do you think viewers will take away from having watched the show?
I hope viewers will understand medicine, understand hospital life from a different perspective. I think before practising medicine myself, the only time I’d ever been to hospital was when somebody I loved was ill. At that point in time I looked at hospital very differently. But now that I’m on the other side, I think my views have changed.
