A healthy approach to volunteering

Dr Ben McFadden qualified in 2010 from the Brighton and Sussex Medical School (BSMS) with a Bachelor of Medicine Bachelor Surgery degree (BM BS). He is currently a foundation year 2 doctor starting his first rotation in general practice.

As an undergraduate, Ben was an active volunteer in BrightMed – an outreach programme to encourage local students from non-traditional backgrounds to consider a career in medicine. Despite the famously hectic schedule of medics, Ben explains why volunteering has always been important to him.

“I’ve always been a keen volunteer. I find it rewarding and the experience provides me with new skills that I have found very useful in my career, most notably communication skills. It’s a great feeling to give something back to the community and looks great on any CV. I have volunteered my time mostly in teaching. Over the years I have produced several teaching sessions for students who are keen to go to medical school as part of the BSMS outreach programme, BrightMed.

“This programme allows students to come to BSMS once a month to learn more about a career in medicine and finally to help them write their personal statements to a standard good enough for interview. My role was producing teaching sessions on medical topics such as anatomy, clinical skills and physiology.

“From this I volunteered my time in BrightMed’s sister programme, BrightWams (a student-led outreach programme promoting educational awareness in the local community). BrightWams took BrightMed out into the community, visiting primary schools to introduce the concept of university and education to the older year groups. Again, I produced and delivered simple interactive sessions based around the human body.

“Volunteering has opened many career doors and opportunities. My work with BrightMed and BrightWams has not gone unnoticed and I have been asked to deliver lectures at work and for my fellow medical student colleagues. It has certainly improved my confidence when speaking in public. I have formed close friendships with influential academics and senior doctors who have all been a tremendous help throughout my first year as a doctor.

“Last year I did a lot of work on safety in the workplace based on a special study module I had done at BSMS, Safety Guardians. My work was noticed by several members of the safety team and the chief executive. I was invited to talk about my achievements at the chief executive’s meeting, which I was nervous about but it felt amazing to know my achievements had been recognised.

“My most rewarding experience has been being invited to host the annual BSMS Christmas lecture in 2010. It was an amazing privilege to have been asked to give such an important lecture in the BSMS calendar. It was great fun and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. It was lovely to come back to where I had started my training in 2005.”

Ben is an active  member of the BSMS Alumni Advisory Board which was established to inform alumni activity for the medical school. To get involved, please contact alumni@bsms.ac.uk.