Real People: Tom, Anaesthetic Registrar

Fidzbit: Hi Tom. Tell us a bit about yourself and what you do.

Tom: I am an anaesthetic registrar based in Cardiff. I enjoy lots of variety at work, and split my time between operating theatres, the emergency department, intensive care unit and labour ward. This year I have been doing a research fellowship looking at how how blood clots during childbirth and how we can manage patients who bleed more safely and effectively. 

F: What have you been doing during the last ten days to prepare for the coronavirus crisis?

T: Preparation has two main parts.

Firstly, preparing the hospital infrastructure to accommodate large numbers of infected patients, which includes identifying and equipping areas of the hospital which can be used either as isolation wards, or as additional intensive care capacity.

The second part, which I have been more involved with is the training and education of staff. This includes training to safely use personal protective equipment, and manage infected patients who may be very unwell. 

F: What is the atmosphere like when training people for such a critical situation? What is morale like?

T: Clearly there is a lot of uncertainty. People are anxious about what day to day life will look like, and for how long it might be affected. There is a lot of uncertainty about exactly how many patients will require hospital admission or intensive care support. People are anxious about the intensity of the workload that will be required. They are anxious about taking the virus home to their families or becoming very unwell themselves.

But there is also a sense of “we can get through this together” that is remarkable. The usual chains of bureaucracy have been thrown off, and changes to structures, protocols and budgets that would usually take years have occurred in days! We know that for many of us this will be a career-defining period, and are ready to play our part as NHS professionals. 

F: What will a working week look like now? What are your concerns about this?

T: All elective (planned) work has been cancelled which will obviously have a big impact on lots of patients, for example those waiting for knee replacements or hernia repairs. My research has been put on hold so that I can devote more time to patient care. My consultant colleagues are now working resident night-shifts in the hospital, and as trainees we have been reallocated to provide extra cover for patients requiring intensive care. As staff become unwell, the burden on those who are still able to work will likely increase. I don’t really know how many shifts I will be working so it is difficult to know what home life will look like either. 

F: Does being a Christian make a difference at a time like this? How?

T: As Christians we trust a loving heavenly father who cares for us. God is sovereign over the microscopic coronavirus, and this is not a surprise to him. Every aspect of our lives is in his hands. ‘For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord’ (Romans 8:38).

F: How can Christians support front line medical staff like you if we are not allowed out of the house?


T: Pray for us! Text us, call us, ask us how we are doing. Today as a family we enjoyed a FaceTime call with our pastor and his wife which was different but great! 

F: What would you like people to pray for you and your colleagues as things get worse?

T: Pray for safety for us and our families. Pray that we would "love our neighbours” well. Pray for those who are anxious. Pray that we would continue to trust God. Pray that we would be salt and light and that we might show something of Jesus in the way we interact with our colleagues and our patients.  

F: Are there opportunities to speak openly about your faith as an anaesthetist?

T: As anaesthetists, we are extremely privileged to interact with patients often at the most vulnerable points in their lives. Spiritual care is increasingly recognised as an important part of holistic medicine. so I always try to ask critically unwell patients or their families if they would like to see a chaplain or if they have a faith that helps them in difficult times, and sometimes this can spark conversations. I hope that even in small ways I might be distinctive in my attitude and behaviour and that my colleagues would pick up on this and ask why. 

F: It seems daunting now but this will eventually pass. What are your hopes and dreams for when life settles back to normal?

T: One of my colleagues suggested that the NHS is like a hippo - it is usually pretty slow but can move really fast when it wants to. I hope that some of the rapid innovations of this crisis would lead to better patient care and a better working environment moving forwards. I hope that as Christian doctors we look back and see how God provided for us, whatever form that provision may have taken, and that we would be known for our faith in a loving God who holds us in his everlasting arms.

F: Thanks Tom.

Shortly after this interview Tom’s bike was stolen from outside the hospital whilst he was working in the ITU. The story was reported on the BBC and ITV, and in the New York Times. You can read more here: https://fidzbit.blogspot.com/2020/04/true-story-stealing-from-itu-doctor.html