Eastern Training School - the ST1 perspective: Accounts from 3 of our ST1 trainees.

"I am from East Anglia; many of my friends and family live within the region. For me, the East of England deanery was a natural choice for training as I wished to live and work in an area where I was comfortable. Cambridge is a small friendly city, which has the convenience of being close to London. There are good road and rail links from Cambridge to anywhere you may need to go - and Stanstead airport is close making Europe easily accessible. In and around Cambridge you can undertake most sporting, hobby and leisure activities and there is a good range of restaurants.

"With regards to ST1, the Cambridge Histopathology department is friendly, enthusiastic and organised. There are good facilities for training and plenty of opportunities to learn.  The downside to being in Cambridge is:

• Hospital accommodation which is overly expensive, dirty, poorly furnished and poorly maintained;
• Extortionately priced Hospital car parking.

  "Since moving to Cambridge I have amazed myself and anyone who knows me by cycling to work everyday.  However it really is the best way to get around and there is nothing like whizzing along the riverside on a lovely sunny day.  For the weekends there are also some lovely watering holes overlooking the river for refreshments.  I feel the training in Addenbrooke's hospital  is excellent. We were well prepared with a 3-week induction, which included a brilliant post mortem, examination introduction and basic lab teaching with very friendly laboratory staff.  We also attended a fantastic core-training week in Bristol.  Most days I have one to one teaching with a consultant and am given the chance to discuss cases.  The 2 weekly rotations through various sub-specialties have helped me to build a solid base of knowledge and given me confidence to report cases.  This friendly department is well worth a visit!"
 

"Cambridge is known for being one of the centres of excellence. I had spoken to histopathologists where I had previously worked and all of them sang praises of the Eastern School.  I quite like its prime location, being closer to London, making it easily accessible.  I enjoy the relatively good weather (compared to many other places around the country!) and the wide variety of extracurricular activities it offers. For cycling enthusiasts it's the place to be. 

The rotation itself by far, has been stimulating and challenging. The three-week departmental induction programme was the most extensive (in a good way!) and organised ones that I had ever been to. It's exactly what we needed as ST1s.

The 2-week placements in each sub-speciality give a good idea of the common pathology we can expect to come across as a trainee. The workload and level of expertise available is unparallel.  What I liked particularly is that the ST1s are being looked after very well - it's acknowledged that we do exist! We have ST1 exclusive tutorials twice a week, which is a great help for a new starter who might not have a clue what those pink and blue blobs are!   ST1s are always supervised for all activities and our senior SpRs are always encouraging and helpful especially when in a sticky spot.

The technical staff deserves to be mentioned, as they are very experienced and helpful.

Hospital accommodation in Cambridge is one of the worst that I have ever seen. Not recommended.

Parking on site is very expensive. Cycling to work is a good option, which most people seem to do.

On the whole, the rotation has been what I had expected. I have no doubt that my training requirements will be fulfilled."