Ever wondered what it takes to be a medical doctor in training in Mzansi? The Sisters Without Shame received a question from a friend with her sights firmly set on a career in medicine. Gauteng doctor Moratwe Masima is this week’s guest and unpacks the ins and outs of medical internships.
In episode eight of Sisters Without Shame, a friend from the Vaal wonders if she has what it takes to become a medical doctor.
Masima has been a medical intern at the Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in Johannesburg for nine months and shares some words of encouragement based on her personal experience.
“It is so easy for us to doubt ourselves because we always think that we are not good enough for certain things.
“Hard work and having a passion for the job will push you towards the end goal. It is a six-year, seven-year journey and – honestly – the tenacity you will need to get through it… Your intention for practising medicine will be your ticket to the finish line.”
If you want to make it in the medical sector, it is important that you never sell yourself short, she says passionately.
“It’s either that we are not exposed to certain careers, and it is very easy to think that [they] are exclusive to certain people that come from a specific background, or you think you need the financial ability or intelligence for you to go into those types of careers.”
“The purpose of internship is to make sure you are a well-rounded doctor.”
“By virtue of the fact that she got in, that is the first yes that she needed. That is the first confirmation that she needed…that she is good enough.”
‘All still a dream’
Masima admits that she never imagined she would become a doctor. She had her sights set on a career in chemical engineering due to her passion for skincare.
“Being in high school, being a 17, 18-year-old, you’re told that you need to make this big life decision that is going to determine the rest of your life – at such a tender age where you don’t really know who you are.”
But the moment she stepped into the laboratory of Stellenbosch University’s department of medicine and held a human brain and heart, she knew she had found her path.
“I realised that this was exactly where I needed to be.”
“I looked at myself and thought I really needed to choose a career where I could wake up every single day and know that I am super fulfilled, I am happy and I am making a difference in my community and my society.”
She still cannot come to grips with the fact that patients and staff consult her for advice on prescriptions.
“[As an intern you] start working in January. You move from being a medical student, from being in university, not actually realising what you have achieved.”
Internships are like that
Once this new reality hits, government will place you as a South African doctor at a hospital for two years to undergo training.
“You have to do your degree in medicine and surgery. Once you are done with that, you can’t go into private practice yet because you need to complete your internship and your community service.
“The purpose of internship is to make sure you are a well-rounded doctor.
“Every three months we rotate through different disciplines of medicine: from surgery to paediatrics to internal medicine to dermatology. That ensures that, by the end of the two years, you can basically work anywhere in the world. You can open your own practice.”
Listen to Dr Moratwe Masima’s full interview in this week’s podcast.
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