My reflections as an ST4/5

Created - 09.10.2022

“So, doctor, are you like a surgeon then?” a slightly anxious patient asks as I consent for what I know is going to be a di¦cult and lengthy escapade to reopen the vessels that supply his left foot.

It is not the first time I have been asked this, and I usually respond with this; “in a way we are sir, think of us interventional radiologists as pin hole surgeons! We treat a variety of conditions using very tiny pin hole incisions in the body”. He gazed up at me and said “Wow, that is incredible!” and I agree with him emphatically.

I am currently 3 months into my ST5 year in interventional radiology (IR). After 15 months of intensive IR training, I can perform a variety of vascular and non-vascular interventions and I am slowly gaining competence in tackling increasingly complex cases. Years 1-3 of core radiology training, were deeply rewarding, especially when I reached the holy grail of finally ‘having my eye in’ for di®erent pathologies. I chose IR as a subspeciality, because as much as I loved being able to recognize and diagnose di®erent diseases on imaging, I couldn’t get away from the desire to ‘intervene’ and do something about the problems I was identifying.

I work in a busy tertiary care hospital where I have an 20/80% split between my time doing diagnostics and IR. 4 days a week in IR can be tough, with long days and we have relatively frequent on-calls. My day usually begins at 7.30am where it’s my job to know the patients, the procedure they are having and any factors that may compromise the ability of the procedure to go ahead. After this board-round, the hours fly by when I get involved in cases with varying levels of supervision from our consultants, depending on our level of competence. There is a mixture of vascular and non-vascular cases. We do on calls from home, and come in for emergencies only. A typical case for on call would be an urgent mesenteric angiogram and embolization in a patient unstable with haemorrhage or a nephrostomy in a septic obstructed kidney.

The balance between work and personal life can be challenging because IR days can be long and there is a lot to learn! As a wife and mother, I find that I have to monitor my time very carefully and prioritize tasks on a daily basis. Outsourcing of more mundane tasks on the Homefront is crucial and being realistic with the amount of work you can get done is so important for sustaining a good work life balance.

For all those considering a career in IR, take advantage of opportunities for a taster week to expose yourself to the scope of IR practice. Getting involved in IR related workshops and conferences will give you insight into this dynamic and evolving speciality. I guarantee that you’ll agree with myself and my patient that IR is indeed an incredible specialty.

Adelola Oseni, ST5 IR trainee, St George’s hospital, London