STP Support – STP Perspectives

New home, new lab, old problems

Hi, I’m Aaron. I’m a first-year STP in histology. I’m also an experienced biomedical scientist in the same discipline. I was working as a biomedical scientist in Northern Ireland when I applied. Northern Ireland is a very cheap country to live in, much more so than England. So you might wonder, why would I move country and uproot my entire life for what amounts to a net pay cut? Opportunity, that’s what. Yet despite all the problems that came with moving I would do it again in a heartbeat.

The STP is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, it’s the main route to becoming a clinical scientist. Being a clinical scientist is a role that combines the joy of science with the clinical aspects of healthcare. To be a clinical scientist is to work in a developing role with constantly expanding scope and opportunity. This is especially relevant to histology where the role of clinical scientists is debated.

When a bubble bath won’t cut it

Hi team! I’m Dawn, (sort of) 3^rd year Audiology STP – I’ll explain that later. I wanted to share my experiences particularly in regard to seeking support for the course with chronic mental and physical health issues, and neurodevelopmental diagnoses. While you might be directed to various support organisations and services, it’s not always clear what each can support you with!

Roundtable Discussion with the Editorial Team – Exploring Mental Health, Work Routines, and Personal Experiences

What’s the most mind-blowing fact you’ve learned during your training?

Estelle – (Microbiology) Some armadillos carry Mycobacterium leprae on their paws.

Leanne – (Biochemistry) before we had hCG blood tests for pregnancy they used to inject a frog with a woman’s morning urine and if it spawned then she was pregnant.

Jess- (Bioinformatics) Bioinformaticians are also known as bioinfomagicians 🪄 (we seemingly do complicated things when in actual fact we just muck around with software and data until it works)

Hannah – (Genetic Counselling) The National Society of Genetic Counsellors Professional Status Survey found that 93% of Genetic Counsellor respondents identified as women, 89% as White, and 89% as straight. This is a statistic from the USA, but it is arguably comparable to the UK. We need to work harder at increasing diversity in the workforce to help tackle inequalities!

Turning Procrastination into Prioritisation

Hi, my name is Maddy and I am coming to the end of my first year in the Microbiology STP. My background is an integrated master’s in biomedical science and a year working as a medical laboratory assistant in an NHS Microbiology lab. When I started the STP I thought I would be at a disadvantage academically, I was surrounded by others with specific microbiology masters, PhDs and years of experience as Biomedical Scientists or other roles in Microbiology. Little did I know that academic knowledge would only get you so far on this course….

Talking about mental illness: this is going to hurt

I want to begin with a disclaimer: I will discuss my experience with mental illness and mental health struggles, and this is very personal and subjective. It was how I felt along this difficult pathway, but I am entitled to express my voice as you are to express yours. Yes, this is going to hurt, as it may sound that nowadays we live in an open-minded society, but we still face stigma and prejudice around mental illness: We still can’t discuss it openly, as people tend to dissociate themselves from those who are hurting psychologically. Also, just because I am writing about my experience does not mean I have my life in order. I can’t pretend to know everything about mental illness and neurodevelopmental conditions, but I am trying to understand more and hopefully I will become more literate in the process.

Since I can remember I always felt slightly anxious and was considered very shy for my age, as I lack social communication and interpersonal skills. I managed to do reasonably well in school, except for my abilities with numerical thinking, and making friends, however I had a special interest for science and scientific facts. Now I know how I passed under the radar: I was able to imitate other girls and what was “socially accepted behaviours” for my age, only raising my voice when I saw the poor and unfair ways that boys treated girls during my pre-adolescence years.

Managing Chronic Illness in Healthcare Science

About Me

Hello, my name is Hannah! I am a first year STP student on the Genomic Counselling programme, but I have almost ten years of experience in healthcare science. This includes over seven years of NHS service, predominantly as a Biomedical Scientist in Immunology.

I am a passionate advocate for mental health and practice as a Mental Health First Aider, combined with being a former Samaritans Call Volunteer and student of counselling qualifications. Whilst I gained invaluable scientific skills as an NHS Scientist, the role didn’t satisfy my desire to interact with and support patients more directly. I was familiar with the STP due to training Biochemistry students on their immunology rotations, and after much soul searching, I decided to commence my own STP journey. I felt that Genomic Counselling could bridge my interest in counselling skills with my scientific background and I was determined to gain the care experience required for my application. I managed to train as a Hospice Care Volunteer and offer emotional support as a Samaritan, alongside my Biomedical Science NHS service work.

The Six Month Survival Guide

Hi, my names Estelle, and I’m a new co-editor here at STP perspectives. I’m currently in my first year of the Clinical Microbiology STP. My studies and work experience have all been in Microbiology and Medical Microbiology.

This blog is about how I’ve survived the first six months of the STP. It will cover:

What sort of challenges you might face
How to utilise your cohort/ colleagues to assist you
Some reminders to take it easy!

Finding your feet in first year!

My name is Leanne and I am a first year biochemistry STP at Wolverhampton – something I am still getting used to saying! When I applied for the STP not one part of me thought I was going to be successful as I was fresh out of university. I decided to apply anyway for the experience, in the hopes I could eventually get onto it. Much to my surprise I was offered a place (very last minute, but that is a story for another time). From the very beginning I heard lots of mention of ‘imposter syndrome’ and I am definitely still feeling this at nearly 5 months in.
For me not only is this a new job, but also a completely new city. I don’t think I had even set foot in the West Midlands, until I came to have a look at the lab once I had been offered the position. It has been a major change for me and something I am still adjusting to. It is natural to miss home and you will have good and bad days. However, I feel extremely lucky in that I have an amazing training officer who made me feel super settled immediately.

STP Support | New Beginnings

First things first – a belated congratulations for gaining a place on this highly competitive training scheme. This is certainly an achievement not to be ignored! You will have had a couple of months acclimatising to the training scheme and your new home. For some of you, this may be the first time you have moved away from home, for others it won’t be, but will still require you to adapt to not only a new job but a new location too. This short post will offer some first-hand tips to aid settling in, now that winter is creeping in and the dark evenings are getting longer.

Let’s take the positives

STP Support | Keeping the balance

This post aims to volunteer some tips for managing your time and workload on the STP… which is no easy feat!! They are the personal views and experiences of a second-year trainee.

A juggling act

During the STP applications process and subsequent acceptance of a training post I was certainly expecting my new role to challenge and develop my time-management skills. However, I didn’t fully appreciate that the role would require the juggling skills of a high-level circus performer.