My role is hugely varied, offering new challenges each day. I work across three hospital sites: the new Grange University Hospital, the Royal Gwent Hospital and Nevill Hall Hospital.
Philipa Barnes v2
What does your role involve?
In the Grange, my role is as the first on-call oral and maxillofacial doctor. This is where I work 12-hour day and night shifts. It is my job to see patients attending the emergency department with oral and facial complaints, providing them with treatment and advice where appropriate. If necessary, patients requiring urgent treatment such as those with trauma or airway concerns may require treatment in the emergency theatre. In addition, I am responsible for looking after our patients on the ward. Other days, I may find myself in theatre, assisting in complex head and neck oncology cases, or operating on patients requiting minor oral surgery.
Consultant clinics are also run from both the Nevill Hall and Royal Gwent Hospitals. Here, I assist consultants in seeing patients who have been referred from dentists and GPs by taking a thorough history and planning any further investigations if required. In these sessions, we also see patients who attend for regular review.
How did you get into your role?
I initially started in the Royal Gwent Hospital as a DCT 2. I applied for this role through National Recruitment. Due to the pandemic, the routine interview process was not possible as no face-to-face interview could be arranged. Instead, we all participated in a Situational Judgement Test online and were ranked based on this. All applicants for Dental Core Training 2 could then rank their job preferences and I was offered the DCT 2 post in Newport.
For my DCT 3 year, posts were locally advertised for core trainees. I applied and, after interview, was offered the DCT 3 role.
What do you enjoy most about your job?
Within the job, we are able to work across several sites, on a range of different clinics and surgical lists. I love the variety that this provides, with opportunities to work with the wider OMFS team, as well as with different specialties when working at the Grange. Learning never stops and over 18 months into this role I still feel that I am stimulated and challenged regularly, continuing to progress.
I also think that working within a department with 8 other members of junior staff hugely contributes to the enjoyment of the post. There is a real sense of camaraderie when working through busy shifts and weeks as a team.
Finally, I would say that the role is extremely rewarding. Early on, there is a lot to take on board and it is extremely hard work to ensure that you are keeping up with all of the new information. However, once you start to get the hang of it, the job is extremely rewarding.
What kind of person would your job suit?
I believe that it helps to be hard-working, conscientious and organised as a core trainee in OMFS. As a dentist working in a hospital setting, a lot is new and there will be a lot that you don’t know. Putting the work in early, learning from mistakes and asking for help when you need it all pays off in the long run. Additionally, good communication, both with professional colleagues and with patients, can get you a long way. Finally, shifts can be long and challenging, so having a good sense of humour can really help!