MedSIN-RUMS projects

Healthcare Centre details

 Back to top

Contact at the Centre: Sarah Doak, Centre Manager.

Telephone: 0171 530 5770.

Address: 264 Pentonville Road, London N1 9JY.

The centre is opposite Kings Cross Thames Link Station. (nearest Tube station: Kings Cross St. Pancras).

Appointments

 Back to top

• Students can arrive anytime from 6pm onwards. The centre is open to the public from 7pm to 11pm.
• The advised stay is approximately 2hrs. The centre cannot be responsible for students getting home safely if they leave the centre late at night. Don't be unduly worried though as although Kings Cross is a 'lively' area and can be quite intimidating there are always lots of people around and buses and the tube are easily accessible from the centre.
• The last Tuesday of every month is women's night with a female doctor. These evenings tend to be a lot quieter than the other surgeries.

What do I do if I want to go along?

 Back to top

Phone the centre and make an appointment in the diary, which is kept at the centre reception. Let the centre know that you are a medical student at the RF and UCL Medical School. Preclinical students are welcome as well as clinical students.

Don't forget to call and cancel your appointment if you're unable to attend.

Things to bear in mind

 Back to top

The doctor or nurse will ask the patient if they mind you being in the room and will explain that you are a medical student. Please respect that the patient may say that they do mind, don't be offended, you'll just have to wait outside until the consultation has finished. Most of the time the patients are quite happy for you to stay and it can be quite enjoyable as often they treat you like another doctor instead of a lowly student!!

When sitting in it's probably a good idea to try and sit in the background, after all you are there as an observer and don't want to detract from the consultation or make the patient feel awkward. Taking notes during a consultation is not a problem but save any questions until after the patient has left. I found that all the practitioners were more than willing to answer my questions, you feel a bit rude asking intimate questions about the patients but you learn loads and that's part of the purpose of going so don't worry that you're being too nosey. Sitting in on a consultation makes you realise that you are in an incredibly privileged position as a medical student.

Feedback

 Back to top

I'd really appreciate any feed back on how your sessions went or if you have any problems or questions. You can contact me, Kory Woo (2nd yr. preclin) on:

email: karen.woo@ucl.ac.uk

tel: 0171 515 4750