Introduction

Am I a disabled doctor, or am I a doctor who just happens to be disabled? I have always considered myself the latter, and I am pleased to report that this is how the vast majority of my colleagues treat me.

Medicine was not a prerequisite

I was born with multiple congenital abnormalities, particularly affecting my lower limbs. I was just one year old when my parents took the brave decision to have my feet and ankles amputated. I was walking by my second birthday and have been chasing after my older brothers ever since.

Doing medicine was not a prerequisite in my life: I did not want to try to change the future for others in a similar position. However, it is often said that you like what you know and I did have many happy visits to hospital throughout my childhood.

Self belief and spare legs

I was initially hesitant about applying to medical school because I was unsure if I could mentally cope with a career where anything less than 56 hours a week is considered quiet. Having never required special provisions though school and managing to backpack through India, I decided that my physical condition would not be an obstacle. My self belief was rewarded when I was offered a place at four of the five universities I applied to.

The peak of my medical school experience, as for many doctors, was my elective. I had always wanted to go to an African mission hospital - real hands-on medicine. So I packed a spare leg in bubble wrap, strapped it on to my rucksack, and headed for Kenya.

Advice to others with disabilities

I only have two pieces of advice for others who have disabilities who want to pursue a career in medicine. The first is self belief. If you want to be a doctor and truly believe that you can cope with it, then do it. With determination and, most importantly, your experience and knowledge of your own condition, you will find a way to overcome any problem. You must be honest, however. Think of yourself as a tired doctor, then add in you at your physical worst - would you want to be treated by that person?

Secondly, be honest with your university and colleagues. Be open about your condition and make an effort to confront any problems that you can envisage. There will always be issues that you have not considered, but in my experience these are not insurmountable.

To illustrate, I knew that a potential problem would be running for arrest calls (I can not cover 100 metres as fast as most people). This was acknowledged by my trust but they concluded that my extra delay would not be a problem as the arrest team comes from various parts of the hospital and so arrival is naturally staggered.

STUART FREEDMAN/NETWORK PHOTOGRAPHERS

The Sierra Leone amputee football team in training

Advice to colleagues

Through my undergraduate training and early career, I have encountered a few issues relating to colleagues' treatment of me. From this personal experience, I have put together some advice.

• Feel free to discuss a colleague's disability - it is a matter of curiosity as is being born in a different country or being a bungee jumper. However, do so in private and not too early in the relationship. Get to know them as a person and colleague first.
• Never examine them as if they were a patient. I have met hand surgeons who are obviously interested in my congenital abnormalities who have started examining them while I was standing by the nurses' station. This is inappropriate.
• Try not to overcompensate; although parts of me are made of wood, none of me is bone china. If I need shouting at - shout at me; if I am not pulling my weight - tell me.

A last word from patients...

In contrast, my experience with patients is more upfront but also simpler. When one patient asked me, "So are you a bit of a cripple, doc?" I replied, "Yes, I've always had bad legs," then proceeded with the encounter. I had not taken offence and answered honestly. The patient did not raise it again and proceeded to treat me with respect.

As I was taking a history, another patient said, "'Do you mind me asking? Are you an amputee?" I confirmed that I was, and the patient continued, "Ah, so that is why you sway - sorry, what was it you were asking again?"

In another situation I overheard an elderly patient say, "She's a doctor and she's got a limp and everything." To her the word limp bore no malice or derogatory connotations, it was just a statement of fact.

Jane with her spare leg strapped to her rucksack

... and from me

Being a "disabled doctor" is not an issue for me. I put my legs on in the morning as most of you put on your shoes. It is a curiosity, albeit a medical one - something to be neither highlighted nor ignored: something that just is.


Jane Atkinson senior house officer in intensive care, Western General Hospital, Edinburgh leglessjane@hotmail.com

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