Vincent is now a practising GP in Wellington, but had his two children when he was a house surgeon.
- How does general practice fit in with your family?
Currently my wife has chosen to stay at home with the children. I found my years as a Registrar quite taxing as I was spending less time at home than I had hoped. - How have you fitted in training since finishing medical school?
I chose to delay training. After my wife returned to work after maternity leave with our oldest, I was able to stop working full time, instead becoming a general purpose hospital locum. My wife worked three days a week, and I worked the other two (and evenings, weekends and shifts as available). I was fortunate that I was happy to delay things—those who wish to pursue positions in more sought-after specialties would not have been able to do what I did. - Do you have any advice for doctors-in-training who are thinking about balancing a career and kids?
Have a supportive spouse. Realise that there will always be some degree of compromise. - How has a medical career affected your family?
I still do the odd weekend and evening on-call shifts, so my oldest daughter probably thinks everyone has three jobs and gets called in to work on weekends. My wife is having to consider her work options—if we try to go back to working half time each, the family income will fall. - What support do you get from your family?
Very good support. - How have you managed your training while bringing up a family?
I became a bit of a hermit prior to exams, but otherwise it hasn’t been terrible. But normal GP hours are much nicer than hospital hours. - How did you find the support from your college?
Ok. - What, if any, problems did you encounter when returning to training?
It wasn’t so bad. - If you were just graduating from medical school again, what would you do differently?
I’d go get a non-medical job. Just kidding (sort of). Given the type of medical career I hope to have, I think things have worked out just about right.