Students were treated to a fascinating insight into Dr Dixon’s career journey, what his role entails and the reality of a career in medicine.
Students from across the Senior School had the unique opportunity to hear from, and put questions to Dr Dixon. Currently primarily based at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, he specialises in obstetrics and gynaecology working at five different sites, and, despite having stopped counting, estimates to have delivered around 4000 babies.
After graduating from The University of Manchester, Dr Dixon spent 11 years training in London. Our aspiring medics were inspired to hear of his journey, which included medical school rejections, volunteering in Madagascar and moments of wanting to quit altogether before finding his specialty. He now describes his work load as being made up of clinic meetings, admin, emergency and consultant work, describing his focus as 90% gynaecology and 10% obstetrics, emphasising that every day is different! The varying day to day is one of his favourite parts of the job, and shared that if he had to choose again, he would continue to choose to work in medicine, being surrounded by a great team, full of challenges and learning and a job satisfaction like no other.
Dr Dixon also spoke about the drawbacks of a medical career, such as work-life balance, antisocial hours and upsetting outcomes, as well as how he deals with these. Additionally, he discussed the ethics that surround the role and moral questions that can come with this, exploring topics such as balancing foetal and maternal health, end of life decisions and prenatal screenings. But ultimately, his emphasis lay in the benefits and job satisfaction he receives.
Dr Dixon’s expertise spans laparoscopic and hysteroscopic surgery, as well as robotic surgery. The girls listened intently as he explained different pros and cons and how the future of surgery is shifting towards robotics, with government backed reports and NHS initiatives predicting that 90% of keyhole surgeries will involve robots by 2035.
At Sydenham High, we believe it is vital to equip students with the skills and inspiration to discover their own passions and paths. Even more so, the importance of discussing stigmatised subjects and advocating for better conversations around female health.