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Archives for January 2012

Junior Doctors: First Week Diaries (part two)

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Sarah Maycock Sarah Maycock | 12:15 UK time, Tuesday, 31 January 2012

If you caught the first episode of Junior Doctors last week, you'll know it was a nail-biting introduction to what promises to be a dramatic second series!

We followed Aki as he performed his first ever chest-drain, admitting to his patient that he'd not carried one out before. We hid behind our cushions as Andy failed to insert his first cannula - not once but three times! In his own words, "Yes he cannula! Oh wait, no he can't!" We saw Amieth work tirelessly to try to save a woman in cardiac arrest and felt for Milla as she was called to certify a death on her first shift.

This week is guarenteed to be even better as we meet the next half of the Junior Doctors. Below you can read their first week diary entries to find out how they got on:

Ben says...

The first day on the wards was a real baptism of fire. I was thrown straight in at the deep-end when a nurse called me over because a baby who'd just been operated on looked really sick. It was hard to try and appear calm, whilst panicking inside. I did the basics and then called for the extra support I needed. Thankfully it all worked out ok, but a scary thing to have happen on your first day in a new job!

I find working with kids much more exciting and interesting than working with adults. The other day a kid came in who was so scared of needles that he wouldn't let us anywhere near him. He was shouting and screaming on the ward, his parents were trying to hold him still, the play specialist was trying to distract him - it was a nightmare! Taking blood is so much easier with adults; you can practically throw the needle in from the end of the bed.

The set up at Chelsea hospital is great, I get time each week to practice surgical skills on a simulator, and then get an opportunity to put them into practice for real later in the week. I'm really looking forward to spending more time in theatre over the next few months, but right now though I'm knackered, and will just be glad of the weekend off.

Lucy says...

Lucy Hollingworth

The most difficult part so far is feeling that I know so little; making that mental transition from student to doctor feels surreal and is a steep learning curve. You suddenly expect more from yourself – and so do your patients.

Until now my biggest challenge has been finishing on time. I just can't leave knowing that I could have done more.

I'm definitely glad the first week is over – I've never looked forward to a weekend so much in my life! My advice to any others starting a new job would be to take your time, have a go, and after thinking hard, ask for help when you need it.

Priya says...

Priya Mangat

That first day in the hospital meant a lot to me; it was the beginning of a big new chapter in my life. My team are lovely and even let me get involved in theatre on my first day which is pretty rare. At the end of the day my registrar said to me, "Good job, you did well today". I felt a real sense of achievement!

I had an embarrassing incident the other day where I had to cannulate somebody late at night so it was quite dark on the wards. The name of the patient was quite ambiguous so I was addressing them as 'sir', but when I got closer I realised it was a woman! The patient was quite drowsy so I don't think they realised.

The worst part about my job is the long hours. I thought living in Chelsea would make it easier to see my friends. Some of them live only 10 minutes away, but after a long day at work I’m just too tired to see them.

Sameer says...

Sameer Bahal

One of the hardest things I found in the first week was getting your head around your patients and remembering things such as the different allergies they have.

There was one embarrassing moment on my first day where I had to ask the Radiology department to do a scan. When I got there they grilled me and asked me loads of questions that were difficult to answer. I'd only officially been a doctor for an hour so didn't know much about the patient. It was awful.

During the first week I've started to get to know my colleagues. In the weeks ahead I'm looking forward to getting to know the patients and following them through their journey through hospital.

Junior Doctors: Your Life in Their Hands is on Tuesday 31st January at 9pm

Britain's Gay Footballers

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Amal Fashanu Amal Fashanu | 14:45 UK time, Monday, 30 January 2012

"I could never have wished or prayed for a better brother or friend." Looking down at me, through heavily strained eyes, I watched my father, and ex premiership footballer, John Fashanu struggle to speak these words about my late uncle Justin.

It was the culmination of a deeply personal and draining journey for me, looking back at Justin's legacy as Britain's only ever openly gay professional footballer as part of the documentary Britain's Gay Footballers (tonight, 9pm).

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John and Justin were born and raised in the UK, living with foster parents for a significant period of their youth. John grew up with a speech problem and to him Justin wasn't just an older brother. He was also his confidante, best friend and role model.

Sadly, as their lives developed and they both became professional footballers, their relationship became strained. Most significantly in 1990, when Justin took the radical, but very courageous decision to "come out" openly in the press with his homosexuality.

Prior to this, Justin had been a genuine star. In 1981, at the age of 19, he was signed by the then-mighty Nottingham Forest FC, as the first "million pound" black footballer. His career didn't take off as it should have, but this never affected our relationship. To me he was an extraordinarily kind, loving and charismatic uncle. The day he tragically took his own life in 1998 will never leave me.

Amal Fashanu

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Making a documentary about homophobia in football was always going to be deeply emotional for me. I hoped it would add fuel to a campaign my uncle never had a chance to ignite - for equality and acceptance within football, on both professional and grassroots levels.

When I began this journey, I had a very clear image of where this journey would lead. I imagined discovering the prejudices Justin was exposed to at the hands of colleagues, and expected to find a more progressive and accepting mentality in football today.

On the latter count, I was disappointed. Meeting a whole range of people, I learned how football has failed to keep pace with wider society. Football has changed since Justin's death, but frankly not enough. Gay footballers remain a taboo, and second to that taboo is a straight footballer being seen to support the idea of openly gay players. Despite approaching dozens of players for interviews, my producers and I were constantly rebuffed.

An interview with the FA showed that active steps are in the pipeline to try and eradicate homophobia, alongside other forms of discrimination. The FA is working with grassroots organizations like the Justin Campaign, which I'm involved in, to aid their efforts.

But this doesn't disguise how much more needs to be done to create the conditions for gay players to feel happy about coming out openly. It's the very least Justin's courageous legacy deserves. As one of his friends put it, "Justin Fashanu was a bright shining star - not a flawless star - but a star nonetheless."

Britain's Gay Footballers is on Monday 30th January at 9pm.

More information:

Have you, or someone you know, been affected by the issues raised in this programme? Click here for information and support.

Strictly Soulmates: What happened next...

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Jaine Sykes Jaine Sykes | 21:57 UK time, Thursday, 26 January 2012

Katy

Did you catch Strictly Soulmates tonight? The show follows people of different faiths looking for their perfect partner - you can catch up on iPlayer if you missed it.

Tonight's episode saw Katy, an evangelical Christian, searching for love and meeting Jake, a fellow Christian who lived in California. By the end of the episode, they'd made their relationship official on Facebook and Katy was planning to visit Jake in America.

But the question we were all asking ourselves was, "What happened next?" Did Katy go over to America after the cameras stopped rolling? Are she and Jake still together? We caught up with Katy yesterday... in California!

Katy says...

It's the 24th January and I'm sat in Jake's house watching TV. After finishing filming Strictly Soulmates I decided to come and visit Jake here in California so that we could get to know each other better.

I've been here almost a month now and we've had tons of fun visiting Disneyland and the Grand Canyon, and I've got to meet all of his family and friends.

Unfortunately the relationship didn't work out quite like Jake and I expected, but we've managed to stay really good friends. It's been good to get to know him better without cameras and microphones and just us anyway. Jake had to fly back to California from England a week after we met so we didn't really get a chance to get to know each other properly during the filming.

So now I'm getting ready to head back to England in a couple of days. I'm excited to get back to my youth work and see my family! I'll be sad to leave Jake and his family though; they have been really good to me here. But I'm sure we'll all keep in touch, and Jake will always be welcome to visit me in Manchester anytime!

Awww, the course of love doesn't always runs smooth! We'd love to hear what you thought of Strictly Soulmates, so leave us your comments below.

Strictly Soulmates continues every Thursday at 9pm.

Junior Doctors: First Week Diaries

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Sarah Maycock Sarah Maycock | 16:24 UK time, Tuesday, 24 January 2012

It's been a long time coming, but finally Junior Doctors is back! And believe me, it's worth the wait.

Earlier this month, we introduced you to our new set of Junior Doctors. But what does it feel like to start your first week as a Junior Doctor? Those watchful eyes glaring over your shoulder, those suspicious patients eyeing you up... they're fresh out of medical school, but are they raring to go or wanting to turn and run away?

We take a glimpse at the diaries of Aki, Amieth, Andy and Milla to find out:

Aki says...

I'm enjoying being busy. Unfortunately everything I do seems to take three times longer because you don't know how to do it. My senior reassures me that he feels comfortable working with me though I don't want this to get to my head.

I've already made my first mistake when a doctor from an insurance company rang me up to ask about a patient. I got told off because I nearly gave patient information away. I won't be doing that again!

Over the next few weeks I'm really looking forward to getting stuck into my role as "Mess President." I'm the guy in charge of organising the social side of doctor life (and the coffee machine). I can't wait to get everyone together and enjoy their company outside the wards!

Aki's Big Break

Amieth says...

Amieth Yogarajah

Unlike some of the other Junior Doctors, on the first morning I didn't get to the hospital super early. I got lost in the building, making it through the doors with only 20 seconds to spare. Not a good start!

Within days of starting I was working on nights. Being quieter than the dayshift you get a chance to chat with your colleagues and get to know them. I've already had a year of hospital experience so this first week hasn't come as a massive shock.

I think my biggest challenge in A&E will be distinguishing between the 'worried well' and the genuinely unwell people. What's the best bit about my new job? The pay rise that comes with being a second year doctor!

Andy says...

Andy Steval

One of the best things about being a doctor rather than a student is feeling like you're useful for the first time. The worst part is being knackered from not getting enough sleep!

During my first week, I accidentally left my pager in the pocket of my scrubs whilst in theatre. Somebody bleeped me and it carried on beeping for half an hour but because I was in surgery, I couldn't switch if off. For half an hour all you could hear was a really loud beeping sound coming from my pocket. Fortunately the surgeon was pretty chilled out about it and didn't seem too bothered!

Right now I'm looking forward to our first end of month hospital party. It should be good to get the chance to go on a night out with all of the housemates. Talking about the house, Ben and I have bonded over our love of toiletries - strangely we both use the same hair gel, aftershave, and toothpaste. What can I say - we are both men of taste!

I'm still not used to the long hours. By the time I get home from work there's just enough time to eat and then it's time for bed. I'm relieved the first week is over - it feels like I've survived a milestone.

Milla says...

Milla Marinova

On the way to my first night shift I felt all kinds of emotions - I thought about how I might cope if a cardiac arrest call came in during my first five minutes on the job. Luckily it didn't. For the whole night I was running purely on adrenaline! It was so stressful - bleep after bleep after bleep after bleep...it was so loud that my patients would wake up.

At the end of the first shift all I could think was 'wow - what a night!' I think I saw between 40-50 patients and I felt such a surge of relief and pride that I'd coped with everything thrown at me. It's scary to think how much responsibility we actually have - a few clicks on a computer, and somebody will be given the drugs that you've prescribed.

One of the best parts of my job is getting to work with an incredible team. The responsibility that comes with looking after patients is great too and it's really rewarding when they ask you for advice.

Come back next week to read Ben, Lucy, Priya and Sameer's first week diaries.

Junior Doctors: Your Life in Their Hands starts on Tuesday 24th January at 9pm

60seconds Sam: The Sex Season health check

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Sam Naz Sam Naz | 11:55 UK time, Monday, 16 January 2012

From virginity, to websex, to sex addiction. We've tackled it all in our Sex Season and now that we're halfway through our series of programmes on Â鶹Éç Three, I thought it would be a good time to take a look at how our sex lives have affected our health. And I start with some good news...

Last summer, it was revealed that there'd been a drop in the number of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in England. For the first time in over a decade there'd been a 1% fall in STIs, which the said was a small, but significant step in the right direction. They reckon it's down to better awareness and increased screening of diseases.

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Sexual Health

In fact, another report by health experts pointed out that 1.5 million young people visit clinics dealing with STIs every year. However, the also said STIs mostly affect people under the age of 25. It suggested that alcohol and sexual risk-taking were linked and recommended that health services should warn young people about the dangers of getting drunk.

When it comes to STIs, cases of chlamydia, which can cause infertility in the long term, are by far the most common. The found that 63% of young people diagnosed with an STI had chlamydia. Worryingly, most men and women with the infection don't have any symptoms so it can go unnoticed. Experts recommend that everyone with a new partner gets tested as soon as possible, and sexually active under 25s get screened every year. It's easy to treat with antibiotics, so spotting it early is vital.

When it comes to screening for HIV though, they went a step further. Experts have been calling for universal testing in the UK because they fear that a quarter of people with the virus don't know they have it. Gay men are most at riskÌý - 3,000 were diagnosed with HIV in 2010, which is an all time annual high. But it's not confined to one group; the virus can be passed on to anyone through unprotected sex, or sharing needles or syringes.

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condoms

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Using a condom during sex is still the best way to remain protected and safe from infection. There's a special section on the Â鶹Éç Health website which explains all the different STIs and is packed with advice and information on treatment.

Where to get help

If you're worried, it's important to get yourself checked out as soon as possible. The sexual health charity has put together a handy search on its website which will help you find your nearest clinic.

For anyone under 25 and feeling anxious about going to a clinic, the charity offers free and confidential advice aimed at younger people which you can also find online.

And remember, the experts at these clinics have seen and heard it all before so no matter how embarrassed you may feel, don't let it put you off asking for help.

Journalist Sam Naz presents the 60seconds news bulletins on Â鶹Éç Three.


You can catch up with the following Sex Season programmes on iPlayer:

How Sex Works

Websex: What's the Harm?

Confessions of a Sex Addict

Cherry Healey: Like a Virgin

Websex - What's the harm?

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Nathalie Emmanuel Nathalie Emmanuel | 15:52 UK time, Tuesday, 10 January 2012

Nathalie Emmanuel

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Like most people, the internet is a big part of my life. So when I found out that Â鶹Éç Three wanted me to look into how the web is changing the most important but private part of our lives – our sex life - I jumped at the chance to be involved.

Facebook, Twitter, the internet... I use them all the time. So I thought what I'd find out would be nothing more than I already know. People chatting, flirting, maybe sending the odd picture - isn't that about as far as it goes? How wrong I was!

Working on Websex – What's the Harm? has opened my eyes to a completely new world where just about anything goes when it comes up to hooking up with the opposite (and also the same) sex online.

One of my earliest fears - apart from what I might 'see' if you know what I mean - was that nobody would be willing to talk to me about what they did online. Let's face it, would you? I'm not sure I would!

But with a lot of perseverance I was able to meet up with a load of really interesting young people who opened my eyes to this world. Young people like 18 year old Raf from Birmingham. For the last two years he's been using every social networking platform he can lay his hands on just to target girls, with surprising results.

And there was Caragh, who uses technology for a different reason. Bullying at school tore her confidence to shreds, and it only came back when she discovered that the computer in her bedroom unlocked a whole new world...

Talking to them made me wonder how many people like Raf and Caragh are out there. A bit of digging told me there wasn't much research into the use of smartphones and the web for flirting and sex.

So I hooked up with Professor Andy Phippen who was running a study on what 16-24 years olds were doing online and what he discovered shocked me. An amazing 80% of those asked have used either a smartphone or the web for some kind of sexual contact.* This is the first time anyone's ever had any kind of figures about how widespread websex is.

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But that's not where the shocks ended for me. Do you know your so-called 'private' conversations and images can be copied and posted onto websites for anyone to see - no matter how intimate they are? I didn't until doing this programme. Or that there's a whole load of websites where young people strip off for complete strangers? Again a whole new world for me.

Websex - What's the Harm? was a real eye opening experience to say the least, but I'm really proud of it. It's lifted the lid on a world that I sort of knew existed, but not to the extent that it does. I was genuinely shocked with what I discovered... and I can't wait to see what you think about it.

*Source: Use of Technology in Relationships by Young Adults, Prof A Phippen for UK Safer Internet Centre. Sample: 865 self-selecting individuals reporting age 16-24

Websex - What's the Harm? is on Tuesday 9 January at 9pm.

Junior Doctors: Your Life in Their Hands

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Sarah Maycock Sarah Maycock | 13:30 UK time, Tuesday, 10 January 2012

It's back! With a brand new set of junior doctors, there's plenty of drama on the wards of Chelsea and Westminster Hospital.

We follow their first ever shifts in some of the busiest and most challenging departments in the hospital as they struggle to deal with the transition from medical student to junior doctor.

Whilst juggling the long hours, life and death situations, difficult patients and endless paperwork, they desperately try to keep up the energy to maintain their own personal lives. You'll want to laugh, you'll want to cry...and at times you'll definitely want to look away!

We can't wait to see what's in store for our brand-new group of eight bright-eyed and bushy-tailed medics. From today we'll be revealing two new doctors a day right here on this very blog...so keep your eyes peeled to find out more about the new recruits.

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Akira Fukutomi

Akira Fukutomi

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  • First year doctor; studied at Imperial College, London
  • Working in the Acute Assessment Unit
  • Akira's taken on the role of "Mess President", meaning he's in charge of organising parties for the doctors

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Amieth Yogarajah

Amieth Yogarajah


  • Second year doctor; previously worked at Watford General Hospital, studied at Cambridge
  • Working in A&E
  • At home Amieth is one of the messiest inhabitants. However his willingness to cook make him popular with the rest of the junior doctors!


Andy Steval

Andy Steval

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  • First year doctor; just left medical school at Newcastle University
  • Works his first month in Trauma & Orthopaedics (broken bones) and his following three months in General Surgery
  • Andy's a keen footballer as well as playing the acoustic guitar. He's recently taken up life-drawing classes. A man of many talents!

Ben Allin

Ben Allin

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  • Second year doctor; previously worked at Ealing Hospital and studied at Imperial College London
  • Working in the Paediatric Surgery
  • Ben's a mean cook and much prefers a healthy meal to a takeaway

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Lucy Hollingworth

Lucy Hollingworth

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  • First year doctor; studied at University of Manchester
  • Working in Rheumatology and General Medicine
  • With A-Levels in arts subjects, Lucy first needed to complete a foundation year at university in order to prepare her for medical study

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Milla Marinova

Milla Marinova

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  • First year doctor; graduated from LSE, and Barts and The London School of Medicine
  • Working in Dermatology
  • Self-confessed Chelsea girl Milla loves socialising in London's most exclusive nightspots, watching her brother play polo and living it up abroad - after less than 7 days in her new job she headed to France for a week

Priya Mangat

Priya Mangat

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  • First year doctor; studied at Imperial College London and Kings College London
  • Working in General Surgery
  • Family-girl Priya still receives food parcels from her parents and is affectionately known to them as "Princess Priya"

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Sameer Bahal

Sameer Bahal

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  • First year doctor; studied at Imperial College London
  • Working in the Stroke Unit
  • If Sameer wasn't a doctor, he'd be the next Batman. He says, "If I couldn't save people from illnesses then I'd like to save them from organised crime"

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So come back and visit us each day this week as we reveal the new Junior Doctors.

Sex Season

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Jaine Sykes Jaine Sykes | 15:47 UK time, Wednesday, 4 January 2012

How long on average do we spend on foreplay? How many of us have taken our sex lives online? And exactly why is losing our virginity such a big deal?

Here at Â鶹Éç Three, we're kicking off the New Year with the Sex Season. Over the next couple of weeks we aim to answer all these questions and more by delving deeper into the sex lives of the British public.

There'll be a range of topics and viewpoints on the complexities of sex and sexuality from the scientist and the historian to the virgin, the lap dancer and the comedian.

Here are our highlights from the first week...

How Sex Works
This three-part series follows the three ages of sex - the first time, playing the field and sex in a long-term relationship. Intertwining real life stories from couples and singletons with some impressive CGI, the show reveals what happens before, during and after sex.

View the full blog post to access video content. In order to see this content you need to have both Javascript enabled and Flash installed. Visit Â鶹Éç Webwise for full instructions

How Sex Works begins on Monday 9th January at 9pm.

Websex: What's The Harm

Nathalie Emmanuel

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Ex-Hollyoaks actress Nathalie Emmanuel investigates how the internet is changing the sex lives of the British public. She meets young people who rely on social networking sites, the latest mobile technology and webcams.

View the full blog post to access video content. In order to see this content you need to have both Javascript enabled and Flash installed. Visit Â鶹Éç Webwise for full instructions

Websex: What's The Harm is on Tuesday 10th January at 9pm

Confessions Of A Sex Addict
Comedian Jeff Leach is the archetypal ladies' man and he’s got stats to back it up too. At just 27 he has slept with nearly 300 women and has even kept a list of every single one of them. But now he’s looking to settle down. Will Jeff finally uncover the route to emotional fulfilment and, for once, go home alone?

Confessions Of A Sex Addict is on Wednesday 11th January at 9pm

Cherry Healey: like a Virgin
Losing your virginity is one of those life-defining moments that can be intimate, exciting and nerve-wracking all rolled into one. But good or bad, Cherry wants to find out if that one simple little act really does have a lasting impact.

Cherry Healey: like a Virgin is on Thursday 12th January at 9pm

There's lots more to look forward to in the second week too including Coming Out Diaries (Tuesday 17th January at 9pm) following young people's journey of sexual discovery, Britain in Bed (Wednesday 18th January at 9pm) which is the ultimate history of sex and Table Dancing Diaries (Thursday 19th January at 9pm), a look at the table dancing industry through the stories of some of the young women working in the clubs.

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