Hello!
A very warm welcome to you to Four Eyed Medic. My name is Dr Steffan Williams (but that is way too formal so call me Steff) and I am a newly qualified doctor. I trained at Cardiff University Medical School for 5 years, and I’m about to start my foundation training as an F1 doctor in Wales.
A bit of background
I’m a born and raised Welshman and a proudly fluent Welsh (Cymraeg) speaker. In fact, Cymraeg is my first language! I grew up in a small village just outside of Llanelli, in the west of Wales. I had the incredible fortune of being educated through the medium of Cymraeg; I even studied a part of my degree in Cymraeg. Now I could go on for a while about this, so I’ll save it for a separate post…
As a Welshman, I do live up to some of the stereotypes. I play rugby in my spare time and I used to sing in a choir. However, I’m also a big fan of cycling and reading non-fiction. It is this reading that has inspired me to write!
Future plans
Throughout my time at med school I developed an interest in the field of Paediatrics. I’ve been very fortunate to be able to meet some incredible Paediatricians and do some research in the field. I’ve also been able to present some of this research nationally, which, to this day, remains a ‘pinch me’ moment.
These people and experiences have inspired me to pursue Paediatrics as a career. So to put it in fewer, more snappy words, I’m an aspiring Paediatrician!
So why Four Eyed Medic?
I’ll firstly tackle the name. I was born with a cataract and a condition with a very long, fancy name – persistent hypoplastic vitreous. As a result, I have always worn glasses. From beautifully geeky round ones, to late 2000s style rectangular ones. In other words, I’m a proud ‘four eyes’. So what better name than this?
During my time at med school, I also found a lack of completely honest reflections about the career. Something I think would have been a great help to me. I’ve therefore decided to write some of these on here.
I also wanted a space to share some interesting research I’ve come across. For now, I’ll mainly write about it. But I’m hoping in the future to do some videos or create a sort of ‘virtual journal club’. As my interest is mainly in Paediatrics, most of this will be in that field. But I’m more than happy to take requests!
Just medical stuff then?
Not entirely! Anyone who knows me, is well aware that I’m a big fan of chatting nonsense. Ramblings, some may say. So expect some random posts as well! These may include one of my other passions in life, coffee…
Sit back, relax and enjoy
So that’s me! I hope you’ve enjoyed reading this post, and I hope you’ll join me for the next one.
So proud of you for sharing your story!