Dr Louise Tomkow

After completing ST4 in Geriatric Medicine, I decided to take a year out of clinical training to study for a MA in Humanitarianism and Conflict Response at the University of Manchester. The rationale for this decision was multifarious, however the move was primarily motivated by a desire to diversify my career and explore interests outside the world of medicine. The Masters, based at an interdisciplinary institute with its foundations deeply rooted in the social sciences, developed my critical thinking and altered my world-view. Just over two years later, I am still at the HCRI, entering the second year of my PhD. 

Like many health care professionals who work in geriatrics, I was drawn to the speciality by its holistic focus on social and psychological, as well as physical issues. I have always had an interest in global health and spent time volunteering in Malawi and India after completing foundation training, however through my clinical experience working with often-vulnerable patients in the hospitals of North West England, this interest evolved into a passion about health inequalities. Older migrants represent a multiply-marginalised social group. This dynamic is reflected in the academic literature; dominant geriatric concepts such as frailty are unexplored in this population. Looking to address this gap in the research, I clumsily crafted a research proposal, found a team of supportive supervisors and embarked on the convoluted, and often perplexing, process of applying for PhD funding. 

My initial proposal somewhat boldly aimed to establish whether asylum seekers and refugees become frail at a younger age than those born in the UK, however the first year of the PhD saw me critique and deconstruct the assumptions I had taken as given. I am currently working with more nuanced and critical ideas, collecting qualitative data through semi-structured interviews with older asylum seekers and refugees. There are challenges; the uncertainty and shapelessness that dominates the research process is in stark contrast with the role of a clinician, and maintaining motivation throughout such a solitary and prolonged endeavour can be tough. Nevertheless, I feel hugely privileged to have been afforded this indulgent opportunity for erudition. The acquiescent research timetable allows time for the pursuit of other personally and professionally rewarding ventures; I volunteer with Freedom from Torture as a Medico-Legal Report doctor and am involved with teaching at the university. 

After completion of the PhD, I will return to Geriatric clinical training whilst endeavouring to maintain an academic presence. My prevailing aspiration however, perhaps naively, is that the project has real-world impact and goes some way in improving the lives of the often-overlooked individuals I am researching.