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A Fantastic Fortnight in Skye

Majestic, magical, misty… these are all words that come to mind when describing the wonderful island of Skye.

I was very excited about the prospect of getting the opportunity to work there, even if it was only for two weeks. I wonder if someone would ever give me a job there? Boring medicine chat: I was also pretty excited about the opportunity to experience the rural hospital, lead by specialty rural practitioners, and to see the differences between that and the GP-led equivalent I had spent time at in Lochgilphead up till then.

My first day was an early start. I felt it would simply be rude not to throw in at least two Cuillins (summits, not the beers) before arriving at the hospital on the Sunday evening. The mountain weather’s 80% chance of cloud-free Munros didn’t quite materialise (it was more like a 0% chance) but still a wonderfully atmospheric place to be. Who doesn’t love scrambling up Am Basteir’s knife-edge ridge on wet basalt? Still, there was a truly wonderful glissade (that’s bum-slide in mountaineering lingo, which is almost as bad as pretending to be posh and speaking Latin in our anatomy classes) down the Am Basteir corrie.

I spent the next few days getting used to the hospital, that is once I’d finished being in awe at the view from my room. Starting off in A&E with my first experience of assessing a patient from an RTA, before moving on to catching what was left of the ward round and then an afternoon fracture clinic… my first experience of getting plaster all over my scrubs (it’s what they’re for I guess) and my smart shoes (less ideal).

After a few days spent inside while there was excellent weather, I was allowed to escape early one sunny afternoon. I went to Sleat, a part of Skye I’d seldom explored before. What a sunset! That and the views of the entire Cuillin ridge, and the Rum Cuillin rising out of the sea like a volcano. I stayed until the sunset subsided seamlessly into the beauty of the Milky Way. After I’d been home and fed I went back out to stand under the stars watching the Northern Lights do their dance. Bliss.

The weekend brought more time off, a trip up one of my favourite mountains, Sgùrr nan Eag, starting from the very extreme end of the Cuillin ridge above Coruisk. I discovered the Cave of Gold near Kilmuir and I had an amble along the beautiful coast north of Portree. The next week brought more exciting medicine. My first excision and wound closure of a skin lesion, as well as assisting with a fracture manipulation under sedation. There was also an injury sustained looking for a lost cow and the challenge of how to assess a potential brain haemorrhage without a CT scanner. Skye really needs one of those that isn’t two hours away.

I rounded off my trip with more wonderful walking! The Storr and Hartaval in the snow! I never thought I would need to use an ice-axe on the Storr! Up next was Blà Bheinn, one of my favourite mountains, via its south ridge in Winter conditions after lunch and mussel picking on the beach at Camasunary. Very reasonable to carry mussels home over a Munro, right? Not to mention the fresh mussels which I got hold of when I got home to Tarbert and cooked in white wine and cream… not to make you jealous or anything.

Overall a brilliant fortnight in one of my favourite places; one where I got to learn a lot of cool medicine as well as seeing how a different rural hospital operates. Absolutely cracking.

Nick is a final year ScotGEM student currently based within NHS Highland. Check out more of his photos below!