Alumni Stories: Dr Joanna Lioutas, Class of 2018
2018 BSc (Hons) Medicine graduate Dr Joanna Lioutas shares her memories of studying Medicine at St Andrews and advice for current and prospective students.
I knew that I wanted to study Medicine very early on. Throughout my formative schooling, I always enjoyed science the most of any class, and I also knew that I wanted to have a career where I could help people and make a positive difference in their lives. I did a lot of volunteering in hospitals growing up, and this set the foundation for my desire to work in healthcare.
What drew me to St Andrews was that I could pursue my Medicine degree straight after graduating high school and not delay pursuing my dreams. When I visited St Andrews, I instantly could see myself at this university. I fell in love with the location, the up-to-date medical building and facilities, the excellence of its medical training, and the close-knit community feel. I knew that at St Andrews I would have a singular experience — getting to live in this breathtakingly beautiful place, whilst also receiving a world-class education.
I look back on my time at St Andrews’ medical programme with such fondness and gratitude. We were so lucky to have excellent teachers who made lectures engaging and made us feel comfortable reaching out to them for support. My favourite part of the programme was our anatomy teaching through full-body dissection. It was a privilege being able to take what we learned from our anatomy lectures and then reinforce that knowledge in practical sessions. Learning about anatomy from a textbook can be challenging, as understanding its 3D context is such a crucial aspect of building anatomical knowledge. I’ll never forget learning about the cranial nerves and being so hopelessly confused — until I was able to see them in front of me and everything clicked. In retrospect, I am so grateful that we had this as part of our curriculum, as having such an excellent understanding of anatomy has made me a better physician.
There is so much that I enjoyed about my degree, much of which I’ve already mentioned. What I haven’t touched on yet is the excellent clinical skills curriculum. We had a state-of-the-art clinical skills training room with video recording capabilities. Being able to watch back our clinical skills encounters helped me learn from my experiences, noticing areas I could improve in and making changes for the better. We were also so lucky to have the opportunity to work with so many volunteer patients — this was critical in helping us practice our history-taking and physical exams. Clinical skills are our bread-and-butter in Medicine, and having a solid understanding of them before heading into our clinical experience was paramount in helping us succeed.
Being a medical student at St Andrews was a balance of hard work and lots of fun! I was so lucky to have met and made lifelong friends during that time, and we shared so many wonderful memories together that I look back on so fondly. From walking around town or hanging at the beach, dressing up and attending balls, and participating in pub trivia — I loved how easily you could get everywhere by foot and that you would bump into at least one person you know every single time you go grocery shopping! I learned how to golf at St Andrews, which was amazing and something I’ll forever cherish.
I really appreciated the foundation of learning that St Andrews provided me with, which made me so prepared to transition to Edinburgh for my clinical rotations. I don’t think that I would have succeeded so well in a clinical setting, or been half as confident as I was, without everything I learned at St Andrews. As an international student away from home for the first time, St Andrews felt like a safe community in which to start my medical career and flourish as an individual.
Currently, I am practicing as a Family Physician in Toronto (also known as a General Practitioner in the UK), where I provide comprehensive Family Medicine care to people of all ages. I also have additional training in Low-Risk Obstetrics and provide prenatal care for pregnant women throughout their entire pregnancy, deliver babies, and provide newborn and post-partum care. I love my job very much; being the first point of access to healthcare for so many is a privilege I do not take lightly. I value forging long-term patient-physician relationships and being able to improve my patients’ health, advocate for their care needs, and support them in their medical journey. I have a passion for women’s health and obstetrics, and I enjoy being able to work in both a clinical and hospital setting. This variety always ensures work is exciting and that no two days are the same.
To current and future medical students, I would say: enjoy your time in university, learn everything you can, and don’t forget to enjoy the experience — because before you know it, it will be over, and you’ll be practicing as a doctor! I would also encourage students to pick an area of medicine that they are genuinely interested in and love, because medicine can be a challenging career at times and it is important that you are working towards something that fulfils you.