Meet Eirini

Eirini Kostopoulou, a Consultant in Paediatrics and Paediatric Endocrinology at the University Hospital of Patras in Greece, discusses her time as a Clinical Fellow in Paediatric Endocrinology at GOSH. 

What were your responsibilities as a Fellow at GOSH? 

I worked as a Clinical Fellow in Paediatric Endocrinology. My clinical duties involved providing medical care to the endocrine patients in both the inpatient and outpatient setting, through conducting the ward rounds, assessing blood test results, communicating them to the other members of the team and deciding on therapies and the medical management, liaising with other specialties to ensure a holistic approach, doing outpatient clinics and providing telephone advice to local hospitals.

In addition, the undertaken tasks included presenting the medical history, laboratory investigations and key clinical details of the endocrine patients to the rest of the endocrine team on a weekly basis, so that the plan of care could be determined, but also for didactic reasons. As a clinical fellow, I also participated to the educational program by carrying out audits and attending teaching sessions, educational meetings and conferences.

What did you enjoy most about working at GOSH?

Working at GOSH was an enjoyable and rewarding working experience. Sharing the knowledge of world recognized experts on the endocrine field and working in a friendly, supportive and inspirational environment with high standards of delivered medical care, not only broadened my theoretical and clinical knowledge, but also strengthened my professionalism and critical thinking. What is more, working in a multicultural environment gave me a perspective on how clinical practice is applied in other countries and increased my understanding of the diversity of different cultures.

Do you have any advice for anyone who is thinking about doing a fellowship at GOSH?

I would strongly encourage anyone who would consider doing a fellowship at GOSH. Being exposed to a wide and diverse spectrum of clinical conditions, including rare conditions not frequently seen in other hospitals, would offer them an excellent opportunity to gain accumulated experience, build upon their previous knowledge and competences and reach their full potential as health providers.