Profile: Rob Hicks

This media doctor tells Catriona Richardson about his work and how he combines it with general practice

When I was 10 years old I wanted to be a pop star. It didn't happen. I became a general practitioner instead, but in my heart I always wanted to be a performer. I may not have fulfilled my childhood dream, but I have been fortunate enough to be able to combine general practice with a career in the media.

I have just finished working on the television programme Taste Today with Anthea Turner and Mark Curry. It was a food programme, and my role was as resident doctor advising callers on conventional medicine but also on food and lifestyle changes to be healthier. The programme went out live, which I love. The thought can be frightening, but once you have got the hang of it it's a great adrenaline rush. I love television and get a buzz out of it--I miss it when filming is over.

If there are any demonstrations, such as taking blood pressure, I rehearse them. When I started I wasn't in a position to ask to see callers' questions beforehand--the directors like seeing the doctors sweat--but now I insist. It makes for a better programme, as I have time to think about the problem and give a more detailed answer.

I am also the script medical adviser for the BBC drama series Doctors. The scripts are sent to me, and I work closely with the writing team and script editor to make sure the stories are medically accurate--not just from the clinical point of view but in terms of everyday general practice. For example, if someone comes in as a temporary resident I make sure that he or she is shown filling in a temporary resident's form.

There are times when you have to allow reality to be stretched. What is common in medical dramas is not common in general practice and vice versa. I work on the basis that if it can happen in general practice it is alright--it just doesn't happen every day. The doctors and practice nurses in Doctors seem to be having affairs left, right, and centre, which I don't think is very realistic--or maybe I've just been in a very boring practice. However, we have given clear messages about what patients can and can't expect in general practice.

The programme has to be interesting and educational, and I try to get the health message across. We have looked at clinical issues such as testicular cancer and chlamydia infection recently, which could not have worked better if the episodes had been health education programmes. Doctors also looks at issues that affect the general practitioners' lives. The senior partner in the practice had a problem with alcohol. General practitioners are under huge strain today, and some do have a drink problem.

I also work for Classic FM radio and write for magazines, newspapers, and websites. It gives variety to my week. I now work one day a week as a locum, having been a principal in general practice for over six years, three and a half of these as the senior partner in my practice. I resigned my partnership to give me the flexibility to take on more media work. As a locum, I can enjoy general practice without having to run a business.

Working in the media has helped to give me back the energy and enthusiasm I originally had for being a general practitioner, which was slowly and surely being eroded. I was lucky to stumble across an outlet to boost my interest.

Like many things, the opportunity came by my being in the right place at the right time. I started writing anecdotes for a general practice newspaper and doing some public relations and communications work for the health authority, which brought me my first radio job. The drama department at the BBC was looking for a general practitioner, and my name came up. I had already advised programmes such as Family Affairs on an ad hoc basis. Things developed from there. The media works by word of mouth, and each thing you do promotes you further.

It is a fantastic way of keeping up to date medically, and it has given me the chance to meet people who don't work in medicine. General practitioners tend to moan about their hours, and it is easy to think they are the only people that are hard done by, but there are people who work longer hours and don't have the job security. That is one of the toughest things about this sort of work. It is not secure and you go from contract to contract, which is, of course, unlike general practice. It can also feel as though you are always on call, as people can call at strange times and you have to respond pretty quickly. I am always aware of how quickly things can change in this business and how one opportunity can bring up another.

Medicine is a good career, and I have no regrets--although it would have been nice to be a pop star. But you do need to have outside interests, and I was not made aware of this during my medical training. Medicine brings opportunities to get into other medically related areas, including the media. My advice to anyone who wants to give it a go is to never feel guilty about following your heart. A medical career does not have to follow a straight line. You can branch off and do something different. After all, you can always come back and join the straight line again.

Catriona Richardson, freelance medical journalist


studentBMJ 2002;10:215-258 July ISSN 0966-6494