Do you follow the recommendations you give to your patients? 

• Yes

• Yes

What do you think is the most difficult medical practice? The easiest ? 

• Not sure of the question, but I would say neurosurgery. There is no easy…

• As I personally live less well with uncertainty, the most difficult is family medicine in my opinion.  The easiest: anesthesia

What are the possible courses to become an intensivist? Should we go through internal medicine, family medicine?

• There are several basic paths, both in internal medicine and in surgery and anesthesia. It is necessary to integrate an intensive care training program which generally follows a common core

• Royal College certified intensivist: internal medicine, anaesthesia, pulmonology, rarely others.  Otherwise, to practice intensive care in general, in the region for example, family medicine or internal medicine

How many hours of work per week on average for the average doctor?

• Very variable 45-60 h

• In a week of intensive care: 70-80.  The other weeks, which include other activities (teaching, research, management, etc.) are lighter.

What do you dislike most about your practice?

• Medical disasters in young patients

• The constant bed management problems that sometimes even prevent us from treating patients well

What are the qualities of a good doctor in intensive care? 

• Resilient, compassionate, jack-of-all-trades.

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What route to get to this specialty?

• Common core medicine then intensive care, or general surgery or anesthesia then intensive care. There are also nephrologists and intensive cardiologists. In family medicine, residency in family medicine then additional training in intensive care

What are the qualities of a good doctor in intensive care?

• Ability to work in a team, anticipation of problems, advocate for the patient at all times

Would you be friends with your colleagues if you had met them outside of work?

• Most of my friends are doctors, so probably not..

• My intensive care colleagues?  Without a doubt !

What do you think is the most important factor for a successful residency in your specialty?

• Good stress management skills

• You have to be prepared to work hard, but it's so rewarding in the end.

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What do you think is the most important factor for a successful career in your specialty?

• Good basic training, and take nothing for granted

• You have to be prepared to work hard, but it's so rewarding in the end.

What is the best advice you have received?

• We will arrive at Christmas at the same time as everyone else!

• Stop getting bogged down in details, better see the “big picture”.

What is the most common criticism you receive?

• People don't dare to criticize me

• That we drain a lot of resources for patients who are going to die anyway (which is only partly true, it is sometimes necessary to treat several at great cost to save some who will continue their normal life).  

How would your colleagues describe you?

• Driven, efficient, courageous and honest

• Versatile?

Does your specialty take jokes well at work? 

• Humor, sometimes a little dark, is omnipresent in my work and is even often necessary to ease the tension, to play down what we are going through with the patients.

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If you had to specialize in something else, what would it be and why?

• I would do the same route again, for the diversity of the practice

• No chance that I would have done anything other than intensive care...

Does your specialty take jokes well at work?

• Generally yes

Do students/residents sometimes make you feel overwhelmed?

• They sometimes have a little higher advanced knowledge, but do not have my experience…

• Often, and that's the beauty of being around students/residents who force us to always be sharp, to keep up to date, to surpass ourselves

If your specialty had to have a romantic relationship with another which one would it choose?

• Internal medicine!

• Psychiatry.  Complementarity par excellence