Inspiring the next generation of medics

It’s tough out there for new doctors and dentists.

Moving across the country, stepping into responsibility, 24/7 learning and putting hard-won knowledge to the test: the transition from university to practice is full of challenges. Some that medical school prepares you for, and others which are hard to teach outside of experience.

MDDUS provides the healthcare leaders of tomorrow with the support and expertise they need today. Whether that’s advice from a doctor or dentist who has been in their shoes, or training on how to handle ethical dilemmas.

But healthcare is an ever-changing landscape, and the best people to report on what it’s really like are the graduates on the ground.

Enter the 1to5 project: a social media documentary project aiming to follow a group of medical and dental students through the first five years of their career.

In 2025 we invited a group of three medical students and three dental students to share regular updates as they graduated and started their careers. Every month they’d reflect on both the challenges they faced and the proud moments.

We wanted to create a bank of short content that would show the reality of starting a career in healthcare and provide useful advice for other students and recent graduates.

Dr Mel Azate, now an FY1 doctor, pursued medicine out of a childhood interest sparked by a Barbie book; a desire to empower patients to make their own health decisions and for the girls in her home country who couldn’t study medicine or become doctors.

Joining the 1to5 project appealed to her because, “I believe this is an invaluable platform to raise awareness about the challenges and triumphs that define this journey.

“I am a first-generation doctor and come from a background that is not well-represented in the medical profession. By putting myself out there I can serve as a role model to my community.”

Foundation dentist Dr Alice Casey wants to try and share an “aesthetic but real” account of the dental profession, and to highlight the importance of achieving a good work-life balance to ensure she can show up as the best dentist she can be for her patients.

She joined the 1to5 project to share her experiences with others, “It’s the perfect way for me to share the experience of being a dental foundation trainee in the NHS so people can see the behind the scenes of the industry.

“I want to show both the really rewarding parts of dentistry, but also the difficulties of growing up and learning to balance life in my twenties while excelling in a very competitive and professional field.”

The full library of 1to5 content can be found on our youtube channel: @mddusTV

Our 1to5 team’s regular updates are posted on our Instagram: @mddus_

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