A final year medical student, who starts as a resident doctor in August, has praised a consultant psychiatrist and mentor who has “filled me with confidence and inspiration”.

Jing Wang, who has been studying Medicine at the University of Cambridge, spent a period of time shadowing Dr Alexander Hamilton, who works at mental health charity St Andrew’s Healthcare.

She was so enamoured with his commitment to medicine, his patients and to his students, that Jing nominated him for an Excellence in Teaching Award from the Cambridge Clinical Society, which he went onto win.

Jing, 23, said: “I nominated Dr Hamilton, because he truly went above and beyond for my colleague and me. It is because of him, his teaching and the understanding he has of mental health that I’m now seriously considering specialising in mental health.

“As part of my placement, ensure we got to take part in so many different experiences, including a parole hearing. Not only was this not something I had expected, but he also had to apply for special permission for us to attend from the Parole Board, which I think showed he went above and beyond for us.

“As medical students, we are accustomed to being in the background and not getting opportunities to speak or engage with the wider multidisciplinary team, but Dr Hamilton always made sure my colleague and I were included, always introducing us to the teams he works with and making us feel welcome and valued.

“Being at St Andrew’s Healthcare was a truly unique experience that was one of the highlights of my time at medical school, and I owe most of that to Dr Hamilton’s commitment to us, which has given me much-needed confidence and inspiration as I approach my first year in the job.”

Dr Hamilton, who has worked at St Andrew’s Healthcare for 10 years is currently Clinical Director of the inpatient hospital’s Medium Secure Division and is also a Consultant Forensic Psychiatrist for Deaf people. Part of his role is to teach the next generation of doctors, and to encourage more medical students into psychiatry.

He said: “Working with patients whose mental disorder has so significantly impacted on their lives is hugely rewarding and our main purpose is to inspire hope for their future. There’s so many aspects to working in complex mental health, that it’s really important to give students a full range of experiences when they are with us. They need to fully understand how the challenges of different disorders will affect their future patients. Additionally, they need to learn to diagnose and treat those ailments, working to improve patient functionality and health where they can.

“I am, of course, hugely humbled, a little embarrassed, and also very proud to have received this award. However, I have only ever seen working with students as an extension to my day job. As doctors, we all have a duty to pass on our knowledge and try to inspire the next generation to move into our sector, as the need for good mental health services are at an all-time high.”

Professor Paul Wilkinson, Clinical Dean at the University of Cambridge School of Clinical Medicine, said: “These prizes are very important. They were originally set up by medical students as they wanted to recognise people who had given them really good teaching. The medical students choose who win each year so well done on being chosen by them”.

“At medical school, we rely on well over 1,000 teachers for placements centrally, everywhere to give excellent teaching to our students and without this our course wouldn’t keep going. So thank you so much.”

For information about careers at St Andrew’s Healthcare, click here.