Justyna is a Consultant in Diabetes and Endocrinology and Acute Medicine at the University Hospital of Wales. Her key interests lie in neuroendocrine tumours, thyroid disease, obesity, diabetes mellitus type 2 and inspiring the next generation of endocrine doctors. In 2015, Justyna was awarded the Lewis Thomas Gibbon Jenkins of Britton Ferry Fellowship from the Royal College of Physicians to undergo research into the characterisation of circulating extracellular vesicles in human obesity and is a recent Leadership and Development Awards Programme awardee with the Society for Endocrinology.

Tell us about your current position?

I work as a Consultant in Diabetes & Endocrinology and Acute Medicine at the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff. Apart from providing specialist care to patients with diabetes and endocrine conditions, my job plan also involves research and teaching activities. My specialty interests include neuroendocrine tumours, thyroid disease and diabetes mellitus type 2.

As a Committee member of the Young Diabetologist and Endocrinologist Forum (YDEF) Wales, I am also very involved in organising various educational events for junior doctors and SpRs in order to promote diabetes and endocrinology as the specialty of choice for trainees. I was recently elected as the South Wales Representative for the New Consultants Committee at the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) with the aim to represent the views and interests of the young consultants’ community within the RCP.

What inspired you to specialise in endocrinology?

Since my medical school rotations, I have always considered diabetes and endocrinology as a very interesting and attractive medical field. During my CMT years, one of my placements was in diabetes and endocrinology and it gave me the practical exposure to the clinical work in this specialty which I really enjoyed. This paired with the encouragement and support from my clinical supervisors at the time helped me to make the decision to apply for the training number and I have never looked back since.

Why is endocrinology an exciting field to enter?

There have been lots of advances in endocrine research in recent years which allows us to understand better some of the endocrine conditions. It has a direct impact on patients’ management with various new therapies being already available and new ones being constantly developed. From the professional point of view, it is a great opportunity to be a part of these changes. Moreover, the endocrine community is quite small, well connected and very friendly both in the UK and Europe which is a wonderful platform for professional and scientific collaborations.

What has been a highlight of your training so far?

The highlight of my training was to have the opportunity to take time out of programme for research. I received a 2 year fellowship award from the Royal College of Physicians of Wales (The Lewis Thomas Gibbon Jenkins of Britton Ferry Fellowship). This enabled me to complete my research project on characterisation of circulating extracellular vesicles in human obesity which led to obtaining the MD degree at Cardiff University. I also had a chance to present my work at various national and international meetings.

Having a chance to work with the “non-clinical” endocrine scientists was a great experience which will hopefully lead to long lasting scientific collaborations in future.

What are your ambitions for your future career?

My long-term career goal is to be a practising NHS Consultant involved in both clinical and research activities. In the next few years I am planning to gain experience as Principal Investigator in various diabetes and endocrinology trials and will possibly be able to establish my own local research group.

Also, I would like to encourage trainees to the world of academia by creating exciting local research opportunities for out of programme research time for our diabetes and endocrinology SpRs, academic IMTs and intercalated students leading to publications and potentially supervise their MD/PhD work as well. 

Lastly, I am intending to focus on advertising diabetes and endocrinology as an attractive career option by organising local taster events and additional training events which hopefully lead to increased numbers of trainee applications and retention. I would like to take on a role of the Specialty Educational Supervisor and perhaps in future as the Diabetes and Endocrinology TPD/STC.

Who do you most admire professionally?

Generally, I admire all the female clinical and non-clinical endocrinologists who manage to find the right work-life balance between their careers and personal life and can still be successful and fulfilled in what they do. I aspire to be one of them.

Any words of wisdom for aspiring endocrinologist out there?

I would encourage everyone who is considering endocrinology as their future specialty to link up with their local endocrine teams in order to get an insight into what the specialty is really like. They should also use the opportunities to attend the taster events and other SfE organised meetings such as the SfE BES conference.

I would suggest they do not get discouraged by the 4-5 years training involving the general medical duties which often is very demanding. Instead they should look at the bigger picture and the exciting career prospects this specialty offers once the training is completed.

View career profiles of other endocrinologists on our dedicated page