Dr Anjum, who has worked for MPFT and its predecessor organisations for 20 years, was selected to be featured in the project after being nominated by her MPFT colleague Associate Medical Director Dr Ignasi Agell. Dr Agell worked closely with Dr Anjum for many years and was one of many foundation year doctors to take up psychiatry after being inspired by Dr Anjum’s compassion and dedication to her patients while on placement with her.
In her narrative, Dr Anjum remembers the stigma that existed around mental health and the social and cultural hurdles that faced her as a female married mother and trainee in Pakistan. Despite these challenges Dr Anjum did complete her psychiatry training to become only the sixth ever female psychiatrist in Pakistan.
Dr Anjum said, “I was humbled and proud to be nominated for this special project celebrating women in psychiatry.
“Many amazing people have directly and indirectly helped me on my journey and I believe that my role is to continue to learn, study, discover and unlock the potential that lies deep within every single junior doctor.
“It gives me great satisfaction that I believed in my dream and had the brilliant support structures to help me follow it. As I enter the twilight years of my career, I feel contented with the fact that I have had the opportunity to contribute as fully as I could to this highly interesting discipline and thrived by beating the odds, which to me has made the journey far more interesting.”
Dr Anjum’s story can be found here: https://rcpsych.ac.uk/members/special-interest-groups/women-and-mental-health/25-women-project/narratives/dr-rubina-anjum