Hands-on advice and tips on applying to medical school were lapped up by students looking for a career in medicine during a special event at the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital.

An enthusiastic response to the first event organised by the newly formed Bermuda Medical Students Society (BMSS) saw students and some parents cram into the first floor conference room of the KEMH leaving several standing.

"We had about 50 people RSVP," said Alisha Gabriel, chairman of the society's executive committee. But many students came without previous notification creating a line so long that it delayed the start of the session.

The BMSS was the brainchild of Ms Gabriel, a Bermudian medical student in her final two years at The Royal College of Surgeons, in Ireland.

Started to provide career support for new local doctors, Ms Gabriel said she had been thinking about the need for such a group, for a few years.

Her idea started when she began to be mentored by local doctors Wesley Miller and Annie Pinto.

"I thought 'These two have made such a difference in my life, I wonder if I can do the same for other people'," she said. "I thought why don't we start a society that caters to students who want to study medicine so we can help and mentor them, give them advice and network."

Ms Gabriel said she pitched her idea to KEMH Chief of Staff Dr. Donald Thomas III expecting him to give her the brush off.

"But he was so supportive," she said. "He really was all for it and got straight on the bandwagon. We scheduled a dinner that week, assembled a committee and ever since then it has taken off."

Ms Gabriel said the Society know of 32 Bermudians currently enrolled in medical school or completing their residencies.

"Right now we are only accepting medical students but in the future I envision it having a pre-med wing whereby the medical students can mentor the pre-med and the Bermudians doctors can mentor the meds (medical students), so it's kind of a cycle," she said.

The BMSS will focus its attention on helping Bermudian medical students with information and contacts for them to obtain residencies (work in specific medical areas).

As KEMH is not a teaching hospital all local doctors must complete their residencies in facilities off-Island.

"We have to apply for residencies and it can be like applying to medical school all over again," said Ms Gabriel.

She said having the Society will also help local medical students to bond so that when they return and are working on-Island they have already created a network of support.

Last Monday's event, called 'So You Want To Be a Doctor', saw Ms Gabriel and three other local medical students share their experiences on how they approached getting accepted to their programmes.

Each gave advice and insight on things to consider and options to weigh in choosing and applying to medical schools.

Neil Cattell who is studying at the University of Hull, said cost was a major factor for him and getting home student fees in Britain weighed heavily in his decision to go there.

"Fees are about £3,000 a year," he said.

Jasmine Caines who will attend Ross University in Dominica, said she was impressed that she will be board certified to work in the entire US on completion of her programme.

Ms Caines said she thought she would feel more comfortable living on an island and also shared her experience in taking the five-hour MCAT exam required for entry to North American medical schools.

Aisha Bassett spoke on the importance of having volunteer experience on your application.

"It doesn't have to be medical," she said, "but it should be for a good length of time." She said she played piano in a hospital lobby for about a year.

Ms Gabriel explained that she was so sure she wanted a career in medicine that she went straight to medical school after high school. All the other presenters had completed a Bachelor's degree before applying for medical school.

She cited the main benefit as time. She chose a six-year programme which will see her return home to practice sooner than if she had started with a Bachelor's degree.

Attendees also heard from local psychiatrist Dr. Chantal Simmons, who sits on the advisory panel of the BMSS, and Bermudian doctor Elisabeth Lane who practices in Britain.

Both doctors stressed that physicians' education does not end with medical school. They said it's important for doctors to keep abreast of developments in their field, through conferences, continuing medical education and peer review.

Dr. Simmons also urged students to avail themselves of opportunities to expand other interests they may have, early in their programmes.

She contended that with the grueling workload in studying medicine and the movement from there straight to the workforce, that the opportunity to pursue any other interest a medical student might have would be compromised.

She said in her undergraduate years she took a course in geography and even went on a study programme to Vietnam.

Dr. Lane, strongly advised those applying to schools in Britain to acquaint themselves with the politics of the National Health System.

She said interviewers in British medical schools almost always have some question on the topic and will not care that it does not exist in Bermuda.