Elodie Morrison: the pediatrician in the service of your children at the medical house<

Discover another face of the Maison Médicale, that of Elodie Morrison, the establishment’s pediatrician who shares her life story with us here. At the heart of this, the practice of medicine as close as possible to the very young, from France to the United Kingdom via Tahiti.

When did you start your career? Why pediatrics?

I started my journey 20 years ago. I passed the boarding school competition in 2006, then deciding to go into pediatrics. I found the pediatric department really different, both for the presence with the children and for the atmosphere reigning within it… You need to be gentle and to listen to the patients. I completed my four years of internship in Paris, then three years of clinical practice in a department specializing in eating disorders and adolescent psychopathologies.

But what is the age range covered by pediatrics?

We take care of patients from 0 to 15 and a half years old, while not ceasing their follow-up completely so that the transition to adult medicine goes smoothly.

So what is the rest of your career after 2011?

I left for Tahiti, to replace a pediatrician there, in 2014. I was initially supposed to stay there for 6 months , but the experience ultimately turned into a 2-year adventure. It was a whole different type of activity. I practiced in a private clinic, with a maternity ward and a few hospital beds. What's more, the area was tropical. This means that beyond the culture, we also observe completely different pathologies. However, I arrived in the midst of epidemics of Chikungunya and Dengue, a year after Zika. Infections that I had never seen in mainland France!

Then I came back to France to replace maternity leave in La Rochelle, for a period that was also spread over two years. The experience, all in all very complete, combined paediatrics, neonatology and maternity. Then, I moved to England in 2019. On the program: English test and administrative procedures interspersed with a few round trips as a replacement in La Rochelle. I am finally starting at the Maison Médicale full-time in January 2020.

Why the UK?

I wanted to continue my experience abroad, but not as far from France as during my Tahitian immersion. My companion had also found a job in London, a dream come true for him. He had already followed me to Tahiti: it was my turn to accompany him! The pressure was high, between all the papers to be done and the imminent Brexit. The question of equivalences of diplomas remained very vague, moreover. I obtained my license to practice in the fall of 2019, at the dawn of the pandemic.

Do you speak English?

Not at all! I had to learn all the technical terms and language within 10 months.

And why the Maison Médicale?

I had found pediatrician Annie Claudel's email, somewhat by chance, and then asked her if the Maison Médicale was looking for a practitioner. It turns out that Annie was just about to retire, so we met. She left the establishment, and at the same time I was preparing for all my exams. I arrived serene in 2020, since it had told me a lot of good things about the work environment.

Is the practice of pediatrics different than in France?

Yes. Already, here, we generally exercise in the hospital and not in town. You must be referred by a GP to have access to a pediatrician. Follow-up by a pediatrician is therefore not systematic as in France. In the United Kingdom, parents can refer to a Health Visitor (early childhood health professional, who advises on feeding or baby care, etc.) or to a midwife at the very beginning.

Personally, I work in the NHS in addition to the Maison Médicale, so I know both systems with their advantages and disadvantages in both systems, so I can guide French families who might be feeling lonely.

Are there, within pediatrics itself, fields that you particularly like?

I had obtained my subspecialty in adolescent medicine as well as a diploma interuniversity in pediatric dermatology at the University of Nice. Now, I practice much more in general paediatrics, with profiles of children mostly under 6 years old.

Does this mean that at the Maison Médicale, the French way, there is no need to be referred by a GP to speak with you?

Exactly ! I am there every afternoon, from 2 to 6 p.m., as well as every other Saturday morning, from 9 a.m. to noon. Just call the switchboard on 020 7589 9321 to make an appointment, whether for a specific question, a particular problem, a simple visit or an assessment... Only the first visits for newborns, the first month, will be a little longer. Otherwise, an ordinary consultation, with a family that I know better, will last 20 to 30 minutes on average. But I still think that when parents ask to see a pediatrician, they are often very anxious. We must therefore discuss, reassure and advise. So, I always take the time: the duration of the consultation is never really fixed.

In the end, the presence of children is the most exciting and cute part of my job! It is still necessary to communicate well with the little one in order to answer any questions he may have. I even talk to little ones just a few months old! For vaccines, I put on a little cartoon or a song during the injection… Children are very sensitive and understand a lot of things: it is a question of getting down to their level without underestimating them during consultations.