NSAC alumnus Jamie Johnstone gives something back!

“Yes, since grade four,” Jamie Johnstone replied after being asked if he has always wanted to be a doctor. The friendly and energetic Blues Mills native is not far from having his dream come true.

This coming spring, Jamie’s hard work will pay off as he will successfully complete his intern training. For the past couple of years, Jamie has been doing his practicum in locations such as the Annapolis Valley, PEI, Antigonish and, for the past month, right here on NSAC’s campus.

“NSAC has given me a great deal so I am happy that I am now able to give something back,” says Jamie.

Jamie came to NSAC in 1994. It was between here and a few other Nova Scotian universities, but thanks to a “phenomenal” recruiter, Jamie’s decision was easier than anticipated.

He wanted to receive an undergraduate degree that would set him apart from others when it came time to apply for medical school and he knew that NSAC was the place to get it.

In 1998, Jamie graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Biology and a minor in Animal Science. Then in 2000, he completed his Masters in Physiology under the “brilliant” Dr. Leslie MacLaren.

After leaving NSAC, Jamie took a representative position with Merck Frosst Pharmaceutical, where he worked for the next three years before making one of the most difficult decisions of his life. Jamie quit his job, packed a suitcase and left for the Caribbean to attend Saba University School of Medicine. After two years, Jamie received his Bachelor of Science in Health Sciences and his M.D., pending in March.

“Agriculture and medicine have a lot in common. Both have so many components that you must be versed in,” says Jamie. “I don’t think people look at it that way, but it has gotten me to where I want to be.”

So what does a typical workday look like? Jamie explains that a typical intern day in general surgery or the medical service begins between 6:30 and 7 a.m. with chart reviews and rounds. The OR list begins around 7:30 and runs until 2 p.m. During this you could constantly be running around. From 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. you are in the office seeing patients, then its more rounds at 6 p.m. Then hopefully that night you will get the chance to study up on everything you learned that day.

Jamie is interested in primary care. He enjoys his patients and almost all aspects of treatment and care. He says that he works twice as hard as what he used to, but is twice as energized at the end of the day and much happier.
Even though Jamie is on the fast track to success and is leading an unbelievably interesting career life, he seems to jump at every opportunity to brag about the university that has changed him. Between the education he received and the people Jamie encountered, NSAC has certainly made its mark on the ambitious professional.

All of Jamie’s favourite memories of NSAC involve residence. He lived in residence the entire time he attended the university with the “best group of people ever.” He proudly states that they had the potential to be bad and the ability to turn anything into fun.

Other than the countless fun times Jamie had with his friends in residence, he loved NSAC for another reason. “I was somebody. I was recognized. The professors knew my name at the time and still do. They care about your life and want their students to be more. If you engage in NSAC it will engage in you,” says Jamie with emotion.

“You know how people always say that you’ll find one professor that will really impact your life? Well I have a hard time coming up with a single professor who didn’t.”

When Jamie isn’t taking care of others, he guards his spare time fiercely. “Medicine can be lonely, so I use my spare time to make up for it,” he says. Jamie spends his time with friends (many of whom he met at NSAC) in whatever way he can. If he is able to get together with them in person, he does, if not, he catches up with them on the phone. “I have the most insane phone bill of anyone I know,” Jamie laughs.

Jamie encourages people to really get out there and take chances and wants current students to stop obsessing about marks. “Too many people put too much worry into tests and midterms, while the real treasures are passing them by,” he says with confidence.

Photo caption: Jamie Johnstone on the NSAC campus with Nurse Lugene Young