Articles about us: Down to the broom and bucket and back to medicine - part 1
Doctor Černá, PhD, became interested in plastic surgery already when she was a student and has found her way to it although it has been rather sinuous.
Text: Vladimíra Storchová
Foto: Vlastislav Macháček and Dr. Černá archive
Shortly after her postgraduate diploma doctor Černá emigrated to Canada, where at first she lived through two tough years before being able to do her dream job. However, living abroad brought her a lot of valuable experience including doctor’s degree at university in British Columbia. Currently she is working at the clinic of aesthetic surgery, Laderma, in Prague.
How did you happen to choose plastic surgery?
Originally I wanted to dedicate myself to midwifery. I consider helping bringing children into the world to be one of the most beautiful professions within medicine. In the second year of university the today very well-known associate professor, Jan Měšťák, became our lecturer. He managed to win the students of medicine with his characteristic kind behavior and mainly with his skills. I think he was the one who definitely won me over for plastic surgery. I became charmed by his subject, which at that time was not very well-known here.
Isn’t surgery a typical area, where the men’s chauvinist opinion that women don’t belong there prevails?
I don’t think it to be particularity of surgery since it only reflects attitudes and opinions of our society. At the time when I was working on my postgraduate diploma, the ratio was about nine men to one woman. Surgery is extremely time demanding. Only few women can devote to it the way men can. And I understand certain belittling. Women are more often led by their feelings, which is given by their function as mothers, and in surgery it is important to keep a certain distance and ability to decide quickly. After all, even men have to leave sometimes since they are not fit for this area. But this doesn’t mean they cannot become great specialists within internal diseases. And it doesn’t mean there cannot be excellent women surgeons, either.
After managing to go through everything necessary and reaching a good position here you emigrated. Why?
Because my ex-husband had emigrated to Canada and my son had been missing him terribly.
You left everything behind because your son had been missing his father?
He was twelve at the time and that’s a period when a boy needs his dad perhaps even more than he needs his mum. And although his dad hadn’t been living with us then, they had spent a lot of time together. His dad lived nearby and my son could visit him whenever he wanted to. And all of a sudden his dad was gone, he missed him and wanted to follow him.
Was it difficult to start off?
Typical beginning after emigration: you work your way up through the bucket, rag and broom (literally!) towards better and better work opportunities, such as babysitting, taking care of old people, work in a lab… And as you get better grasp of the language and pass various courses, you slowly move up on the ladder of work opportunities until you reach the university level again. Two tough years.
