"I feel quite satisfied with what I leave behind"

In 2016, Christina Ljungberg became the new Head of the Department of Surgical and Perioperative Sciences. A mission that was not at all a natural choice at the beginning, despite the encouragement of her then head of department. So what was it that made her do it anyway?

- It was curiosity, I guess, and a fun development opportunity, says Christina, who has worked as a lecturer in hand surgery since 2008.

As a lecturer, Christina teaches medical students in semester 8 where hand surgery is a block. She was also a course coordinator for a while, and since 2009 she has also been involved in the Programme Council of the Medical Programme.

- I was the chair of that council for almost three years," says Christina.

There have been many assignments in recent years. Assignments that have caused her own research to take a back seat.

- I did my PhD 22 years ago, and was doing it for a while in my post, but then it became difficult to keep it going because I was doing my PhD in experimental research, so it was a bit difficult to combine, Christina explains.

It was understandably difficult to keep up, because in addition to her academic duties, she was also the medical director of the clinic for a period.

- Yes, I obviously take on a lot," laughs Christina.

Now that her role as head of department has come to an end, she won't be lying on the sidelines just yet. In the future, she will focus on developing the course element on hand surgery and work more on educational development work. But also to take up research again, which has been dormant for a couple of years.

- But I will still have the assignments within the programme that I have had in parallel with this one (head of department, editor's note), says Christina.  

In addition to the plans for herself, Christina will continue as coordinator for the four study areas and chair of the study social committee, as well as a member of the board for the AT exam, a national board responsible for making questions for the AT exam. So it has definitely been busy.

- But it's mostly at the end that it's been difficult to fit everything into the calendar,' says Christina.

Looking back on the past years

What are you most proud of having achieved during your seven years as a prefect?

- I would say that the institution as it stands today is something I am proud of. It's not that different from when I joined, but we have, for example, created this administrative node that works fantastically well,' says Christina.

One of Christina's development projects during her time as head of department was to bring together the administrative functions of the department and have them sit together. Something that has been appreciated by everyone.

- Staff are very happy with this function," explains Christina.  

In addition to the administrative node, Christina has also worked on joint workplace meetings, which has strengthened the department's sense of 'we'.

- I feel quite satisfied with what I leave behind, says Christina.

What will you take with you after all these years?

- A hell of a lot of experience, both good and not so good. But overall, I think it's been a good experience. Some things have been difficult, like having to close down the Sports Medicine Lab. It just didn't make sense, and the closure hurt because it was a bit of a "flagship" for Umeå, Christina explains.

As she stays with the organisation, she also takes with her all the good contacts she has made over the years. The experience and understanding of the University as a whole and how the complex organisation works is also something that Christina says has been useful. It can be difficult to see outside your own 'pond', and understand how everything fits together.

- Maybe that's what attracted me to be involved at a central level, to get a better grip and not just feel like I'm in a little bubble somewhere," says Christina.

The importance of collaboration and understanding how the organisation should work with others is something Christina has also worked on over the years.

- 'I wish I had started working on having more contact with the region earlier, because I think that would have been good, given the way things are in healthcare right now,' says Christina.

During her time as head of department, she has worked to arrange regular meetings between the region and the university, where departmental representatives and heads of department have met to discuss cooperation, both in research and education. Christina believes that a good dialogue is important for all parties, to be able to work together for the benefit of both students and patients, because the research we do today will benefit future patients.

The dream that changed direction

However, the idea of becoming a doctor had a completely different focus from the beginning.

- I really wanted to be a veterinarian," laughs Christina.

But an allergy to fur animals put an end to those plans, and instead it was her interest in biology and chemistry that led her to choose a medical degree.

- For a long time I thought I would do some kind of basic research. But then came the surgical semester and I realised that I might want to work as a doctor after all. Because I wasn't at all sure about it from the start. It took quite a long time before I made up my mind," says Christina.

Christina did her training in Uppsala. The fact that it turned out to be hand surgery was thanks to the anatomy course that was held during the second semester at the time. One of the lecturers had made preparations and recorded little films about how the motor functions of the hand worked.

- I was so fascinated by it and thought 'what if you could only do things with your hands'," says Christina.

At the time, she had no idea that there was such a speciality, but there and then her interest in hand surgery, which is now Christina's speciality, was aroused. It was another semester before she found a book on hand surgery at the bookstore. A book that still sits on the bookshelf in the office of the Hand and Plastic Department.

The book is well read and filled with commentary.

- I bought it and started looking through it and realised that you could do microsurgery and stitch up little vessels, it seemed really exciting.

But getting into hand surgery is hard. So she had several different entry points in case it didn't work out that way.

Two seconds to think about it

- 'I realised when I graduated that it wasn't going to be easy to get a "hand" in hand surgery, because they often bring in people who have surgical experience, either that you're an orthopaedic surgeon or that you're a surgeon at heart,' says Christina.

There was a thought of both orthopaedics, and infectious disease doctors. Infectious disease doctors were attractive because it's tricky and you can do things that have a quick effect.

- Infection feels like the surgical medicine,' Christina explains.

Although by her own admission she would never move north again, hand surgery was more appealing. The fact that she ended up in Umeå is a matter of luck, according to her. She had started research with a colleague in Uppsala who was supervised by Mikael Wiberg (now a senior professor). She applied for a ST in Umeå during her time as an intern, but did not get it. However, the one who got it dropped out after a while, and Mikael Wiberg called her back.

- How interested in hand surgery are you, he asked when he called, Christina says.

Two seconds of reflection was all it took before she accepted the offer and moved to Umeå. And that's the way it is.

What drives you at work?

- Learning new things, I guess, Christina quickly replies, but highlights that she also enjoys the problem-solving that comes with more pressing matters.

Future plans

What's next for you?

- Some time for consolidation, Christina laughs and continues; I'm actually meeting with the Dean soon and discussing my repatriation as it's called when you go back to your normal activities.

What's tempting right now is to go on an educational sabbatical visit for a couple of weeks, to get inspired, something Christina thinks would be fun. But there are also plans to take up research again.

- I'm thinking of doing a follow-up to a research study we did almost 20 years ago. It would be fun to follow up on those patients and see how they did," says Christina.

This autumn, there will also be a whole new schedule for semester 8 of the medical programme, which will mean a lot of work in the spring to get organised.

But the next step is a holiday in March to travel with her family to Australia. A well-deserved rest after long and faithful service!