Lesley worked as a GP for 25 years. She believes that the role of a doctor is to promote holistic health care and to engage with the wider issues which affect health. She has a longstanding interest in the role of medical humanities in medical education and clinical care, and she is co-editor of Tools of the Trade, a book of poetry gifted to all Scottish medical graduates with the aim of offering support and nurturing creativity. She strongly believes that, in order to care for others, doctors need to care for themselves, and this has never been more true.