An inspiring East Lothian mum-of-four has taken a 15-month sabbatical from her GP job to launch a new sustainable medical bag business.
Catherine Fernando, 44, from Haddington, says that she absolutely adores her job as a medic but that she was motivated to take a break and launch herself into the world of fashion after finding a female-sized gap in the market.
The caring mum says that the traditional Gladstone bags that have been used by doctors for over a century were marketed at what was once a male dominated profession. She says that the bags lack not only a practical element but they also do not allow female healthcare professionals to celebrate their femininity and personality.
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Catherine adds that around 60 per cent of GPs are now female in the UK and that it is about time the market caught up with their need. This led to her spending her evenings at the dining table drafting up designs for new colourful vegan medical bags.
Catherine, who lives with her husband Kevin, 47, her four children, Daniele 7, Sienna 10, Maria 12, Dominic 15, and her mother Sylvia McCulloch, 82, who suffers from dementia, says that she manages to find the time by having an extremely hard work ethic. The mum admits that Netflix is not part of her nightly routine as she focuses on her family commitments and professional goals.
“Healthcare was always what I wanted to do as it was my dream when I was younger to become a doctor,” she said.
“I worked at the Western General for a number of years before I moved to East Lothian to become a GP and start my family. It is amazing what has happened as getting involved in the fashion world was not something I ever set out to accomplish.
“I actually love being a GP and I was crying on my last day before I took fifteen months out to launch IYASU. I’m looking forward to going back after as the job is so interesting and satisfying but my focus for now is getting the business up and running.
“It is funny because I have spent a lot of my career trying to be the best doctor that I can. I love covering a wide range of issues and looking after people from birth to death.
“As a female doctor I have always enjoyed dressing fashionably and I feel strongly that women should not be discriminated against for what they wear. We should not be shown less respect or seen with less authority just because we express our femininity with our work clothes.
“The idea for the business came when I was looking for a new doctor's bag. It came to my attention that all the products were extremely masculine and were available either in black, brown or grey which just is not me.
“I looked all over the place for something that expressed my personality but would also be practical for the job but I could not find anything. The Gladstone bag design has been the traditional bag used by doctors for around the past 150 years.
“It was designed at a time when only men were allowed to practise medicine and I feel the industry has been trapped in that time. There has been gender discrimination in our profession until recently when women have begun to outnumber male GPs and those studying medicine at university.
“So I recognised a gap in the market with that demographic change.”
Catherine says that female-focused medical bags had to be addressed within the industry so that women could express their femininity. She says that her goal was for the bag to be both beautiful and functional.
She argues that her old Gladstone bag was neither. She adds that they have a masculine dull design and there are not enough pockets to stop medical equipment from becoming tangled and disorganised.
“Initially I sat at my dining room table drawing medical bag designs and from there I got someone who did computer designs to help finalise the design,” she continued.
“I then discussed my idea with Business Gateway East Lothian who agreed that it was a great plan. They then put me onto Scottish Enterprise and their Innovation Expert Support Scheme where the idea was put through analysis to see if it was an idea worth exploring further.
“I work really hard everyday to set an example to my children. I get up really early in the morning and my husband and I share a very strong work ethic to show our children you can be whatever you want to be and can achieve whatever you want so long as you work for it.
“We want them to realise their potential and for them to have all the opportunities we can provide. I guess a little secret is that I do not watch things like Netflix.
“I am working most of the time but I also try to stay healthy and have quality time with the kids. Of course it is not easy but we are work driven in our family.
“I think the kids are really proud. They are trying to get involved with the textiles designs and they are inspired by it.
“My son would love to go into business and my daughters love the fashion element, especially the shoots. We use real doctors and get them dressed up in different coloured scrubs - we enjoy the girly side of it together.
“For me it wasn’t about just making money. I also wanted to be conscientious about the materials we used, so I spent a long time exploring our options. We looked at vegan leathers produced using fruits like pineapple and apple as well as mushroom leather but they were not economically viable for larger scale production.
“People would not pay thousands of pounds for their bags. So we looked at using recycled plastic bottles which met a lot of our needs.
“They are not only environmentally friendly as they stop the bottles from ending up in landfill but they also make the bags waterproof and very durable. The trimmings are made from vegan leather as when I looked at animal leather and the chemicals used to treat it, it was very problematic as the factory runoff can cause cancer in surrounding communities.”
Catherine says that the business recently launched to a fantastic reception with women in medicine giving overwhelming positive feedback. She says that everyone who has purchased a bag to date has given it a five star review.
“One thing that people have loved is the range in colour. They are available in red, navy, green, mulberry purple and even black for the more conservative,” she added.
“This is totally new in medicine as now healthcare professionals can express their own personality in style. I’d love to be able to market globally to female medics all over the world.
“We have named our bags after inspirational pioneering women in the medical industry. For instance we have the Elizabeth bag named after Elizabeth Blackwell who was the first woman to practise medicine in the USA and the UK.
“We also have the Elsie bag named after Elsie Inglis who was a pioneering medical professional and suffragist from Edinburgh. Each of our six styles has a story behind it.
“Our website also features blogs about inspiring modern women in medicine who are doing incredible things. We are also looking to support charities that back educating girls around the world.
“One of the charities we support is the Malala Fund. Five per cent of our profits will go to the charity to support women being educated around the world.”
The name IYASU comes from the Japanese word for ‘heal.’ You can explore the company's website here.
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