Born in Cheltenham to parents originally from the borders, Tyler spent his childhood growing up in South East Wales. He completed an initial undergraduate degree in chemistry before transitioning directly into medicine. Having recently passed all his professional exams to become a member of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, he is currently a trainee rotating through South Wales while preparing to step up into higher psychiatric training.
Tyler says:
"Although I was born in Cheltenham, England while my parents were briefly living and working there, they moved our family back to South East Wales very quickly, so our roots have always been firmly in Wales. I spent all my formative years in and around West Cardiff, went to school at Cowbridge Comprehensive, so I very much consider South-East Wales to be my true home.
"Neither of my parents come from a medical background - my father worked in finance and my mother was in retail and hospitality before becoming a primary school teacher - meaning I was actually the first person in my family to attend university. I always had a strong passion for science, particularly chemistry during my GCSE and A-level years, which initially led me to complete a chemistry degree at Cardiff University. However, while working away in the School of Chemistry, I realized I was drawn much more towards direct social interaction and far less towards laboratory-bound research. Taking a part-time job in a local care home completely consolidated my thinking, pushing me to shift gears and pursue a career in medicine.
"Because medicine was my second undergraduate degree, I couldn't access traditional funding and had to completely self-fund my studies. Working shifts at the care home throughout the entire five-year duration of my medical degree at Cardiff University was an immense logistical and financial challenge, but looking back, it's something I'm incredibly proud of. Balancing care work with demanding clinical studies ultimately made me a better doctor; it gave me vital foundational experience in social care that directly feeds into my empathy and psychiatric practice today.
"After graduating from medical school in 2021, I completed my two foundation training years with the Cardiff and Vale University Health Board, working predominantly across the University Hospital of Wales at the Heath, alongside a few rotations at University Hospital Llandough. From there, I stepped straight into core psychiatry training within the Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board. It’s a highly dynamic rotational program, and over the last three years I've changed settings every six months to gain exposure to different aspects of the specialty - spanning general adult acute care, community mental health teams, child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS), and old age psychiatry.
"While I initially connected with old age psychiatry due to my care home background, working within general adult psychiatry made me realise it was the perfect clinical fit for me. I became particularly interested in developing a deeper understanding of addiction psychiatry. Seeing the widespread struggles in society around substance misuse, gambling, and other addictive behaviours made me want to gain direct clinical exposure. It has been an invaluable way to build deep empathy for a vulnerable patient group while simultaneously refining my complex clinical skills.
"Training in Wales has provided brilliant practical advantages. Financially, Health Education and Improvement Wales (HEIW) funds your first attempts at professional examinations, which was a massive incentive for me to stay in Wales and build my career here. Clinically, working in South East Wales exposes you to a fantastic degree of complex, varied cases alongside heavily supportive seniors. People often talk about London health boards like the Maudsley being the most prestigious because they write the gold-standard UK prescribing guidelines, but I genuinely believe people focus too much on what they look like on paper rather than developing who they are as a well-rounded professional. Wales offers world-class training without compromising your life outside of the hospital.
"While some peers from medical school took immediate gap years to travel and work in places like Australia or New Zealand, staying in South Wales was absolutely the right decision for me. Bing a slightly older graduate, I was simply at a different point in my life where settling down was my priority. My partner was also born and raised in Cardiff - in fact, we met years ago when we were both working shifts together at the care home while I was at university. We love our life here and are looking forward to starting our own family together, with our first daughter due to arrive soon.
"Outside of my hospital shifts, living in Wales provides a brilliant backdrop for staying active. I'm a keen runner and love getting outdoors; South East Wales offers a seamless balance of urban amenities and easily accessible green spaces. There is a wonderful running community here, and if you want a deeper escape into nature, iconic places like the Gower coastline or the Brecon Beacons are just a short commute away. I’ve completed a few half marathons in the past and am highly anticipating running the Cardiff Half Marathon again later this year. I'm also an avid coffee drinker and enjoy driving around to explore the vibrant independent coffee shops scattered across the region - nothing is ever too far away.
"I have absolutely no reservations about recommending Wales to any incoming medical student or trainee looking across the border. The culture is incredibly welcoming, the national identity is fantastic, and the introduction of the new resident doctor contract from August 2026 is heavily improving rotas, protecting work-life balance, and actively contributing to pay restoration. It is a genuinely supportive environment to build a long-term life.
"Looking toward the future, my personal hope for the next five years is to be a present father, raise a healthy young girl, and nurture our family life together in Cardiff. Professionally, I plan to successfully complete my higher psychiatric training here in Cwm Taf and transition into a fulfilling, long-term career as a Consultant General Adult Psychiatrist.”
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