Tag: Medical school

‘It can make a massive difference’: How to be a trans ally

Every student deserves to be treated with dignity, respect and fairness at University. Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case for transgender students. So, how can you step up and be an authentic ally for the transgender student community? Medical student, Elliot, discusses all things allyship.

Treating people with respect and dignity is the utmost priority for many people at university, however meeting someone who is transgender can be confusing and new for a lot of people. With ever changing laws, media output and opinion, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and swept up when trying to care about those around you. I have compiled the some tips for supporting the trans (non-cis) people in your life, so that you know where to start. 

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Forming the LGBTQIA+ International Support Group

Map of the world made of circles of different sizes in colors of LGBT rainbow pride flag isolated on white

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, intersex or aseaxual (LGBTQIA+) travellers can face unique challenges when travelling abroad. That’s why, Rosie Maddren, Lucy Okell, Beth Cracknell-Daniels, Joseph Hicks and Christina Aitchison from the School of Public Health set up the LGBTQIA+ International Support Group at Imperial to help improve the overall experience of going abroad for LGBTQIA+ staff and student travellers.

“So are you married?”

I freeze. How do I respond? It seems like a simple enough question, but I’m gay (and so is my spouse). The question is being asked by a taxi driver in a country where not only is same-sex marriage illegal, but so is homosexuality in general. And it’s not just something imposed by the government. A recent poll suggested that 90% of this country’s citizens have a negative view of LGBTQ people. So how do I respond? How would you?

Travelling abroad for work is a rewarding opportunity that can come with challenges for any student or staff member. For those identifying as part of the LGBTQIA+ community, such travel can be associated with further complications. Legal restrictions and societal norms of some countries may make LGBTQIA+ staff and students feel anxious, unwelcome or unsafe. Unfortunately, in certain environments being your true self can directly impact your safety. On the other hand, presenting a censored version of yourself may negatively impact your mental health and wellbeing. There is no single correct way to navigate such situations, and there is limited guidance on this topic provided not only by Imperial, but wider networks across the globe. Last year, a group of us started working together to help build support for LGBTQIA+ staff and student travellers at Imperial.

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Advancing diversity in the healthcare workforce

Brian Wang

When Imperial alumnus Dr Brian Wang founded In2MedSchool, he had one aim: to break down the barriers preventing students from disadvantaged backgrounds pursuing medicine. Brian shares his motivations for supporting the next generation of medics.

In the summer of 2022, before my final year of medical school, I had the opportunity to support the national efforts against the COVID-19 pandemic at Imperial College Healthcare Trust NHS hospitals. My experiences as a medical student and volunteer during this time kick-started my passion for advocating diversity within the healthcare workforce. Levelling the playing field and ensuring the diversity and representation of medical staff—in my mind at least—seems beneficial to the healthcare workforce and the communities that our healthcare system supports.

Today I am the founder of In2MedSchool, a charity that provides support for disadvantaged children with ambitions to study Medicine and healthcare-related degrees at university.

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Inspirational leadership matters: supporting the next generation of clinical academics

Dr Maddalena Ardissino

This festive period, Three Wise Women from the Faculty of Medicine will be giving us the gift of wisdom.

The journey to becoming a clinical academic can be long and arduous, with many obstacles. Dr Maddalena Ardissino, from the National Heart and Lung Institute, reflects on her own experiences as a trainee and explains why mentorship is key to supporting the growth and development of young, aspiring clinical academics.

Almost exactly five years ago, I stood amongst a crowd of young academics at a poster session at the Intensive Care Society’s annual conference, experiencing a feeling of anxiety I’ve never known before or since. I was in my fifth year of medical school and standing in front of a group of excellent researchers who were about to listen to me give my first scientific presentation. It seemed unthinkable to me, at the time, to think that they might have the slightest interest in what I had to say.

Since then, my journey through clinical and academic training has been what I can only describe as an adventure. I quickly realised that there isn’t a single defined path for clinical academics, with each individual moulding a slightly different journey. When I look around at my fellow clinical academics at the National Heart and Lung Institute, however, there is one key feature that we all share: enthusiasm. And behind this feature there is one single, common theme: the support of a truly inspirational mentor.

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World AIDS Day: We have come a very long way but there is still much to do to protect those at risk

Professor Sarah Fidler

This festive period Three Wise Women from the Faculty of Medicine will be giving us the gift of wisdom.

While HIV is no longer the death sentence that it once was, lifelong treatment is still required and there is no cure – yet. Professor Sarah Fidler from the Department of Infectious Disease discusses how a new type of HIV treatment holds promise as a longer-lasting alternative to current complex drug regimens.

Despite extraordinary political and medical advances, HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, remains one of the world’s most serious public health challenges. Since its discovery in 1983 by researchers at the Pasteur Institute in France, 84 million people worldwide are estimated to have become HIV-positive and 40 million people have died from an HIV-related illness. Today, there are around 38 million people living with HIV globally, with 1.5 million new infections in 2021.

Advocacy and close collaboration between clinicians, scientists and the HIV-affected community has inspired and driven the research and drug development and access agenda. Without these close working relationships, the development of HIV treatments would have been markedly slower and many more lives would have been lost.

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Balancing academics and athletics as a student-athlete

Joaquin Bello

In August 2022, fifth-year Medical student, Joaquin Bello, and his twin brother, Javier Bello, made history as England’s first-ever Commonwealth Games beach volleyball medallists. Joaquin reflects on his journey to becoming a professional volleyball player, and the challenges of juggling academic studies with sports stardom.

This summer I won a bronze medal at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games, the culmination of many years of hard work whilst balancing my studies with training. While I hope my dual-career is far from over, I wanted to reflect on my journey so far and the lessons that I have learnt along the way.

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Food for thought: Experiences from Imperial’s Food Student Research Network Conference

Dr Aaron M. Lett, Director of the Food Student Research Network, providing a plenary talk and officially launching the Food Student Research Network.

Recognising the value of interdisciplinary learning, Imperial’s Food Student Research Network aims to bring together students from across the College’s faculties to enable the cross-fertilisation of ideas and research in fields relevant to food. Here, members reflect on the Network’s inaugural conference.

In September, Imperial’s Food Student Research Network hosted its first Annual Conference. Reflective of the ethos of the network, this conference was an event for students, led by students.

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Medicine in the Mountains

In March 2022, a group of medical students undertook a research expedition to the Atlas Mountains in Morocco. Georgia Leggett, reflects on her experience summiting Mount Toubkal and the challenges that come with conducting research in such a remote environment.

Before starting at Imperial, I was fortunate enough to co-lead a couple of charity projects in Brazil, where my varied experiences sparked my interest in health care provision in remote and extreme environments. Applying for the Remote Medicine BSc was an obvious choice, as it provided the opportunity to integrate my love of travel and adventure into my medical degree, and in March 2022, seven other students and I had the opportunity to carry out a research expedition to the Atlas Mountains in Morocco as part of our BSc projects.

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The value of conversation: discussing with others exposed me to new challenges

A group of students sitting around a table talking and reading

Cate Goldwater Breheny, undergraduate student at the School of Medicine, reflects on their first MEdIC Masterclass and the discussions sparked around diversity and inclusivity.

When I first suggested signing up to medical education masterclasses over the summer, people were skeptical. After a long year of university, wouldn’t it be better to have some time off? Why medical education over a paying job or maybe a scientific internship?

And I confess, I was perhaps a little skeptical too. Yet, it only took five minutes to sign up, and then I had the rest of term to worry about. As it turned out, that was five minutes incredibly well spent.

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Researching remote medicine from our own homes

Student group pictured on a field trip to the Brecon Beacons pre-Covid-19

Our BSc in Remote Medicine for intercalating medical students focuses on exploring medicine in remote and low-resource environments.

Normally students would have an opportunity to travel to the Nepali Himalayas to carry out a research project. With the expedition cancelled due to Covid-19, four remote medicine students discuss how they adapted their research projects.

Carmen

For my original research project, I chose to investigate sleep during an expedition to high altitude. Previous research has shown that human error is the leading cause of mountaineering accidents and at sea-level, sleep deprivation increases the risk of accidents due to human error. Therefore, my aim was to determine the contribution of the mountaineering environment to poor sleep and impaired cognitive performance on an expedition to altitude – using a reaction time application as a surrogate marker for cognitive function. Unfortunately, due to COVID-19 the planned expedition to Nepal was cancelled and so I devised a pilot study to test the reaction time application I wanted to use at altitude remotely with a small group of participants simulating a night slept at altitude in their own homes. (more…)