Bringing everyone together after a year apart

 

Student-run Richard Doll Society (RDS) held its annual conference on Saturday 23 October 2021, Diversity and Inclusivity in Healthcare: bringing everyone together after a year apart.

The theme of this year’s conference was selected due to the paramount importance of healthcare professionals to understand the varied inequalities experienced by different communities, including but not limited to Black, Asian and minority ethnic, homeless, disabled and LGBTQ+ patients. The RDS hope that by improving the awareness and understanding of these inequalities, attendees will be better equipped to serve the individual needs of these patient groups in their clinical practice going forward, translating into better patient experiences and even outcomes.

The conference included a range of facilitators from across the UK, each with specialist expertise in different areas of diversity. In the morning, speakers delivered talks on a range of topics, from ‘Inclusive approaches to healthcare research’ (Dr Ghazala Mir) to ‘Homeless healthcare’ (Dr Nigel Hewett OBE), through to ‘Ableism in the NHS’ (Dr Hannah Barham-Brown). In the afternoon, the conference came together for a panel discussion focusing on LGBTQ+ healthcare inequalities. The panel included both patients and clinicians, facilitating insightful discussion between the panel and the audience.

The conference was run as a hybrid event to maximise inclusion, with online tickets being freely available to all, and in-person tickets free for all GTC affiliates, which enabled over 180 attendees to participate in the conference. For the first time, the RDS also opened the conference to 6th form students. The conference was attended by students from across the UK, from Birmingham to Penrith, all with varied backgrounds, but with a shared passion for diversity in healthcare. We hope to see some of these inspiring students at Green Templeton College in the future.

The conference was accredited by the Royal College of Physicians for 5 CPD points, with certificates provided to candidates after the event. The conference received widespread positive feedback, with some particularly heart-warming feedback from the school students for the opportunity to attend.

The RDS team are very proud to have carried out this event and are thankful to all the support we have had from GTC for making this event possible. They would also like to thank the generosity of the Annual Fund donors whose contributions made the event possible.

More information about the conference

More information about the Richard Doll Society 

If you have any questions or ideas for the society, contact the team.

Joseph Cutteridge, RDS President