College of Life Sciences
News and events
Follow @uol_medrace on Instagram and Twitter for our latest updates.
March 2025
A 'standout example': taking the BMA racial harassment charter from commitment to change
MedRACE is delighted to be celebrated by the British Medical Association as a 'standout example' of how medical schools can take the BMA racial harassment charter from commitment to change. The BMA state, 'MedRACE have taken the charter’s core commitments seriously, developing an ambitious initiative to foster an inclusive and supportive learning environment that addresses racial harassment.' See the BMA video below, recorded at the opening of the MedRACE Exhibition in February 2025 and read more about the BMA Charter.
February 2025
Celebrating five years of MedRACE!
This year it will have been five years since MedRACE was established and this landmark was marked by a week-long programme of events themed around inclusion in healthcare, from 3 to 9 February. This included an exhibition, workshops and a one-day conference. Read more.
October 2024
Fundraiser for The Hanoon Foundation and Save the Children
On 16 October, MedRACE held a bake sale, raising funds for The Hanoon Foundation/FQMS and Save the Children. We continue to overwhelmed by the generous staff and student support of these activities, and are delighted to announce that this event raised £4126, to be split between the two charities.
Leicester Medical Education Society Conference
On Saturday 12th October, MedRACE had the honour to be invited to give a keynote speech at the student-led MedEd Society Leicester Conference, which brought together medical students and Foundation Year doctors for an exciting day of interactive workshops, engaging oral and poster presentations and networking. See photos.
EDI Inductions, New Members and Medical School Open Days
The first few weeks of term have been busy ones for MedRACE, as members have been busy delivering active bystander training, attending open days and delivering an EDI induction lecture to over 300 Year 1 students. We are pleased to have recruited new members too, and have lots of upcoming opportunities for students and staff to get involved in a range of projects.
September 2024
Keynote Speakers at the RAISE Conference
MedRACE were delighted to be invited to present a Keynote session at the 2024 RAISE Conference (Researching, Advancing and Inspiring Student Engagement), which this year had the theme, 'Equity in Attainment & Student Success'. The conference was hosted at the University of Leicester, on 11th and 12th September. See more photographs from our presentation and read more about RAISE. We were excited to make some new connections from this event with potential collaborations in the pipeline.
June 2024
A second bake sale and incredible fundraising results
MedRACE held a second bake sale in support of Medicine for Palestinians (MAP) on 17th June, raising over £1300 on the day, and bringing the total raised in collaboration with the Muslim Medics Forum and the Sanctuary Seekers Unit, University of Leicester, to over £21,000. Read more about this important charity and why MedRACE got involved.
Decolonising Medicine and Health Conference
Several members of MedRACE attended the Decolonising Medicine and Health Conference at the University of Exeter on 12th June, presenting three posters and participating in a Student/Staff Panel. It was great to make useful connections with other universities working in this field and learn about good practices and projects.
May 2024
Welcome to our new MedRACE student co-chairs
As we approach the end of the academic year, we wholeheartedly thank Kiran Bhavra for her fantastic contribution to MedRACE as student co-chair with Amardeep Sidki. Amardeep will continue in the role for another year and is joined by Ayesha Ahmad and Olivia Nwosu (pictured). Meet our co-chairs.
March 2024
Anti-Racism in Healthcare Conference
MedRACE alumni attended the Anti-Racism in Healthcare Conference, held at Brighton and Sussex Medical School on 12th March. Congratulations to Kike Solanki, who gave a prize-winning presentation! Learn more about our MedRACE alumni.
Midlands Racial Equality in Medicine Network Conference 2024
Student and staff MedRACE members attended the annual MREM Conference, held this year at the University of Keele on Saturday 2nd March. There were fantastic speakers, inspirational posters and excellent workshops. Congratulations to Ololade Tijani and MedRACE for winning one of three poster prizes on the day, and to Uchizi Mvalo who was part of the organising team!
February 2024
MedRACE and partners fundraising bake sale
On 1st February, MedRACE teamed up with student societies and was supported by local businesses, staff and students to hold a fundraising Bake sale for Medical Aid for Palestinians. Over £2000 was raised on the day, and overall, the campaign raised over £20,000! Read more here
November 2023
MedRACE Open Meeting and launch of MedRACE+
On 29th November, MedRACE was pleased to welcome staff and students from across Life Sciences and the NHS to our second Open Meeting. Our big topic of conversation was what is next for MedRACE and the launch of MedRACE+, our partner groups spearheading projects across Disability and Long Term Conditions (MedDIaLeCt), and LGBTQ+ (MedPRIDE Leicester). Table discussion groups shared their ideas and of course, there was cake! See more pictures from the event.
October 2023
Black History Month
This year, MedRACE marked Black History Month with a digital poster and social media campaign, led by Phoebe Avbulimen and Ololade Tijani, that celebrated the achievements of our Black members and local University Hospitals Leicester professionals. Members also participated in a range of events across the University, including a health and wellbeing event.
Lupus Awareness Month
In response to a request from a Medical School student, MedRACE facilitated a social media and digital poster campaign to raise awareness of the chronic autoimmune disease, Lupus. In people with lupus, the immune system creates autoantibodies to attack the body’s tissues. Lupus is two to three times more common in African-American women than in Caucasian women. It's also more common in Hispanic, Asian, and Native American women. African-American and Hispanic women are more likely to have severe forms of lupus so it’s very important to identify the signs in different skins. https://lupusuk.org.uk
July 2023
MedRACE Open Meeting: Connecting, sharing ideas and celebrating student contribution
Staff and students were invited to join a celebratory round up of MedRACE activity in our open MedRACE meeting, on Monday 17 July, in the George Davies Centre. This was an opportunity to say goodbye to our outgoing student co-chairs and reflect on MedRACE's activity over the last few years. A student-led activity allowed discussion and contribution to to the future direction of MedRACE. Oh, and there was lots of cake! Read more and see photos from the event.
Loughborough University doctoral-researcher led conference
MedRACE students Wendy Tetteh and Takunda Nhiwatiwa were guest speakers at the inaugural Unequal Academic Citizenships’ (‘CITHEI’) Centre for Doctoral Training conference at Loughborough University, sharing MedRACE's work to develop a racially inclusive curriculum.
April 2023
Welcoming our new student co-chairs
This month, our student co-chairs Wendy Tetteh and Takunda Nhiwatiwa handed over the baton to new student co-chairs Amardeep Sidki and Kiran Bhavra! Read more about our MedRACE co-chairs and why MedRACE is important to them.
British Society for Haematology
MedRACE Staff co-chair Dr Shameq Sayeed spoke on diversity in UK undergraduate training education, sharing examples of MedRACE projects at the British Society for Haematology Annual Scientific Meeting, April 2023 (Annual Scientific Meeting 2023 recording available).
March 2023
MedRACE at Advance HE EDI Conference
MedRACE members Takunda Nhiwatiwa and Amardeep Sidki gave an oral presentation the MedRACE inclusive curriculum project, co-creation and delivery in the medical curriculum at Advance HE's national EDI conference, held in Hull.
Collaboration to raise awareness of skin conditions
MedRACE have collaborated with Leicester Dermatology Society (@leicesterdermatology) to produce a set of educational social media posts to raise awareness about skin conditions that disproportionately affect people of colour. Read more on Instagram @uol_medrace.
February 2023
Midlands Racial Equality in Medicine Network Conference 2023 at Leicester
MedRACE was delighted to support the MREM Network conference, on Saturday 11 March, which this year was co-directed by MedRACE members Takunda Nhiwatiwa and Kiran Bhavra! The event featured keynote speakers, a student panel, posters and workshops. The MedRACE team was in full force to help with the smooth running of the day. This student-led event was free and open to students and staff. Read more about Midlands Racial Equality in Medicine Conference 2023
January 2023
MedRACE succeeds in driving positive change in University Hospitals Leicester policy
MedRACE worked with the University Hospitals Trust (UHL) to change local NHS policy regarding the Kara; a metal bangle worn by Sikhs, after MedRACE member Amardeep Sidki highlighted this as a equality issue. After a thorough review, it was agreed across all UHL sites that the Kara does not need to be removed when in the hospital, including surgical scrubbing. Read more in Amardeep's blog.
September 2022
EDI induction and active bystander training delivered to almost 1000 students!
Throughout September, staff and students of MedRACE have co-delivered EDI and active bystander training sessions. This involved 5 lectures and over 40 group work sessions reaching nearly 1000 students in foundation year, year 1, year 3 and final year students! Audience participation and engagement in these sessions has allowed for many views and opinions to be raised, enhancing the delivery of these sessions.
Panel speakers at Black History Month Symposium
MedRACE students Ololade Tijani and Divine Maduka contributed to a panel discussion on the experiences of Black students at the University of Leicester, as part of the College of Life Sciences inaugural Black History Month Symposium.
MedRACE presentation and workshop at UK Medical Schools EDI Network Meeting (12 September)
MedRACE student co-chairs Takunda Nhiwatia and Wendy Tetteh spoke on their perspectives on Race Equality within medical schools and medical education, and Divine Maduka joined Takunda to run a workshop on the importance of students in the development of inclusive curricula in Medical Education.
June 2022
Speaker Event: Tackling Differential Attainment in Medical Education, Professor Katherine Woolf, UCL
Held on Wednesday 22 June, in person with remote access
The GMC has pledged to “eradicate disadvantage and discrimination in medical education and training” by 2031. Professor Katherine Woolf, UCL, presented an overview of the evidence in relation to differential attainment by ethnicity in medical education and shared evidence-based suggestions for tackling this pervasive problem.
This event was jointly hosted by Leicester University Medics Afro-Caribbean Society (LUMACS) and MedRACE, supported by the University of Leicester Medical School.