University shines a light on careers in the mental health sector
Medicine Calling conference
A scheme encouraging young people to consider a career in the mental health sector is celebrating its achievements this weekend.
Medicine Calling aims to inspire and educate young people to think about the range of careers available within the mental health sector including psychiatry, mental health nursing and psychology. A particular focus of Medicine Calling is to encourage and provide opportunities for students from less traditional backgrounds to consider a career in medicine and healthcare.
Set up by health professionals from the University of Leicester and Leicestershire Partnership Trust in collaboration with NHS Health Education England and the Royal College of Psychiatrists, the scheme has spoken to more than 1,500 students in the city and county over the past year alone at various career events and workshops.
On Saturday 200 sixth-form students are expected to attend its annual conference at Leicester Medical School where guest speaker Dr Benji Waterhouse, a front-line NHS doctor specialising in psychiatry, award-winning comedian and Sunday Times best-selling author, will be guest of honour.
Dr Rachel Winter, psychiatrist and Associate Professor in Medical Education and Empathic Healthcare at the University of Leicester, helped found the initiative and continues to lead it.
She said: “Inspiring the next generation of mental health professionals and building awareness of the fascinating roles available to young people across the Midlands has been amazing.
“By connecting young people with healthcare professionals already in their roles, we hope to shine a light on a meaningful career path. Not only that but we aim to break down barriers for those who might not typically consider higher education as a viable option and show them how it could be achieved with some knowledge and advice along the way.
“Our interactive workshops are led by passionate psychiatrists and mental health nurses who can connect with students from different backgrounds, encouraging them to discover what a career in mental health can offer. Students can find out about a range of topics in mental health including empathy and communication, challenging stigma, brain health and neuroanatomy. Students also learn about the key skills, qualifications and values required to work in the NHS and how to prepare an application to university.
“There are so many stigmas surrounding mental illness and our work with Medicine Calling gives us the chance to break that down. We’re thrilled to welcome Dr Benji Waterhouse to our event. His real-world experience of psychiatry and ability to convey this authentically and with humour to young people is invaluable.”
Last month a report by the Sutton Trust revealed that only five per cent of medical students in the UK come from working class backgrounds, despite efforts to widen access to the profession.
The University of Leicester has already made strides to encourage disadvantaged students to take up medicine when it launched its six year Medicine with Foundation Year course in 2017.
The course is aimed at those who have the ambition and potential to study Medicine but whose background makes it unlikely they will be able to meet the entry requirements for the standard five-year Medicine degree.
Funding to help establish this major new course was provided by the Stoneygate Trust, set up by Sir Will and Lady Nadine Adderley. The support provided by the Trust also included a substantial scholarship aimed at helping students with tuition fees and living costs throughout their studies.
Students may have come from areas with low participation in higher education or are the first in their family to study at university. Entry grades are slightly lower than those of the five-year Medicine degree with successful applicants requiring three grade Bs in relevant subjects, rather than straight A grades or above.
Dr Sam Adcock, Head of Foundation Year at the University of Leicester Medical School, said: “There are numerous barriers to entering into medical school, and the workforce has historically not represented the population and communities that we live in.
“This is not about reducing quality or standards within medicine, and many students entering through widening participation pathways go on to excel academically in university and beyond – outperforming those from more traditional backgrounds. This is an important way to allow access regardless of privilege to the profession, and it enhances the learning environment for all students by exposing them to a wider range of perspectives and experiences.”
One of the first cohort’s successful graduates was Dr Harry Dudson-Musekiwa. The 26-year-old is in his first year as a doctor with the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust.
Harry grew up in a single-parent family on Leicester’s Saffron Estate.
He said: “I was caring for my mum and my nan when she was given a terminal cancer diagnosis so joining a medical degree felt like the last place on earth for me. But that experience of the healthcare system led me to medicine. I wanted to be a force for good, I just didn’t have all the necessary resources on hand to make it happen.
“Without the foundation year, I would not have been able to go to medical school. Once I was there, my problems didn’t stop, but the support I received from the University kept me going.”