Bringing balance

The British Association of Black Surgeons (BABS), the UK’s largest collaboration of Black surgical professionals, was launched in October 2021. They aim to promote diversity and inclusivity across the surgical field, widen participation in surgical leadership and promote long-term career development. BABS strive for professional excellence in patient care, education, and research. They encourage students and trainees to be involved in audits, quality improvement and collaborative research. Furthermore, they recognise that early mentorship can have a huge impact on future generations.

BABS held their inaugural conference at the Royal College of Surgeons of England in November last year. It was a memorable day for all, honouring surgeons of the past, present, and future, whilst recognising the journey that must be continued to ensure equity and inclusivity for all. The platinum sponsor for the conference was the Royal College of Surgeons of

Edinburgh (RCSEd). BABS is an organisation that strives for professional excellence in patient care, education and research. It encourages students and trainees to be involved in audits, quality improvement and collaborative research. Furthermore, it recognises that early mentorship can have a huge impact on future generations.

Recognise The Challenges

Sarah Itam, Consultant Urological Surgeon, BABS CEO and Chair, kicked off the day highlighting some of the proven surgical challenges faced by Black individuals. These range from difficulty entering medical school (despite having equivalent grades), through to entering positions of leadership as a consultant.

After an honest and wholesome introduction in relation to these challenges, and the importance of associations such as BABS, one could sense heartfelt movement within the crowd, who were simultaneously filled with anticipation and high expectations for the rest of the day. In Itam’s words: “If the surgical landscape fails to include everyone, everyone in the surgical landscape has failed [and therefore] ultimately, we have failed our patients.”

Lord Victor Adebowale CBE and Patron of BABS then gave an address. He shared with us his mother’s experiences of racism and the lack of opportunities she faced as a nurse within the NHS. The NHS is celebrating 75 years of service and, although steps have been taken to improve the racial disparity in health outcomes and the lack of diversity in leadership, these issues persist. Offering his personal support, Lord Adebowale engaged an audience of current and future surgeons with his words of encouragement and fervent support.

Professor Michael Griffin OBE, Immediate Past President of the RCSEd, led a factual discussion that provided the audience with hard-hitting statistics regarding the poor representation of Black surgeons in the College and the wider surgical community. The reality being that the Royal Colleges of Surgeons in the UK, the NHS and its supportive collaborators need to

“work together to put it right”.

Tim Mitchell, Senior VicePresident of RCS England, further highlighted the important role the Royal Colleges will play in the coming years, emphasising that this is a “wake-up call” for them.

Differential attainment is a hot topic at present. Samantha Tross, the first female of African-Caribbean descent to become a trauma and orthopaedic surgeon, explained some of the multiple problems in this area and offered solutions to help close the gap in attainment –for example, grassroots projects, mentorship schemes, zero tolerance against discrimination and minority support groups such as BABS.

Consultant Oncoplastic Breast

Surgeon Louise Alder then went on to lead the delegates in a lively digital quiz that focused on the different characteristics of the surgical specialties.

Listen And Believe

Referring to the themes in Maslach and colleagues’ paper, Richard Jones from Practitioner Health stated that “burnout only happens in organisations that are on fire”. He explored the causes of this fire, including the onus being placed on individuals to improve the situation in which they work. So how can we change the culture within healthcare? He believes we need to want to listen to each other, believe in our colleagues and want them to succeed. We also need to establish safe pathways for raising concerns.

Consultant Urological and Robotic Surgeon Professor Kingsley

Ekwueme interviewed Consultant Urological Surgeon Professor Frank Chinegwundoh MBE. Professor Chinegwundoh discussed his gateway into research and why he was so invested.

The discussion highlighted a popular paper published in BJU International entitled ‘Risk and presenting features of prostate cancer amongst African-Caribbean, South Asian and European men in north-east London’ – research that has greatly helped to improve equity of treatment of prostate cancer.

Above: Andrew F Alalade makes the case for the MCR

Above right: Professor Frank Chinegwundoh MBE (left) being interviewed by Professor Kingsley

Ekwueme

Below: Georgette Oni taking part in afternoon panel debate on the multiple consultant report

Mcr Debate

In the early afternoon, we entered a panel debate around the topic of the multiple consultant report (MCR). Andrew F Alalade, Consultant Neurosurgeon, on the team arguing for the MCR, commented that having multiple assessors, being able to choose your clinical supervisor and a national selection programme have helped break down racial barriers.

become financially healthy, with tips and tricks on how to invest for future generations.

After a coffee break and networking session, there was a vibrant buzz among delegates.

References Montgomery A, Panagopoulou E, Esmail A, Richards T, Maslach C. Burnout in healthcare: the case for organisational change.

BMJ. 2019 Jul 30;366:l4774. doi: 10.1136/bmj.l4774.

PMID: 31362957.10.1136/ bmj.l4774

Georgette Oni, Consultant Plastic Reconstructive and Oncoplastic Breast Surgeon, argued against the MCR, suggesting that the MCR can be a subjective process and that work-based assessments may be heavily weighted based on your relationship with the assessor.

Burnout only happens in organisations that are on fire

Deepa Bose, consultant orthopaedic, trauma and limb-reconstructive surgeon, humbled attendees with her experiences in global and humanitarian surgery. She emphasised that a lack of diversity is life-threatening on a local and global scale. She stated, “investment is affordable and can save lives” and highlighted areas to be invested in, including clinical care, advocacy, education and research.

After this, Consultant Urological Surgeon Graham Watson gave an inspiring talk about the work he is doing with Medi Tech Trust and invited delegates to get involved.

Allyship And Respect

Martin Griffiths CBE DL, consultant trauma and vascular surgeon, shared his experiences of working with schools and the community to build compassion and help prevent violent attacks that lead to many unnecessary deaths. He is a firm supporter of allyship and working together to achieve a safe community for all.

This was followed by a presentation from Olamide Dada, founder and CEO of Melanin Medics, a non-profit organisation that supports African-Caribbean medical students to get into medical school, and a key advocate in moulding the future generation.

Jerran D Whyte, Managing Partner at Belvedere Wealth Management, offered his knowledge on how to

For the investment to be a success, being prepared to learn from others, and having patience and respect, is integral.

Resounding Success

To improve equity and diversity within healthcare, Lord Simon Woolley Kt, founding Director of Operation Black Vote, gave an empowering keynote speech. He invited everyone to look around the conference hall to take in this historic occasion. He stated that we need to own our voice, demand change, keep hope alive and inspire a generation to help one another succeed.

The BABS inaugural conference, held on the 15th November 2022, was a momentous day for all. One that exceeded all expectations. Sarah Itam thanked those who attended and supported the event. BABS certainly went above and beyond to show the next generation what Black excellence looks like: a mirror image of themselves.