MedSoc ReviewIssue 1 2016/2017

ARTE per form t heir

fant ast ic product ion of

Made in Dagenham !

The Squash Team are

crowned nat ional

cham pions!

The Birm ingham

St reet Doct ors host a

nat ional conference!

1 - Our Sponsors

5 - Sports

13 - Charit ies

15 - Societies

Contents

Welcome to the f irst edit ion of the Birmingham MedSoc Review 2016/17! This magazine aims to showcase the most recent highl ights f rom the ever-busy MedSoc Calendar, especial ly the most excit ing things that our sports teams, charit ies and societ ies have got up to since September.

This ranges f rom a superb performance f rom ARTE in their product ion of "Made in Dagenham", sport ing t riumphs f rom the squash, hockey, rugby and footbal l teams and some inspiring charity work in the local community f rom Med Minds and Street Doctors.

To f ind out more about what makes Birmingham MedSoc the best of i ts kind in the UK, please read on!

Dominic Mears

MedSoc Secretary 2016/17

https:/ /www.facebook.com/

medsocbham

https:/ / twitter.com/

BhamMedSoc

MedSoc SponsorsSome of the best things about your MedSoc membership are the excellent and exclusive deals it gets you! Here are some of those fantastic offers...

FREE ENTRY ON FRIDAY NIGHTS!

£1 OFF ENTRY TO VODBULL EVENTS!

10% OFF AT BOSTON TEA PARTY, HARBORNE!

15% OFF OnExamination REVISION RESOURCES!

25% OFF ELSEVIER TEXTBOOKS!

Check out the MedSoc Website for more exclusive deals, and keep your eyes peeled in September for BRAND NEW discounts!!

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Some are born great, some have greatness thrust upon them, and some create the MedSoc website...enter James Richmond.

James has worked tirelessly and relentlessly throughout the past 5 years to ensure that Birmingham MedSoc has the best MedSoc website in the UK.

It is thanks to his work that we are able to launch all MedSoc news, charit ies, societies , sports teams, grants applications, publications tickets, and bulletin posts all f rom the comfort of our own homes.

As if that wasn't enough, he has also recently crafted the all-new MedSoc App!

MedSoc are indebted to him and would like to publicly thank him for his outstanding contribution and wish him all the best for the future!

Dom Mears, MedSoc Secretary 2016/17

Tribute to our Website Rep:

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Medsoc of f er !£4 t icket s f or ever y Fr iday or Sat ur day show when you cal l and book

£5 t icket s wit h a dr ink f or ever y Fr iday or Sat ur day show when you cal l and book

£8 t icket s, wit h dr ink and a bur ger f or ever y Fr iday or Sat ur day show when t hey cal l and book ? incl udes 6 on br oad st r eet cl ub ent r y af t er

To book your t icket , cal l t he comedy box of f ice on:

020 3740 3700

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TEAM CULTURE

UBMS FC

UBMSFC has had an eventful f irst semester in the 2016/17 season. It all started on a sunny Sunday in Warwick for the Midlands Medical School tournament in a tough day competit ion against two Warwick sides and Leicester. We topped the group, the highlight of which was a fantastic strike by ex-chairman Fred Smith that found its way top bins. The f inal was against a strong Warwick 1s side and we stole the trophy with the last kick of the game.

Both our 1s and 2s have had strong campaigns in the Birmingham AFA leagues with the 1s stil l currently unbeaten in the league and in two cups. The 2s have had their best ever campaign and are strong contenders for promotion.

This year has also seen the introduction of a 3s team for the f irst t ime due to the record number of members the club now boasts. Playing in the Sunday intramural league this team is improving each week.

The prestigious TNL continues to be the (self-proclaimed) best event Medsoc has to offer. Its been described by Chaz Hudson, chairman of UBMSRFC, as "the best sporting event I've ever been involved in." Last seasons champions were the fourth year team who are giving the old team Fahmy's boys a run for their money for the reputation of greatest ever TNL side.

Sachin Vindla,

Chairman 5

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UBMS Squash ClubBirmingham Biceps Reign Supreme

For the f irst t ime in its history, Birmingham MedSoc has been crowned overall national medic squash champions ? the highest accolade in the medic squash world! In truly indomitable form, Birmingham Medic Squash clinched two out of the three national t it les in their path to glory, coming a close second in the third. The Ladies? A team became the ladies national champions for the second year running ? a feat no university has previously achieved. Meanwhile, the Men?s B team impressively became 2016/17 Men?s Championship national t it le-holders, whilst the Men?s A team were beaten 3-2 by UCL in a nail-bit ing f inal to become 2016/17 Men?s Premiership runner-ups. Such ubiquitous success across all three tournaments meant that the so-called ?Birmingham Biceps? were not only crowned overall national champions but also set a record for the most dominant NAMS performance by any university in recent years ? testament to the club?s vitality and vibrancy.

What?s more, this year also saw the biggest contingent of Birmingham players competing at the tournament, held in late November, with three men?s teams and two ladies? teams entered. Such a large group of competit ive players demonstrates the strength and depth of the club and certainly bodes well for future success. Despite the dizzying heights of being national champions, the season is by no means over. Kicked off by our annual f ixture against Warwick, the new year brings a packed calendar of more training, intra-club tournaments, socials, fun matches, and much more. All of which can be watched on our

dedicated squash snapchat channel ?medicsquash?! The club?s burgeoning growth has secured its place as one of the biggest MedSoc clubs in Birmingham and as the largest medic squash club in the country. What sees people coming back is the relaxed and very friendly squash sessions on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Players from all years and of all levels come down to the Munrow, have fun and relax after a day of lectures or hospital. And even better, from now until the end of the year, it?s free to join, so make the most of it whether it?s coming along to our f irst and second year girls beginner training sessions or challenging your best mate to a match ? everybody?s welcome!

Will Ries

President, UBMSSC

Facebook group: UBMS Squash Club

Snapchat: medicsquash

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UBMSRFC -

Men's RugbyThis term has seen UBMSRFC go from strength to strength. We have had a record number of fresher?s join us this season who have brought a lot to the club both on and off the pitch. The season started well for the 1st XV with a 62-0 win against the University Development side, followed by a 97-0 win against a local Droitwich 3rd XV. It was an ideal start to brush off the summer cobwebs but we were ready for some serious competit ion. Our next game saw us travel down to our rivals Southampton for our f irst real test of the season. Coming away with a 40-9 victory, comfortably our biggest winning margin against them in recent years, we knew there was a lot to look forward to in the season ahead. In this years NAMS competit ion we remain unbeaten, topping our group with victories over Nottingham GECS, Nottingham, Leicester, Warwick and Swansea. The end of the f irst term left us with 7 wins out of 7, scoring 420 points and conceding only 43.

Our 2nd XV, The Airsharks, have seen a resurgence over the last 2 years, this term playing 5 f ixtures as well as participating in a development tournament with a team made up of mostly f irst and second years. This is exactly what the club needs for the young lads coming through and shows the future is bright.

We enjoyed a trip to Dublin in late November, our f irst tour abroad in over 5 years, followed by the now annual Christmas Dinner on the last

weekend of the term, presenting 10 of the f irst years with their much-deserved Club Tie.

On top of this we arranged the Medsoc Tri-Series competit ion to raise money for St Mary?s Hospice, an event we hope to expand over the next year or so.

All in all we have had a successful and enjoyable term and hope to continue this following the Christmas break.

Chaz Hudson

UBMSRFC Chairman

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Rugby BirdsWe?ve been busy Birdies this term with lots of success both on and off the pitch. So f irstly, the beautiful game. Our longstanding opponents from Norwich made the trip to Birmingham only to leave after a 60-0 defeat, extending the Birds 18 month undefeated streak into 2017. The team hope to continue this with matches against Southampton, Hull and hopefully Liverpool scheduled for next term. Non-playing highlight of the term was undoubtedly - Tour. In early December, 54 of us (over 50% of which were our beloved new freshers) took the long and action packed coach (or MegaBus for the most committed late additions) journey to THE TOON for the best weekend of our l ives. Highlights included Newcastle beating the Quins *UP THE TOON*, lots of tragic breakfast pints and the delight of 54 people in an organised chaos navigating the streets of Newcastle. With family meals, pub golf?s infamous port and cheese stop and sports nights f il l ing the remainder of the calendar, the Christmas break was much needed by all. It?s not too late to join our huge family, and there?s a lot scheduled in for new members to enjoy,

Your Presidents, Harriet and Holly

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SHIFTING LANDSCAPE

September brought even more players, games and laughs for BWMFC! Thanks to our fantastic f irst-year recruits, we upped our numbers to a squad of thirty, and with our new coaching team, we were already looking stronger for the new year.

We started off term with plenty of socials including a round of pub golf , a curry night at Dilshads (where else?) and the classic we all know and love: sports night. The men?s team also invited us along to their charity quiz: somehow our score ended up at the bottom of the table, not something we?re used to! We ended the term with our Olympic-themed welcome drinks to fully integrate our new freshers into the club. The teams (Mexico, USA, France and Australia) put in their all and a lot of mess was made, not to mention the best dancing fab has ever seen afterwards!

Most importantly however, our football skil ls have continued to improve. With regular training every Wednesday on the Bournbrook pitches and league matches every Sunday, come rain or shine, we?re certainly getting lots of practice. Training sessions have involved ball work, f itness and of course matches, always trying to improve on the previous weekend?s game. Our league matches all over the West Midlands have provided mixed results ? we?re always proud of our performance and work well as a team. It has given us plenty of experience in 11-a-side games and definitely worth the aching legs on a Monday! At the half way point, we?re currently at a solid mid-table position and keen to climb upwards in the coming months.

Semester two will also bring us more exciting events. In the last weekend of January, the women?s team will be descending on the Irish capital for our annual tour. Dublin highlights will include a trip to the famous Guinness factory, a tour around a jail and a highly anticipated Irish night out! As well as this, the NAMS is just a few months away... We will be going down to Bristol for this year?s competit ion with a great squad to improve on our previous semi-f inal place and bring the trophy home!

Jess Riley Green, President

UBMS Women's Football

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UBMS Hockey Club

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Although 2016 has been a year which has had a tendency of making headlines for all the wrong reasons, it?s been a stellar year for UBMSHC.

For the 2016/17 season, we managed to record our largest membership to date, embarked to Dublin on our f irst international tour in over a decade and in March, we hosted the NAMS tournament where over 450 people from medical schools around the country descended on Birmingham.

On the pitch, despite being in the midst of a phase of transition, the f irst team has performed strongly in the NAMS cup and are on course for a third successive f inal appearance, a 10-0 demolit ion of Leicester and 8-0 thrashing of Cardif f being particular highlights of the group stages. For the f irst t ime the second team entered the NAMS cup and despite being new to the competit ion, have punched well above their weight with a crushing win over St George?s and hard fought draws over strong Warwick and Southampton sides.

Success in the group stages led to UBMSHC?s f irst and second teams being drawn against each other in the quarter f inals, the outcome of which was a tense win for the 1s, despite an early scare from a 2s side boast some exciting new talent. We wish both sides the best of luck as the f irst team continue onwards to the cup semi-f inal and the second team who move into the plate competit ion.

Meanwhile off the pitch the club has enjoyed some fantastic socials including a black-tie Christmas dinner and a tour to Southampton

attended by a record 80 of our members. In 2017 we have even more to look forward to with tours to Manchester and Liverpool and for the f irst t ime, we?ll be offering our members the opportunity to gain an England Hockey accredited umpiring qualif ication.

Tomos Jones

UBMSHC Chairman

StreetDoctors has had a fantastic f irst term of 2016-17! We hosted the national StreetDoctors conference at Birmingham Medical School for the f irst t ime, hosting and accommodating over 350 medical students and guests from across the country. The conference brought together medical students from 18 dif ferent universit ies, all united by one common goal to f ight youth violence and help our communities. It was the largest StreetDoctors conference to date and ran over two days, with a range of activit ies and workshops teaching new volunteers our module plans on bleeding control and unconsciousness, so they were ready to go out and teach young people life-sustaining f irst aid skil ls in the community. The conference also taught us more about young people at high risk of youth violence and how we can connect with them. The highlight of the weekend was a panel talk from leading f igures in the drive to eliminate youth violence, such as Birmingham Chief Superintendent Sally Bourner, as well as individuals who have been directly affected by youth violence, who kindly shared their very personal and emotive experiences. The whole weekend was rounded off by a ghoulishly fantastic fancy dress social at Urban Village in Halloween themes for each team!

Overall, the conference was a huge success and each member of the Birmingham team thoroughly loved organising, hosting and socialising with other StreetDoctors from across the country! The team were awarded a number of achievements with members of

our team winning National Volunteer of the Year, Outstanding New Volunteer of the year and a number of awards based on the hours that our members have committed to the charity! Birmingham StreetDoctors have also been recognised as teaching team of the year for two consecutive years since f irst setting up in October 2014; naturally we?re looking forward to a great 2017!

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BirminghamM edM inds

Semester 1 for Birmingham MedMinds is always a very educational and interesting time for our members, and this year was no exception. We had a series of six lectures on mental health problems, given by a variety of healthcare professionals, including both consultant psychiatrists and junior doctors. This year saw the return of Dr Lisa Brownell, Dr Edward Day, Dr Ruth Scally and Dr Chinwe Obinwa, who gave lectures on Anxiety, Addiction, Eating Disorders and Psychosis respectively. As always, all of these lectures were a fantastic opportunity for students to gain an insight into psychiatry and to build on their existing knowledge of the subject. The lectures provide an oversight of mental health problems, with information on causes, symptoms and treatment. We also had two new guest lecturers this year, both of whom gave bril l iant lectures that our members highly commended. Dr Shay-Anne Pantall gave a lecture on Mood Disorders and Dr Sophie Emesih gave one on Self Harm. All the lectures were interactive and we were very pleased to see students of all ages and backgrounds getting involved ? it?s fantastic to see that so many people are interested in mental health. Finally, we had our teacher training session, where our members learnt how to deliver sessions to the school students, in preparation for going into schools this semester. We have had a great winter term and are looking forward to working with a team of enthusiastic members for our second semester too!

President of Birmingham MedMinds, Phoebe Hazenberg

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The Birmingham Academic Medicine Society host a range of events that endeavour to engage students in medical research, academia and medical education. We offer events for all year groups and are always will ing to help students interested in getting more involved in research. Please do not hesitate to contact us at: ubmsbamsoc@gmail.com.

BAMSoc have had another successful year. We have recruited a committee in training consisit ing of Junior medical students to help them learn the ropes of the organisation so they can take the lead and continue our work in the future.  Our senior committee have also continued to show dedication and committment to the BAMSoc organisation, so thank you! From October 2016, we ran an Academic Foundation Programme advice series, benefit ing those considering AFP, to helping with crit ical appraisal to offering interview sessions for successful candidates.  We hosted  our  ever-popular intercalation showcase event in November 2016. In Semester 2, we piloted our third year teaching series of Case-based Grand Rounds, delivered by  senior medical students. We kicked off with  cardiology in January and we look forward to  many more  successful sessions. We also hosted our fourth annual national conference in February 2017, for which the theme was 'Medical Careers with a dif ference', with

speakers in medical journalism, medical entrepreneurs, medical leaders, the former Chief Medical Director of BUPA and our very own Vice-Dean Professor Kate Thomas. Students had the opportunity to present their research via poster and/or oral presentations. This was organised by a fantastic conference committee who worked  hard  to make the event a triumph! It was an immensely inspiring day all-round. We have also continued to work on developing a national research database and we are promoting this on an ongong basis  and seeking supervisors who have projects to upload.

We look forward to bringing many more events in 2017.

Lauren Quinn, on behalf of BAMSoc

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This semester, the medical humanities society has continued to provide a welcome break from those seemingly endless discussions about medicine. We?ve been meeting on a monthly basis at the wonderful Boston Tea Party to discuss books ranging from The Silence of the Lambs to The Great Gatsby, and enjoy the delicious food that BTP has to offer. It?s been fantastic to see new faces there from a variety of courses, and hear suggestions for a whole range of books to read (our book for next month has yet to be decided so let us know if you have any ideas!). Our theatre trips are also becoming increasingly popular. In November, 20 of us traveled to Stratford to see their RSC?s magical performance of the Tempest and we?re off to see Julius Caesar and Anthony and Cleopatra at the RSC in March. At only £5 for a student t icket and petrol subsidised, it works out incredibly cheap for an evening at the theatre! We?ll be planning a theatre trip for the summer term soon, so watch this space. We?ve really enjoyed making some time for a bit of culture and we?re always pleased to welcome new members, so why not keep an eye on our facebook page (BMHS) to keep up to date with our events.

Emma Burn, Co president

Birmingham Medical Humanit ies Society

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ARTE - Made In Dagenham!

In November ARTE put on the musical ?Made in Dagenham?! With a cast of 19, a band of 12, a tech crew of 7, various front of house teams, 1 backstage manager and 1 dedicated director, this enormous production was only made possible through the incredible hard work and passion of everyone involved. With 2-4 rehearsals a week, right from the start of September this show was not an easy feat, who needs time to study medicine anyway?! And whilst this musical took literal blood, sweat and tears it was worth every second of it.

The songs were amazing, the script funny and the plot was engaging. Based on a true story, Made in Dagenham is about the f ight for equal pay by the female Ford factory workers in the 1960s. We even built a car! It cost over £3000 to put on and yet we raised enough money on top of that to be able to give £500 to the Edhi Foundation and another £500 to Alzheimer?s UK! It was so much fun to be a part of, and I?ll certainly miss it in years to come.

Oliver Cobb ? ARTE President

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The Medsoc Dance Show: Rhythm of the Night!

In December, Medsoc Dance held our annual show in the ATH. There were two nights full of a variety of dances, including ballet, tap, commercial, jazz, bollywood and contemporary. There was also non-dancing entertainment courtesy of Belcanto on Friday night, and singer Sara Otung on Saturday night. The 41 dancers and dance teachers have all worked exceptionally hard all term, and pulled out some amazing performances, which were enjoyed by all. All proceeds from the ticket sales and raff le went to local Birmingham Charity, Acorns Children's Hospice, who are committed to providing holistic, specialist, palliative care for babies, children and young people from 0-18 with life l imiting or l ife threatening conditions and support for their families. Acorns emphasise their values on putting children and young people and their families f irst in all of its services.

We managed to raise a staggering £1023, which far exceeded our expectations, so thank you to everyone who came along to support us and this fantastic charity! If you fancy joining Medsoc Dance next term, all abilit ies are welcome (we have some beginners classes) - f ind all the details on our ?Medsoc Dance Society? Facebook page!

Jovian Wan

MedSoc Dance President

MedSoc Dance

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Medical

Leadership

Society

We have had a great start to the 16/17 academic year. We are a group of 7 medical students committed to engaging students in medical leadership and management and providing opportunities for students to develop these skills. September 2016 began with our f irst cohort of students commencing on the Healthcare Management and Leadership intercalation (part of the PoSH intercalation courses). This intercalation has been a long time coming, but with our committee strongly advocating for it and contributing to the course design, we are really pleased it has had such strong start. We look forward to seeing how the f irst year goes for these students and meeting the new students in September 2017.

We have collaborated with the Health Services Management Centre (HSMC), to bring some fantastic speakers to Birmingham, including Sir Robert Francis QC, who chaired the 2013 report into the Mid-Staffordshire NHS hospital fail ings. He held an insightful talk about ref lecting on what we have learnt since his report and his ideas for improving the NHS, with a specif ic look at culture. He

gave us all a lot to think about and ref lect upon as we get closer to becoming healthcare professionals.

Our most high prof ile event of semester one was hosting Simon Stevens, the CEO of NHS England, for a talk at the medical school in November. Simon Stevens spoke about the Five Year Forward View and the future of the NHS. We had over 200 attendees including students, local doctors and nurses, and senior university staff ! It was fantastic seeing such a mix of people in one room, and this led to an interesting discussion in the Q&A. For 2017, we have lots planned, including continuing to contribute to the HML intercalation, getting involved in research and of course organising numerous events on leadership and decision making. We look forward to seeing you at these events soon!

Jessica Court

Chair of Birmingham Medical Leadership Society

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IMedThe ethos of IMed is to combine the beauty of the Islamic teachings of compassion and stewardship with the nobility of the healthcare professions we are blessed to be enrolling in. Since its establishment in 2011, IMed has expanded in new and exciting ways in order to promote ethical practice in medicine, dentistry, pharmacy and other all ied f ields.

This academic year (16/17), we have held numerous events to promote ethical discussions and allow students and doctors to engage in healthy debate. Our most notable ethics event was entit led ?Islam and The End of Life?. Our guest speakers included Ustaad Aqueel and a representative from Digital Autopsy UK. As well as ethics, there is a large drive this year towards humanitarian and outreach work. Firstly, IMED collaborated with the two other large Muslim societies on campus in November. Together, we held a blood donation drive in order to encourage more ethnic minorit ies in the UK to donate blood on a regular basis. The campaign was given coverage by BBC Asian Network and GEO news.

Further to this, IMed has sought to provide aid and comfort to the homeless individuals in Birmingham. Thanks to our alumni members, we were able to collaborate with an established organisation, the As-Suffa foundation, to fund two evenings in Birmingham city centre to provide hot foot

and drinks to over 150 homeless and vulnerable individuals, including refugees. We had several dedicated volunteers give up their Wednesday and Friday evenings to help run the kitchen and engage in conversation with the visitors. Over the past few moths we have fundraised for SKT Welfare, a local charity striving to improve the lives of Syrian orphans and families. With the help of our students we were able to raise £14,000 as a result of our Scafell Pike Trek and Annual Charity Dinner.

From an educational point of view we have held University Survival talks for medic, dentist and pharmacist freshers. We have also worked with BIMA as part of their Lifesavers Campaign which entailed 50 of our students teaching nearly 300 members of the community BLS! We have had a very busy f irst semester but there?s stil l much to come. Keep an eye out for our Depression or Possession talk, the Believe and Do Good Campaign and our much anticipated History of Islam and Medicine Exhibit ion.

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Tutt iChristmas Concert 2016

December is the month of the Annual Tutti Christmas Gala Concert, where we kick off the Christmas festivit ies for all of MedSoc. This year did not disappoint! The night started off with the lovely a cappella group, Belcanto, who opened the show with some cracking music, including Adele?s When We Were Young. MedChoir followed with a surprise solo from Ernie Mutengesa during Ain?t No Mountain High Enough , which got everyone on their feet! The UBMS Orchestra f inished the f irst half of the concert with a wide range of music from Les Misérables to Fauré?s Pavane, and of course the traditional Sleigh Ride (including a Turkey-hat wearing conductor). UBMS Big Band were as loud as ever, covered in tinsel and performed their favourite jazzy take on Christmas with Big Band Christmas. Jazz Police also went down an absolute treat. Vocal Cords were definitely the funniest performance of the night ? not only was Kris Ramlogan the best version of the Litt le Mermaid?s Sebastian, the group took the 12 days of Christmas to a whole new level and performed possibly the funniest rendition we had all heard. We even saw a few giggles from Jamie Coleman on the front row? if that doesn?t scream ?great concert?, I don?t know what does. I am incredibly proud of all of the hard work, blood sweat and tears that went into the preparation and performance by all of the groups ? they should all be extremely pleased and I?m already counting down to next year?s!

Kiara Paramjothy

Tutti President 2016/17 23

UBMS Big BandFollowing their most successful year to date, UBMS Big Band were ready to hit the ground running for September. Fresher?s Fair brought new talent to add to the more established ranks with new members also emerging from older years ? a testament to the popularity of past concerts. With a bulging trumpet section alongside a formidable clutch of clarinets, weekly rehearsals began in earnest. New MD Chloe Taylor brought what could only be described as a ?relaxed eff iciency? to the proceedings, skilfully settl ing the band into old favourites including Earth Wind and Fire and the Stevie Wonder Medley. Yet laurels? aren?t for sitt ing on in this band, and we were soon on to new material dominated by two ?bangers?. The f irst, ?Jazz Police?, is a raring number by the great Gordon Goodwind brought in by a punchy guitar rif f (courtesy of Alex Wood) leading to a blaring (in a good way) horn section setting a solid foundation for subsequent solos. The second, ?Let it Snow?, is a catchy stripped back version of the classic song with a strong syncopated feel throughout to keep the horns on their toes!

The climax of the band?s week in week out efforts came in the forever wonderful form of the Tutti Christmas Concert. And what a concert it was! All f ive MedSoc Music Societies playing to the packed church showcasing the musical talent so rife within the Medical School. The forty strong Big Band once again gave it their all. The crowd was captured by the breadth of material including ?Summertime? sung by the one and only Harriet Marsland in addition to delicate ?Moonlight Serenade? and the two new pieces.

My greatest thanks to the band for another immense concert, hopefully only to be repeated in March!

Will iam Holdsworth

Big Band President

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Wilderness MedicineIt has been a successful term for Birmingham Wilderness Medicine Society. We began the year with a rather damp ?welcome walk? to Lickey Hills, with a healthy intake of new members, before venturing to the exotic location known as Selly Oak for a curry. The highlight of our semester was surely our ?medical skil ls in the wilderness weekend.? The weekend has been running for several years, and this was our most successful yet. Around 70 students from the full complement of Medsoc courses headed over to sunny Snowdonia on a Friday evening in November. On Saturday, we were treated to a hearty breakfast at Pen-Y-Pass hostel, before taking part in a range of workshops aimed at providing an introduction to wilderness and expedition medicine. There was hands on training in surgical skil ls in the wilderness, carrying casualties, hypothermia, and expedition dentistry to name just a few. This was followed after lunch with a short walk with a few mock casualty scenarios thrown in with which to practice our new skills. Special thanks needs to go to our many tutors who gave up their t ime to come and teach. They came from a range of backgrounds including the Army, Air Ambulance and professional jungle expedition leaders. All had expertise in mountain leadership, expedition medicine, or both! Indeed, several are internationally recognised experts in their f ields. Some of our tutors treated us to a selection of talks on their experiences in expedition medicine on Saturday evening. On Sunday, we set out to tackle the highest peak in Wales, Snowden. Some of us even attempted the challenging Crib Goch route. Thankfully, the weather held

out for long enough for everyone to reach the summit. The weekend was enjoyed by participants and tutors alike, and we look forward to making it even more successful this year. We have plenty more planned for this coming semester, and all are welcome. The best way to keep up with what were up to is to join our Facebook group ?Birmingham Wilderness Medicine.?

Benjamin Jefferies

BWMS President 16-17

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Bi r mi ngham Wi l der ness Medi ci ne Soci et y

- Navi gat i on

- Sur vi val Ski l l s

- Expedi t i on Medi ci ne

- I nspi r at i onal Tal ks

Vot ed MedSoc Soci et y of t he Year 2014

Joi n our Facebook gr oup or emai l us ( br umwi l der ness@gmai l . com)

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OncSoc50% of people in the UK born after 1960 will develop cancer during their l ifetime. So, clearly cancer presents a huge challenge to health care services in all areas of medicine. OncSoc is one of the newer MedSoc societies aiming to provide insight into the management of people with cancer and cancer research, raising your awareness of issues that will affect the rest of your career. Remember, cancer will come up in any speciality, not just if you choose to pursue a career in oncology. We opened the year with the popular cancer survivors talk, where we heard the inspiring stories of 2 cancer survivors. This provided a refreshingly personal insight into the challenges of a cancer patient?s journey, in contrast to the countless hours of cell signalling mechanisms endured in second year. There were also plenty of t ips on how to support people facing similar dif f icult ies.    

This semester there?s much more to look forward to. The next event will be the world child cancer event on the 25th January, where we will hear about this organisation?s inspiring work to provide care to some of the most deprived children worldwide. Next up will be a talk by an oncology consultant about working within this exciting f ield, not one to miss for those interested in a future career in oncology. We will also be running a clinical communication skil ls session for helping with the infamously dif f icult discussions that are unfortunately so common in oncology. Thanks to everyone for their interest and support last semester and we hope to see you soon! P.S Don?t forget to treat yourself to a

few cakes at out upcoming bake sale in aid of Cancer Research UK.

Ben Talks

OncSoc Events Rep

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