Yes, medical school is still racist and misogynistic - with Annabel Sowemimo
In this episode of Sharp Scratch, the panel talks about why misogyny and racism exists in medicine and how students and resident doctors can educate themselves to tackle bias in healthcare.
The panellists for the episode, made up of Sarah, Anna and George chat with expert guest Annabel Sowemimo a community sexual and reproductive health doctor, activist and author of Divided: Racism, Medicine and Why We Need to Decolonise Healthcare.
Together they discuss the existence and history of medical misogyny and racism, as well as how medical students can learn to address these. Annabel highlights the ingrained gender bias in medicine and how the dismissal of women’s health issues have been normalised, particularly for women of colour. The episode emphasises how medical students and resident doctors can empower themselves through educating themselves on the history of medical misogyny and racism in order to promote anti-racism and inclusive practice throughout our careers.
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41:36
How to navigate the hospital hierarchy
In this episode of Sharp Scratch, the panel gets together to talk about hierarchies starting in medical school and continuing through our working lives as doctors.
The panellists, made up of medical students Maz, Sarah and George, chat with expert guest Lorelei Jones, medical anthropologist and senior lecturer in Health Sciences at Bangor University.
Together they discuss what is meant when we talk about the existence of hierarchical working in medicine, how hierarchies can be problematic, and how we can challenge this. The episode also discusses the importance of collaboration in work environments, the importance of psychological safety, and how we can work to empower medical students and residents to speak up when they have concerns.
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40:17
What is widening participation?
In this episode of Sharp Scratch, the panel gets together to talk about widening participation in medical school.
The panellists, made up of medical students Maira and George, chat with guest Clare Owen, director of policy at the Medical Schools Council.
Together they discuss what is meant by widening participation, the importance of schemes that have been implemented to widen participation in medicine, and some of the barriers that exist for students from groups that are underrepresented in medical degrees, including students from working class backgrounds. The episode looks at current initiatives that have been implemented in order to support and retain students from widening participation backgrounds once they are at medical school, as well as the challenges of financial barriers. The episode also highlights the need for greater representation among medical school faculty, emphasising the value of diversity in the medical workforce and the role that medical students may be able to play in promoting widening participation.
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45:46
Let's talk about sex
In this episode of Sharp Scratch, the panel gets together to discuss the gaps in the medical curriculum when it comes to teaching on sexual health.
The panellists, made up of Will, Elisabeth and George chat with sexual health doctor Naomi Sutton.
Together, they highlight how teaching at medical school often has a focus on sexually transmitted infections and contraception, and the importance of considering broader aspects of sexual health and wellbeing including sexual pleasure. The episode emphasises the importance of taking a holistic, non-judgemental approach in sexual history taking.The episode also addresses societal stigma in conversations around sex. Overall, the episode highlights the importance of advocating for a comprehensive and sex-positive approach to sexual healthcare.
Naomi Sutton is a consultant sexual health doctor, who you may recognise from E4 The Sex Clinic.
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44:46
The cult of medicine
In this episode of Sharp Scratch, the panel, made up of George and Inez get together to talk about why people sometimes describe medicine as a cult.
The episode discusses the perceived parallels between the medicine and cults, and explores the strong sense of identity and community that often develops from our time at medical school and into our working life as doctors.
The panel is joined by Sam Jahara a UKCP Registered Psychotherapist, Clinical Supervisor and Tavistock certified Executive Coach with a private practice in Sussex. Sam specialises in working with the psychological impact of high control groups and cults, offering psychotherapy, supervision, coaching and psychological consultancy to individuals, couples, groups and organisations. She was interviewed about her own experience of growing up in a cult on several podcasts such as ‘Indoctrination', 'Cult Vault', 'Talk Beliefs' and 'Cult Chat'. https://www.brightonandhovepsychotherapy.com
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