Looking at Britain through health and healthcare: changes and challenges

A Centre for Modern and Contemporary Britain roundtable discussion on the state of health and healthcare in Britain.

With an aging NHS under increasing political and social pressure, and an ever-growing disparity in healthcare outcomes in different sectors of the population, the health of the nation appears to be in a state of crisis. The event brings together a panel of experts in the field of healthcare in modern Britain to discuss the most urgent health issues facing Britain today, and how our understanding of health and healthcare is changing in the contemporary landscape.

Decolonising medical education in Britain
Dr Lois Harun-Cooper: Clinical Associate Professor (Teaching) in Medical School Education Consultancy at UCL Medical School

Evidence has shown how structural racism has led to people from ethnic minority backgrounds in Britain having poorer access to healthcare provision, and poorer health outcomes. My talk highlights the importance of leading positive change to challenge racial discrimination in medical schools and to promote an active EDI (Equality, Diversity & Inclusion) culture in medical education.

The NHS, British Identity, and Political Change
Dr Andrew Seaton: Hallsworth Research Fellow at the University of Manchester

The NHS is a universal health care system known throughout the world. It is also an integral part of British identity. This talk will discuss the historical reasons for its public standing and why its survival represents an ongoing form of social democracy within contemporary Britain.

The Centre for Modern and Contemporary Britain (CMCB) seeks to build a vibrant and connected space for intellectual community and exchange that creates new synergies and productive working relationships across UCL and beyond. It enables students and scholars of modern and contemporary Britain to engage with each other’s work across traditional disciplinary boundaries, bringing the arts and sciences, theorists and practitioners, into productive conversation.

Photo by Nicolas J Leclercq on Unsplash