Queen Square Inaugural Lecture: Professor Tim Young

Professor Tim Young: "Learning by heart and why neurology needs teachers."

Professor Young has nearly 30 years’ experience of delivering medical education, 20 at UCLH/UCL, with recognition as Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy: he is the first of these at IoN, as well as IoN's first Professor of Teaching.

Professor Young qualified as a doctor with distinction in 1997 after a BSc in biomedical science. He obtained his PhD in Neurosciences at Imperial College London in 2009 and has been a consultant neurologist since then (currently Honorary Consultant Neurologist at the National Hospital for Neurology & Neurosurgery, Queen Square). Obtaining his FRCP in 2018, Professor Young went onto achieve a PG Certificate in Medical Education with distinction at Cambridge University where he has worked as a course tutor on the Medical Education Course.

For over seven years he has been involved in running the distance learning Clinical Neurology MSc/Diploma course at UCL, which he is programme director for, and enjoys teaching his students-numbering almost 60-all qualified doctors based worldwide. He also is programme lead for the new iBSc in Clinical Neurology & Brain Sciences, which he developed and which is the first undergraduate degree course at the Queen Square Institute of Neurology.

Professor Young has worked as a partner to the national PTES survey team at Advance HE as well as providing national level and governmental advice on T-Levels. He provides voluntary teaching and support for Crisis Rescue Foundation (CRF) which has provided online medical education to over 2,500 medical students/trainees in countries impacted by conflict, including Ukraine and Sudan. He has fellowships both in clinical work (FRCP) and education (PFHEA).

Tim spoke passionately about how his successes (& failures) had informed his career as both neurologist & educator, & his lecture was an exemplar of the importance of good teaching in neurology.

"I was grateful to be able to share my journey in my inaugural lecture with many colleagues, friends and family members in attendance. In particular, I wish to thank Professor Alex Leff and Dr Amit Batla for their opening remarks and vote of thanks respectively, and my family for their constant support. I was able to reflect on my own career path, including my pivot from a full-time consultant neurology role to focus increasingly on delivering neurology education. I am very thankful to the Institute of Neurology for the opportunities it has given me to develop the courses I now lead.  Outside of my direct work at the Institute, I have been grateful for the freedom to be able to pursue many other educational activities in medicine at local, national, and international level on a voluntary basis. I look forward to further developments of neurology education centred in Queen Square and I am thankful for the chances that have been given to me".