Thread by @DrLatifaPatel

Hello #MedTwitter 👋

I’m your interim representative body chair & director @TheBMA

☑️I am elected
☑️I am accountable
☑️I expect you to challenge me
☑️I am listening
☑️I will drive for change
☑️I represent you

A little about me & my role 👇 (my first 🧵) 1/23

I joined @TheBMA as a first year medical student in 2005 as they were giving away free stuff #BMApen and the membership was free too!

Like most of our 161,000+ members I was more of observing member for a few years.

I used the BMJs to prop up doors. I answered a few surveys. I skimmed the emails. I took the free pens at events… 🖊 🖊 🖊

As an intercalating medical student I became disappointed about-
😕Disparities between medical schools
🙁Reforms to our NHS bursary (for the worse)
☹️UKFPO issues and the eventual oversubscription

I wanted to do something. @TheBMA allowed me to do just that. Get active 🙂 (2010)

Over the years I continued to stay active by standing for election and giving myself the opportunity to be in the rooms where decisions are made -

@BMAstudents
@BMA_JuniorDocs
@NWJDC
@MerseyRJDC

👆 A few committees/teams I was a part of

Being on a committee was empowering.

I would collect views from those I represented, share them with the committee, act on resolutions and then feedback to membership. I was part of a process that positively impacts our members

I attended my first @TheBMA conference in 2010. It was @BMAstudents conference.

At conference-
👉Members submit motions which they’d like the BMA to act on.
👉They are debated.
👉They are voted on.
👉This becomes policy.

👍The BMA then makes it a reality.

All our members have the opportunity to influence policy. But not everyone uses that opportunity. I wanted to support our members more…

So I stood for @TheBMA #ARM agenda committee. The committee that prioritises the main pan-association agenda.

That was in 2015…

In 2019, @TheBMA Annual Representative Meeting (ARM) I stood for another election. I stood for - Deputy representative body chair. 7 people stood altogether.

There was something different about me…
-Woman
-Ethnic minority
-Junior doctor

To my shock, I won the election…

This wasn’t really an achievement of mine. It was one of our membership.

A representative body (those attending ARM), of ~500 medical students and doctors, from around the UK, from different specialties and healthcare settings voted for me.

For the first time in our history…

Earlier this year, due to unforeseen circumstances I was asked to step up as acting/interim @TheBMA representative body chair

This election was ordinarily due in June 2022

I was 4.5 months into maternity leave. I didn’t have a deputy. This was not ideal

I was apprehensive… 🥺

@TheBMA had never had someone like me in this role…

So I asked for reasonable adjustments-
✅Flexible working around us
✅Different IT equipment
✅Different ways of conducting meetings

As you can imagine we have a lot of meetings. What this looks like in reality-

-I often have my camera off (nappy changing, breastfeeding, playing with my baby, lulling her to sleep)
-I chair meetings with a baby sling. Sometimes she babbles over me. Sometimes she sleeps.

-I answer emails when I can, often whilst she sleeps (late at night)
-I sometimes can’t talk in meetings (my colleagues know this, and come back to me at the end)
-I don’t sit at a desk, we sit on the floor and play

My role is flexible around us

Most of all. We work as a team. We are a team of frontline elected members and expert staff.

@CNagpaul, your council chair, a GP in London.
@DavidGWrigley, your council deputy chair, a GP in North Lancashire.
@pickersgill1, your treasurer, a neurologist in Cardiff

We are your chief officer team. Our priority is our membership, you.

We work with expert staff. I’ll tag a few.

@TomGrinyer, CEO
@gregbeales, Director of Comms/Policy
@nickyjaye, Director of Corporate Development
@rpodolak, National Director, BMA Wales
@dashgohil @aishnine

(I can’t find the many many more - anyone able to tag them in?)

My role comes with many hats-
-Director, BMA Board
-BMA Council
-Chair, EDI
-Trustee, BMA Charities
-Lead, Education, Training, Workforce
-@medwma Council
-Council, UKHACC
-And more…

But the most important of my roles is representing you, through our ARM

Since stepping up 3 months ago, we have been working towards ensuring that the membership of our ARM are informed enough to fairly discuss, debate and vote on policy that will shape the BMA.

And it’s finally here.

Your @TheBMA Virtual ARM 2021

Join us on Monday 13 September and Tuesday 14 September

Follow the debates on our website and join in on Twitter #ARM2021

bma.org.uk/what-we-do/ann…

Most importantly, there is a place for every one of members to have their say at the BMA.

If you want to make a difference please consider getting involved, standing for elections, having your say.

Your BMA will support you in your role. Your voice matters. #JoinUs

I am the first trainee to hold this post. I know I’ll not be the last.

My TPD has been brilliant. Advising me and supporting me to take time out so I can balance mummy and BMA roles but also giving me options on how I’d return to clinical work and balance this BMA role

I hope that the BMA’s membership electing a junior doctor as a chief officer, encourages other organisations to consider junior doctors for similar leadership roles.

When making the decisions about our future, the workforce of tomorrow; involve us. Let us lead that discussion

Finally #MedTwitter, look after yourselves & each other.

Our wellbeing service is free to ALL medical students and doctors and their dependents

bma.org.uk/advice-and-sup…