The role of medical students in activism

As medical students progress through medical school, some students are becoming dissatisfied by the lack of attention to socially relevant healthcare issues in the conventional curriculum, and begin to understand that some of the frustrations we encounter at work arise from political decisions. These issues have prompted medical students to voice their concerns and advocate for change. In this episode, we will be talking about activism, how to get involved and what you can do to push for change. Topics: • What makes an activist? • There is a role for everyone in activism • Things to bear in mind when considering civil disobedience Expert guest: Dr Rita Issa (@DrRitaIssa on Twitter) is a GP, public health academic, and activist. The groups that she’s helped (co)founded or worked with include Doctors for Extinction Rebellion, Docs Not Cops and Medact. Shout out to the following student-activists: Mikaela Loach (@mikaelaloach on Twitter) Rhiannon Osborne (@rhiannon_osborn on Twitter) Amit Singh (@amit_ankhi on Twitter) Marina Politis (@marinadpol on Twitter) Interested in getting involved? Here are some organisations that you can check out: Health for Green New Deal - https://www.medact.org/project/health-for-a-green-new-deal/ Student for Global Health - https://studentsforglobalhealth.org/ Doctors for Extinction Rebellion - https://www.doctorsforxr.com/ Docs not Cops http://www.docsnotcops.co.uk/ Check us out on social media: Twitter: https://twitter.com/BMJStudent Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bmj_student/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BMJStudent/ This podcast is produced and edited by Dom Byrne and Duncan Jarvies.