Trainee
Workforce culture and diversity: Our questions answered at BOTA Congress Oliver Adebayo, Thomas Key, Kathryn Dayananda and Ran Wei The Royal College of Surgeons of England’s unveiled its landmark review into the diversity of leadership of the surgical profession and of the College in April 2021. The report outlined a vision for the College and in turn set the surgical world talking about diversity, inclusion and equity.
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oncurrently, throughout the world, there were great societal shifts and a spotlight had been shone onto diversity and inclusion through the George Floyd episode leading to Black Lives Matter and the differential COVID-19 death rates seen in ethnic minority communities across the Western World.
Oliver Adebayo is a registrar on the Stanmore rotation in North East London and is the current President of the BOTA. As part of his mandate this year he is committed to supporting diversity, innovation, and sustainability amongst T&O trainees.
The Royal College – Our professional home: An independent review on diversity and inclusion In September 2020 the new President of the Royal College of Surgeons England, Professor Neil Mortensen, commissioned an independent review into the College’s professional leadership. Led by Baroness Helena Kennedy QC, an assessment of diversity, inclusion and the sense of belonging among RCS college members was made in order to identify the barriers to fair representation and leadership within the College and the wider profession. 12 panellists across all seniority levels and surgical sub-specialties talked to a range of witnesses and engaged in focus groups, interviews and statements to produce the report. The survey findings are stark; the most frequent barrier in achieving a senior role within the College life was the notion of the ‘old boys’ network’. Of those who felt this way, 3 in 5 members stated that the college did not
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represent people like themselves and 3 in 4 members believed the college did not do enough to foster an inclusive environment1. The report goes on to highlight the perception of surgeons and a career in surgery. Emphasis is placed on the importance of visibility and the accessibility of surgical role models across all career stages, including secondary-school, medical school, foundation and core / higher training years. The report concluded with a 16-step action plan for the College to ensure reform in its processes and to create a more diverse and inclusive organisation demonstrating equality within its leadership. These recommendations include; reforms to the elections process, a clear SAS strategy and better Council representation at all levels.
Keynote session at BOTA Virtual Congress In response to the Kennedy report and its implications for the future of surgical representation, the British Orthopaedic Trainees Association (BOTA) theme for this year’s congress was Workforce Culture, Diversity and Sustainability. BOTA invited Professor Neil Mortensen to give the key note speech at this year’s virtual BOTA Congress to discuss the findings of the report.
