DR MELROSE STEWART Chartered Physiotherapist & University Lecturer
PROFESSOR FRANK CHINEGWUNDOH MBE Consultant Urological Surgeon
Dr Melrose Stewart was born in Jamaica, entered grammar school in the UK and qualified as a physiotherapist at the Bristol School of Physiotherapy. She received her Masters in Education in curriculum studies and PhD for research in cultural competence from the University of Birmingham. Her longstanding interests have been in achieving equity in health and social care and in promoting physical and mental health and well-being. These have been at the centre of her role as a practitioner and educator. She is Vice President of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP), founding member of the Black and Minority Ethnic Group of the CSP, a Member of the Health and Care Professions Council and Higher Education Authority, external examiner for the University of the West Indies and Glasgow Caledonian University, and a panel member in Her Majesty’s Judiciary for Disability and Employment Tribunals. In 2017, Dr Stewart was selected as one of three experts in the hugely successful Channel 4 production, ‘Old people’s Home for 4 Year Olds’, which saw viewing figures reach over 2.5 million. Readership of her jointlyauthored paper based on the programme and issued in The Conversation reached nearly 10k within its first week of publication. It has since been republished in the iNewspaper and the World Economic Forum.
Professor Frank Chineqwundoh, of Nigerian descent, is the first ‘Black British’ urological surgeon. He qualified in medicine from St George’s Hospital Medical School, University of London in 1984. Since completing specialist training he has had over 21 years’ experience working as a Consultant Urological Surgeon. He completed specialist urological training in the West Midlands and Cleveland, Ohio in 1996. Professor Chinegwundoh is the senior urological surgeon at, Barts Health NHS Trust and since December 2014 an honorary visiting Professor in the School of Health Sciences, City University of London. In November 2011, Professor Chinegwundoh was invited to take part in a Sky TV comedy vehicle to raise awareness of prostate cancer. This has been acclaimed by the charities Prostate Action and Prostate Cancer Charity in the UK for the use of humour to get across a serious male health message featuring Karl Pilkington and Ricky Gervais. Most recently, Professor Chingwundoh has been involved in new three-year project, called ‘Changing Lives
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a – engaging Black African and Caribbean men at risk of or affected by prostate cancer”. For 20 years he has chaired the UK registered charity Cancer Black Care. He has a Masters in Medical Law degree from Glasgow University and has wide medical legal experience of report writing and appearing as an expert witness in Court. One of the challenging aspects of being a Black Scientist was not obtaining jobs in the NHS in his earlier days, for reasons that he did not consider due to his qualifications. Also generally, research funding is always a challenge. Amongst Professor Chinegwundoh greatest achievements were; Publishing the first UK data on the incidence of prostate cancer in Black men relative to White men (a three fold increased risk). This kick started the focus on prostate cancer in Black men. Also the award of a MBE in the 2013 Queen’s birthday honours list.