The NHS is the cornerstone to British society – COVID-19 has only highlighted this. At its core, is the fundamental belief of equal access to medical care to all, no matter your race, background, or wealth. Yet Medicine remains one of the most inaccessible professions to join, with only 4% of current UK doctors come from working class backgrounds.
In2MedScool was created with the aim to change this. In2MedSchool provides free mentorship for underprivileged school students aspiring to study Medicine. The selection criteria includes, but is not limited to, young carers, students with English as a second language, students on free school meals, with special needs or disabilities, and individuals from Black or Asian backgrounds.
Within the first year of its existence, In2MedSchool was awarded ‘Most Sustainable Project’ at the National Widening Participation Conference 2020, organised by the Medical Schools Councils. They deemed In2MedSchool to be ‘well planned and has the potential to be effective in the long term’, and recognised that ‘the project is resourceful and appropriate for the current working environment’.
The partnership with Medics Academy will allow In2MedSchool to create affordable and accessible healthcare education for the healthcare workers and students who have selflessly volunteered their time to support In2MedSchool. The partnership will also allow In2MedSchool to pursue research with academic oversight,
50% of schools in the UK had not a single student apply to Medicine. The vision is that all In2MedSchool mentees, when they start to study Medicine, would then mentor new students at their under-resourced school. Kickstarting a legacy of medics at schools which historically have had few or none successful applications. The hope is that Medics Academy will support the medical students throughout their time at medical school and their medical career.
Since its inception in July, In2MedSchool now has over 2400 junior doctors and undergraduate medics volunteering their time and expertise to level the playfield for aspiring medics. The program is scaling fast and on the verge of making it big, to achieve their goal of making the future NHS truly representative of the people it serves.
About the author
Brian Wang is an academic foundation year 1 doctor working at Northwick Park Hospital in London.
He graduated back in 2015 with a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Cambridge.
and completed a PhD Studentship in 2020 with the British Heart Foundation at the National Heart and Lung Institute. Brian have presented at international conferences, including European Society of Cardiology Congress, International Society of Heart Research and American Heart Association Scientific Sessions. Upon completion of his medical training, he hope to pursue a career in Academic Cardiology.
