Trainees Committee
The Trainees’ Committee of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh is the main conduit for ensuring that the views of trainees are considered in all aspects of the College’s activities. Their activity to date has included:
- Negotiating with HMRC for tax relief for mandatory trainees’ fees
- Developing position statements on current issues
- Involvement in College working groups considering a range of areas of professional interest
- Regular engagement with organisations such as the BMJ, GMC and the Academy of Royal Medical Colleges
- A short life working group on bullying has been set up
- Discussions on less than full-time training in surgery
The Trainees' Committee informs the Council, through the Chairperson, on relevant education, training and examination issues from a trainee's perspective and assists with the preparation of discussion documents and publications through the College media.
The Trainees' Committee members are located across the UK and want to hear the views of the RCSEd Trainees it represents. If you would like to get in touch with the Trainees' Committee please email traineescommittee@rcsed.ac.uk.
Current Members of RCSEd's Trainees' Committee
Alice Hartley is the College's Trainee Member of Council as well as an ST5 in Urology in the North East of England. She is currently in her second year of a PhD looking at prostate cancer biomarkers and has been a member of the College Trainees' Committee since 2013.
As an active member of the Committee she has been the trainee link with the College's Outreach Department, and Assistant Editor of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh's Trainees' Newsletter. She works closely with the College's Communications Department and has been one of a subgroup from the Trainees’ Committee who compiled a response to the EWTD taskforce. Keen to promote surgery as a career, she has set up various educational events and is one of the members of the College's short life working group on flexible working.
George Markides is an ST7 in General Surgery with subspecialty interest in colorectal surgery, in the Yorkshire and the Humber deanery. He is actively involved in surgical education in various roles, including faculty membership of local and nationally delivered courses, medical school OSCE examiner and affiliate member of the RCSEd Faculty of Surgical Trainers. A postgraduate surgical degree and a Certificate in Medical Education have provided him with an important insight into surgical education, learning and assessment principles and techniques.
Olivia McBride is an ST4 in vascular surgery based in South East Scotland. She is a military trainee, having commissioned into the Royal Army Medical Corps in 2004 and has deployed on operations overseas. She is actively involved in research, having undertaken an MD in the department of cardiovascular science at the University of Edinburgh and has a particular interest in molecular imaging.
Olivia joined the Trainee Committee in April 2016 and hopes to strengthen College engagement with trainees at all levels. She is keen to promote surgery as a career and engage with medical students to enable equality of access for all. She has a particular interest in improving practice to safeguard the delivery of the highest standard of patient care whilst ensuring this is compatible with a fulfilling and sustainable professional career.
Michael Moran is a Clinical Lecturer and senior surgical trainee in ENT/Head and Neck Surgery at University College London. He has a PhD in the molecular biology of HPV related head and neck cancers, and a Masters in Medical Education.
He has an interest in less than full time training, equality/diversity, junior doctors' issues, surgical academia and whistleblowing. Michael liaises with the College’s Education Department, and provides a trainee perspective on related matters. He also has been involved in a short life working group on Whistleblowing, and was one of the trainees who helped to draft the response to the EWTD taskforce.
David Riding is a Vascular and General Surgery ST6 in the North West. He is currently out of programme, and working towards a PhD in venous disease at the University of Manchester. He has been awarded a Masters degree in Surgical Education from Imperial College, and recently completed his tenure as a Medical Education Fellow at HE North West. He has extensive teaching experience in the UK and Uganda, and continues to tutor undergraduate PBL groups.
David was appointed to the Trainees’ Committee in March 2016. He will advocate for higher quality educational supervision, with more emphasis on mentorship through a relationship that encompasses the full length of training. In addition, he is a strong proponent of evidence-based educational practice in surgery, which he considers particularly important in the context of EWTD and the new Junior Doctors’ contract. During his time in Uganda, he noted that there is a demand for higher quality educational opportunities for non-UK surgical trainees, and he hopes to be able to represent these views to the Committee.
Junaid Sultan is an ST5 in General Surgery in the Yorkshire and Humber Deanery, planning to sub-specialise in Vascular Surgery. He has a special interest in the abdomino-thoracic aneurysm and venous disease.
He is involved in both the undergraduate and post-graduate teaching. He is the faculty member of the ASiT MRCS course and also the examiner for the UKFPO examination. He sits on the editorial board of School of Surgery website.
Junaid has an interest in surgical research and education, and feeds back to the College regarding trainee’s perspective on this subject. He also assisted with the EWTD taskforce response. He hopes to see discussions on other matters regarding the reintroduction of the surgical mentors, flexibility on inter-deanery transfers/exchange for training purposes and international fellowship programmes in collaboration with the College.
Sarah Healy is an ST7 in Otolaryngology in Wales, with an interest in Head and Neck Surgery. She is an enthusiastic member of the Association of Otolaryngologists in Training, having organised the conference in 2011, and been the Secretary, ENT UK Representative and Wales Representative. She is nearing the final year of a Masters Degree in Medical Law, and is working towards a qualification in Medical Management and Leadership.
Sarah has personal experience of less than full-time (LTFT) training, and is keen to promote this as a valued option for trainees. She is also interested in human factors and resilience, and how these can be targeted to improve both the training experience and quality of life for trainees.
