IGHI is home to a team of staff who are skilled and passionate about their roles. Our talented people are the reason we’re able to tackle some of the most pressing global health challenges through cutting-edge innovation.
For the UK workforce, the challenge of mental health at work is significant.
There is an ongoing stigma that prevents an open discussion on the topic. And with more people working longer hours, uncertainty in job security and a lack of understanding about mental health, this a problem which has repercussions for both employers and employees.
By Mr Guy Martin, Clinical Lecturer, Department of Surgery & Cancer
The COVID-19 pandemic is the biggest health crisis the world has faced in a generation. It has led to an unprecedented reaction from every corner of the globe.
By Dr Justine Alford, Communications Manager, IGHI
My journey into research communications was somewhat serendipitous.
During my undergrad in biology I’d become really passionate about HIV. I embarked on a PhD studying the virus in the lab, envisioning my name in scientific lights as I contributed towards a cure. The reality of pipetting minuscule amounts of liquid into test tubes while sporting an oversized bottle green lab coat was far less glamorous.
In the midst of a global pandemic, our people are continuing their endeavour to improve health and care. In this new series, we’re speaking to our IGHI community to find out how they’re adapting to working life amid coronavirus, and the unique opportunities and challenges this has presented them.
Each year, there are approximately 55,200 new cases of breast cancer in the UK.
People with breast cancer face a host of different treatments including chemotherapy and radiotherapy. For the majority of people facing a breast cancer diagnosis, surgery to remove the cancerous tumour is their primary treatment, with people either undergoing breast-conserving surgery or a mastectomy.
IGHI is home to a team of staff who are skilled and passionate about their roles. Our talented people are the reason we’re able to tackle some of the most pressing global health challenges through cutting-edge innovation.
We’re giving you the chance to get to know our staff a little better and learn about what motivates them in their roles, who inspires them and what they like to get up to outside of IGHI.
Meet Lily Roberts, a teaching fellow at the NHS Digital Academy. Learn more about her role and how Lily supports the next generation of digital leaders in health.
There are several facets to my role. Predominantly, I am the first point of contact for participants of the year-long NHS Digital Academy (NHSDA) PGDip programme and advocate for optimum student experience. I provide participants mostly with technical, academic, or pastoral support. I enjoy the latter the most as it allows me to connect with individuals on a personal level, and understand the barriers to their engagement and how I can support them further.
Throughout the year I collaborate with the wider team to make improvements to the programme based on participant feedback which we collect for each module. We also assess the participants many times throughout the year. I am in charge of coordinating the marking teams and, more often than not, I get involved with marking myself.
My NHSDA colleagues would maybe say something like responsive, organised and kind. Whereas those in my office might say bonkers and surprisingly sassy!
It feels like a lifetime ago, but I was taught to play both piano and organ by my very talented late granny from age seven, and at 14, I achieved a Grade 8 Distinction in both. I have dark memories of being made to practise every day to earn my pocket money and the adoration of my granny. Somehow, I still enjoy playing (and love my granny) today. My favourites for the piano are Beethoven’s Pathétique Sonata and Chopin’s Nocturnes.
I find certain traits of the people around me inspirational; my older sister Florence is a police officer and I think she’s really brave (and crazy). My granny can reel off hours of stories from years and years ago and I’m always in awe of that (how much of it is true we will never know!).
My partner inspires me to be confident in myself and to invest in stocks (he’s an accountant – previously I would have said Bitcoin, but that word is banned from our house). And working at IGHI I am inspired every day by my incredibly clever colleagues who are always producing really interesting work.
Probably teleportation? I really miss my family and friends over in New Zealand and would love to be able to head over for a weekend here and there, pop into my favourite cafes, go for a swim at the beach, visit the New Zealand sheep. I’d then teleport straight back to our office in St Mary’s Hospital on Monday at 9 am with some Whittakers chocolate for my colleagues.
I have quite a few! I enjoy true crime podcasts. I haven’t yet found one which matches the perfection of Serial, Season One but I’m a loyal listener of My Favourite Murder and All Killa No Filla. I’ve always had a sweet tooth. Much to my delight I’ve found apple crumble can be adapted to a relatively wholesome breakfast choice. I’ve also got a slight addiction to buying activewear. I’m one of those people who wears activewear even when they’re not exercising, but you never know when you’ll need to run from something (I clearly listen to too many true crime podcasts!).
By Mr Daniel Leff, Consultant in Oncoplastic Breast Surgery at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and Reader in Breast Surgery at Imperial College London
I became curious about surgery as a speciality in my final year of medical school training at Imperial. In my early post-graduate years, I finally decided upon a career in surgery when I witnessed the direct impact it had on improving patient outcomes. I relished the technical challenge of balancing the cancer surgery on one hand, with the need for high-quality aesthetic outcomes on the other.
IGHI is fortunate to have so many inspiring women who play an important part in shaping our work. Not only have they influenced our legacy since the launch of the Institute in 2010, they’re also leading the way forward in delivering our latest innovative research.
For Women at Imperial Week, and with International Women’s Day around the corner, we’re highlighting 10 women in different roles across IGHI. We spoke to them to find out a bit more about what motivates them, and the future they’d like to see for women in the workplace. (more…)
IGHI is home to a team of staff who are skilled and passionate about their roles. Our talented people are the reason we’re able to tackle some of the most pressing global health challenges through cutting-edge innovation.
To mark our 10th anniversary this year, we’re giving you the chance to get to know some of them a little better and learn about what motivates them in their roles, who inspires them and what they like to get up to outside of IGHI.
Meet Marianne Knight, the Director of Operations for our Hamlyn Centre for Robotic Surgery. Learn more about her role in helping run the day-to-day activities of the Centre.