BMA has to pay £815000 in damages for indirect racial discrimination

Dear Editor

The finding of indirect racial discrimination against the BMA
highlights the need to do more to make medicine an inclusive profession
(1). Recently I attended a conference on Institutional Racism in Higher
Education, during which many issues about the accessibility and
inclusiveness of higher education were raised (2). Some of these were
highlighted the following day when I attended my school’s Graduation
Ceremony. The ceremony was held at Southwark Cathedral, and continued a
tradition and association between church, hospital and university going
back hundreds of years. On one hand the magnificent building, evocative
organ music, and procession of staff and students in their gowns gave the
ceremony a certain meaning and significance. On the other hand, when I
looked at the very multicultural group of graduating doctors and their
families, some of whom had come in national or religious dress, I wondered
how comfortable and relevant it felt for them.

Such formal events send out messages about the values and culture of
an organisation. It made me wonder how many taken for granted aspects of
medical school life could seem alienating to those from different ethnic,
religious or class backgrounds. If medical schools are serious about
widening access, such events needs to be reviewed, as do many more subtle
ways in which organisations send messages about what and who is
acceptable. A good starting point, suggested by Beverley Bernard at the
conference is to tackle the issues which people in the organisation tell
you are important – and give them the opportunity to tell you.

I would be interested in others’ views and experiences.

Yours sincerely

Mary Seabrook

(1) Dyer C. BMA has to pay £815000 in damages for indirect racial
discrimination. BMJ 2002; 324: 1541a

(2) Institutional Racism in Higher Education, Centre for Ethnicity and
Racism Studies, University of Leeds. 3 July 2002