Conference co-chair (x2)

Jasmine Yap

My name is Jasmine and I’m about to enter my 4th year of Medicine. I have been part of the KCL Paediatric Society for the last 3 years, including being the Publicity Officer and a Teddy Bear Hospital Officer on committee this year. I was also on Conference Committee, which inspired me to apply for this role.

My idea for next year’s conference theme is ‘Diversity in Paediatrics’, which would entail:

- Diverse speakers: different healthcare professions, different backgrounds, potentially speaking from different countries.

- Diversity within sub-specialities: explore the possibility of involving more ‘niche’ specialities and opportunities within paediatrics, such as a talk on paediatrics within Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors without Borders).

- Collaborations with other societies to broaden the scope of our speakers and audience.

- Abstract and poster competition: speakers would vote for the best submissions using a pre-determined objective marking criteria.

- Online: if it were to be online, we could make the most out of it by aiming to make it international, with speakers and delegates attending from different countries. There could also be a networking space for those who feel like they would be missing out on this aspect of an in-person conference.

I co-directed and co-chaired the International Undergraduate Ophthalmology Conference this year, after which we were congratulated by multiple consultants and delegates for our organisation. During this role, I have been able to identify and contact key speakers within the field; understand the criteria behind judging abstracts and posters; and develop my proactivity and flexibility when having to make last-minute changes so it could be held online.

Within the Paediatric Conference committee, I was able to share this insight and experience to contribute suggested timetable changes and contingency plans when one of our speakers had to cancel last-minute.

In addition to being involved in organising conferences which has boosted my confidence when public speaking, I have also attended many, including having presented at one. Should next year’s conference be held online, I have experience navigating different conferencing platforms as an attendee, which could be utilised to make the conference run smoothly.

Sofia Peacock

Hi, I’m Sofia! I’m a medical student currently intercalating in endocrinology. I’ve proudly been part of paediatric society since my second year, when I began volunteering for Teddy Bear Hospital, and this year I’ve been lucky enough to be the project coordinator. Being one of the conference publicity officers as part of an incredible team has been a highlight of this year, as everyone put in a huge amount of effort to help run the conference so smoothly. I believe the conference is a great opportunity to further develop people’s interest in the specialty, but should also be an engaging day for those undecided or less interested in paeds!

I hope to build on the success of this year’s conference by:

- Hosting a diverse range of speakers

- Utilising online platforms to reach international audiences and/or speakers!

- Showcasing less well-known areas of paediatrics in both medicine and surgery

- Increasing attendance by networking with paediatric societies across the UK and abroad

- Maximising organisation and coordination of conference planning by creating a shared workspace for the committee

- Announcing research projects at the conference as a promotional incentive, following the success of doing so this year

- Promoting the conference beyond medical students

This year, as the paediatric society’s Teddy Bear Hospital coordinator, I’ve gained experience managing a (brilliant) team, organising productive meetings, and balancing taking responsibility and delegating tasks.

I’m used to liaising with people beyond KCL, having introduced the project to schools and communicated with them throughout the pandemic.

This year, we transformed the project into an online, covid-ready format. I’m therefore familiar with adapting quickly, a skill I know is essential from my experience on last year’s conference committee, when we dealt with last-minute speaker and timetable changes.

On the conference committee this year, I was one of the publicity officers.

I designed the conference logo and was involved with the creation of the advertising media. I learned the importance of maximising engagement and outreach; our relentless approach to promotion meant we exceeded attendance from last year’s conference - giving us a new target for this year!

Aahil Damani

Learning. Well-organised. Socialising. Fun.

The answer to “describe an ideal conference in 4 words”.

I am applying for the role because I am passionate about paediatrics, enjoy attending conferences and delivering events for students. This role will allow me to build on the incredible work the society has done and deliver a memorable conference; online or in-person.

Having attended many conferences previously, my exciting and innovative ideas include:

- Maximising reach through collaboration with other UK medical school paediatrics societies.

- Recruiting the best speakers to deliver workshops and talks on the conference theme and on topics students want to hear about: foundation programme, how to make the most out of scholarly projects etc.

- Kahoot quiz at the end of the conference for attendees to participate in, with a prize for the winner.

- Sustainable merchandise that can be used by attendees

- An inclusive social event for attendees so that they can network and have fun (even if online).

- Widening participation: pair students from outside London with London students for accommodation so they can fully enjoy the conference and social.

- Collaborating with other student-led sessions to give societies the platform to reach a number of students at our conference, teaching important topics.

#AahilDamaniForConferenceCoChair

Having attended KCL Paediatrics Society’s last two conferences as well as the 2020 online GOSH Summer School, I hope to bring experience and best practice to the role.

I have organised 3 large-scale concerts as treasurer and president of GKT Music Society, with the December 2019 one attended by 200 people. Moreover, I collaborated with Oncology Society to raise £412 for charity at that concert, in addition to the concert sales. I can liaise with senior leadership and individuals for logistics, ensuring the conference goes as smoothly as possible. As current vice-president of SfGH KCL, I have organised social and academic events online, recruited a speaker from Public Health England for the short course, which 40+ students attended every week for 6 weeks and am familiar with the KCLSU External Speaker form.

Most importantly I am a hardworking, energetic, flexible team player who will deliver an unforgettable conference in 2022.