Telangana based MBBS Student Establishes UK's Very First Organisation for international medical students
United Kingdom - A Telangana based student, Sai Ram Pillarisetti, who is pursuing MBBS from the UK recently established the BIDA Student Wing, the UK's very first Organisation that represents international medical students who are studying MBBS in that country.
He hails from Hyderabad and is currently in fourth-year Medical School (MBBS) studying at University of Central Lancashire (UCLAN). He is the youngest member ever to be serving on the BIDA National Executive Committee.
Speaking during the event, the medico said, "Most international medical students studying in the United Kingdom are not as fortunate as the lucky few who have family members in the medical profession to help guide them through their education and training. Although they could access this support to some extent at university, in my experience it is not as robust as it could be. To address this gap, I conceived and established the BIDA Student Wing, which is the UK's very first Organisation that represents international medical students who are studying MBBS in the UK. The BIDA Students wing is a division of the British International Doctors Association (BIDA),
The British International Doctors Association (BIDA) was established in 1975 and is the oldest organisation representing international doctors working in the United Kingdom. In the 45 years history of BIDA, I am the youngest ever member to be elected to their National Executive Committee and have been serving on this committee since 2018.
BIDA was formed with the sole objective of promoting EQUALITY and FAIRNESS for all doctors working in the UK. BIDA's mission is to achieve equal treatment of all doctors based on their competence and merit irrespective of race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, or country of origin.
​Following the footsteps, in July 2020, the BIDA Student Wing was formed with the singular purpose of extending BIDA's core values to the international student doctor community which represents the medical practitioners of the future.
Some of the initiatives the BIDA Student Wing will be getting involved in are creating a FIRST of its kind Mentorship programme connecting medical students from the student wing with senior members from the parent organisation of BIDA, who are very keen to support and mould the future generation of doctors.
The BIDA Student Wing will also be supporting students with exam revision and organising workshops as well as offering career advice and guidance to students.
These initiatives will help address some of the issues and build on the excellent medical curriculum offered by universities in the UK.
After students graduate and apply for Junior Doctor jobs, they are often asked about their published work. This can be very competitive and difficult to obtain, especially for international students who are new to the foreign system. BIDAs 'peer-reviewed Journal' gives them this opportunity.
International Students also often experience a culture shock when arriving in a foreign country and we plan to address these by organising cricket and other sports tournaments for our members across the UK.
