Surgical Society: Paediatric Surgery Chair

Hi!

I’m Aksha, and I’d love to be your Paediatric Surgery Chair next year!

I’m an aspiring paediatric surgeon with a strong passion for the field, having been a support worker for children and completed an iBSc in Surgical Sciences. If you elect me, I’ll work to grow the Paediatric Surgery division by bringing in a variety of professionals for talks, hands-on workshops, and much more! My goal is to bridge the gap between students and clinicians, giving you greater insight into the field and creating more opportunities for mentorship and academic development.

As Paediatric Surgery Chair, I aim to:
1. Introduce a ‘Behind the Scrubs’ Talk Series covering: Training Pathways, a Day-In-The-Life of a Paediatric Surgeon, Social Inequities in Paediatric Healthcare, and CV-building.
2. Revive the ‘Case-to-Case’ Series featuring real-life patient cases with expert clinicians.
3. Plan Surgical Skills Workshops including Paediatric First Aid, Resuscitation and Trauma Management.
4. Develop the Mentorship Scheme by pairing students with leading paediatric surgeons to support research, portfolio building, and career development.

I’ve held a number of leadership roles, such as Events Lead for both Paediatric Surgery and Oncology Societies this year, RUMS Events Committee (2023-24), and Vice President of the Indian Society (2022-23). I’ve also helped organise major conferences, including the BAPIO Medical Conference (2023) and the upcoming National Undergraduate Oncology Conference (2025).

Hi, I’m Anin, and I’d love to serve as Paediatrics Chair! My Paediatrics iBSc provided insights into paediatric conditions and early surgical intervention, showing how child healthcare differs from adult medicine. Placements at GOSH helped me connect with cardiothoracic and transplant surgeons, highlighting the link between paediatric surgery and other child development teams. As iNUGSC co-director this year, I led a 20-person committee for a 300-person international conference where I worked with the GOSH Clin Sim Center on laparoscopic workshops. As workshops coordinator for the same conference in 2024, I sourced 4 practical workshops. Furthermore, as Radiology Tutorials Director, I organised a teaching series for pre-clin and clin students by liaising with radiology consultants. Finally, as Teddy Bear Clinic Project Leader, I led 4 interactive healthcare sessions for reception students. These experiences have strengthened my teaching, organisation, and leadership skills, and I’m eager to bring hands-on paediatric surgical education to Surg Soc through these events:

• Congenital conditions and history-taking teaching for clinical years (especially 5th years).
• A simulation workshop with GOSH on real paediatric surgical scenarios.
• A partnership with other chairs to explore the impact of paediatric surgery via interest groups with professionals.
• Practical workshops on laparoscopic skills and cleft palate repair.

Let’s develop (haha, geddit?) the future of paediatric surgery together!