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Student Education Committee

The SCTS Student Education committee is made up of medical students from across the UK who work together to lead and coordinate a range of activities and events aimed at inspiring medical students to consider cardiothoracic surgery as a future career.

 

 

SCTS Student Education Committee Members 2025 -2027

Benjamin Chapman- Student Lead                                        Chai Lim- Communications Lead

                                 

 

Donovan Campbell- Treasurer                             Eteesha Rao- Research Lead

                                  

 

Ethan Alford- Medical School Liason                         Sarah Guo- Education Lead

                     

 

Nikan Hoorijani- Events Lead                            Ananya Mathur- Widening Participation Lead

                                     

 

Jasleen Nagi- Mentorship Lead                 Fatemeh Habibi Nameghi - Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Lead

                                               

 

Student Engagement Day

   

The Student Engagement Day is an annual event designed to connect medical students with experienced surgeons and leaders in the field to motivate and educate them to pursue a career in cardiothoracics. This full-day event includes panel discussions, networking sessions and hands-on surgical workshops, providing students with a real-life glimpse into the world of cardiothoracic surgery. The event aims to encourage students to pursue careers in this challenging yet rewarding specialty, offering guidance, mentorship and opportunities to develop practical surgical skills.

Our 2025 Student Engagement Day was hosted at Royal Stoke University Hospital in partnership with Keele University Surgical Society. Centred around the theme "At the Heart of Cardiothoracic Surgery: Innovation, Resilience, and Progress," the day brought together leading clinicians from across the specialty to explore both the future of cardiothoracic surgery and the personal journeys behind successful surgical careers.

Highlights included inspiring keynote lectures from:

  • Mr Bil Kirmani – The History and Development of Cardiothoracic Surgery: How Far Have We Come?
  • Prof Mahmoud Loubani – Resilience in Practice: Finding Balance in High-Stakes Careers
  • Prof Ali Zamir Khan – The Future of Cardiothoracic Surgery: Robotics, Minimally Invasive Surgery, Artificial Intelligence and Beyond
  • Mr Juneenath Karattuparambil – Beyond the Operating Room: Cardiothoracic Anaesthesia and ERAS in Optimising Patient Outcomes

The day also featured a wide range of practical workshops including suturing, bronchoscopy, video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS), valve replacement and coronary anastomosis simulation, giving students invaluable hands-on experience alongside opportunities to network with trainees and consultants from across the UK.

We look forward to welcoming even more aspiring surgeons at our next Student Engagement Day.

 

MedPrep Work Experience Programme

Inspiring the Next Generation of Cardiothoracic Surgeons

The SCTS SEC MedPrep Work Experience Programme was established at Royal Papworth Hospital, Cambridge, where it was developed to provide sixth form students from widening participation backgrounds with early exposure to cardiothoracic surgery and its closely related specialties. Combining immersive hospital work experience with dedicated medical school application support, the pilot programme demonstrated the value of structured clinical exposure in inspiring aspiring healthcare professionals and improving access to careers in medicine.

Building on the success of the Cambridge programme, the SCTS Student Education Committee is now expanding the initiative nationally to enable more cardiothoracic centres to offer high-quality, equitable work experience opportunities for students across the UK.

Alongside clinical placements across cardiothoracic centres, students participate in workshops focused on applying to medical school, including personal statement guidance, interview preparation and mock interviews delivered by medical students and clinicians.

By expanding the MedPrep Work Experience Programme nationally, the SCTS Student Education Committee hopes to provide equitable access to high-quality work experience opportunities for students across the UK. Through collaboration between cardiothoracic centres, university surgical societies and SCTS, we aim to establish a sustainable annual initiative that inspires and supports future generations of doctors and surgeons.

Interested in becoming a MedPrep centre?

We are actively recruiting cardiothoracic centres to join the national programme. If your centre would be interested in hosting a work experience week as part of the SCTS SEC MedPrep programme, please contact Sarah Guo at sarah.guo@nhs.net.