Sir Graeme Catto, President of the College of Medicine

28-Oct-10: The Michael Pittilo Essay Award is presented annually for the best student essay on integrated health and care. In line with Michael Pittilo’s vision of integrating conventional and complementary approaches, the award is open to both medical and complementary therapy students. Excitingly, Dr Michael Dixon presented me with a merit award today, at the launch of the new College of Medicine, (fittingly) in the Cabinet War Rooms of the Churchill Museum, London. Dr Dixon’s comments on the achievements: “Ladies and Gentlemen”, pointing at the winners, three medical students (UCL, Imperial, Newcastle) and a now graduated nutritional therapist (Middlesex), “you are looking at the future of healthcare.”

Michael Pittilo Essay Ceremony with Dr Michael Dixon, Chair of Council

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Michael Pittilo Essay Award Winners

My essay was entitled “Nutritional Therapy For Integrated Health: Creating Sustainable Behaviour Changes”. For more on the essay and full access, have a  look at the article section.

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The event was packed with prominent speakers and attendees.

Sir Graeme Catto (President of the College of Medicine, and former president of the General Medical Council (GMC), 2001-2009),  Dr Michael Dixon (Chair of Council, and Chairman of the NHS Alliance), Sir Donald Irvine (College’s Advisory Council and a former GMC President), Professor Mustafa Djamgoz (Professor of Cancer Biology at Imperial College, London and a member of Council), Professor Andrew Miles (Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the University of Buckingham, Professor of Clinical Epidemiology and Social Medicine, and is a member of the College’s Science Advisory Council), Professor Jane Plant (Professor of Geochemistry at Imperial College, London, Chair of the College’s Patients’ Council), Professor George Lewith (Vice-Chair of the College of Medicine, and leader of the internationally respected Integrated Medicine research group at Southampton University), Professor David Peters (Clinical Director of the School of Integrated Health at Westminster University, member of Council and former Chair of the British Holistic Medicine Association), Simon Mills (Medical herbalist and project lead for the Department of Health’s Integrated Self Care in Family Practice research project, and MD of SustainCare), Professor Aidan Halligan (former Deputy Chief Medical Office for England,  member of Council and leads the Faculty for Homeless Care).

For more on the programme, speakers and their biographies, see here.

College of Medicine Inauguration, Cabinett War Rooms, Churchill Museum, London

The new College of Medicine brings is a new college that aims to bring together doctors, nurses and other health professionals with patients and scientists. No other health body does that. The College is unique – aiming to redefine what good medicine means. That includes a renewal of the traditional values of service, commitment and compassion. Their mission is to focus on patients, believing that science, systems and structures must fit patients’ needs – rather than forcing patients to fit the needs of technology and administration. It aims to ensure that patients are  at the centre of medicine and of all of healthcare policies and systems. The College promises to support a new breed of health professional who respects the culture, belief and choices of every patient, and promotes self-healing and health improvement wherever possible. Full members can be statutory registered health professionails as well as professions regulated by the Health Professions Council (HPC). Certain Complementary Medicine Practitioners can join as Associate members, subject to some rigorous requirements and criteria. With a Patients’ Panel there will also be scientist members and student members.