Public health medicine conference 2024

Public health: past, present and future public health medicine conference 2024. Preparing the profession.

The conference is the BMA’s policy forum for public health doctors. This year’s theme is “Public health: past, present and future” with a particular focus on the future. You don’t need to be a BMA member to attend. 

The conference will be a hybrid event and so attendance may be in-person at BMA House, or virtually by MS Teams. The agenda committee is keen, however, that those attending as voting representatives attend in person if they can. There are more details below on what the BMA can do to help you to attend. Please indicate on the booking form how you will be taking part in the event.

Attendees are encouraged to view the Sandy Macara Lecture 2023 in advance of attending the conference. In this lecture, professor Virginia Berridge, professor of health history and policy, the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine spoke on the subject of Public Health and Inequality: Insights from the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries. View a recording of the 2023 Sandy Macara memorial lecture.

Why should you attend?

The conference is the BMA’s forum for public health doctors from across the UK. It provides opportunities for you to hear from leaders of the public health community; debate and discuss the issues of concern to you; and network and share experiences. Through the debate and votes on motions sent in by representatives, conference sets the policy and negotiating priorities for the BMA public health medicine committee for the coming year.  It also receives a report on the work undertaken on the previous year’s conference motions.

What to expect

• Keynote speeches on the theme of the conference with speakers including Sophie Howe, the first future generations commissioner for Wales.
• Presentation on what other clinicians want from public health from the chair of BMA council, Professor Phil Banfield.
• Opportunities to hear from the BMA on its public health work during the last year including its representation of public health trainees and to hold it to account on that work.
• Report of the work of the Faculty of Public Health from its vice president, Professor Tracy Daszkiewicz.
• Debate of motions sent in by you, giving you the chance to decide which issues are important and to influence policy and the work of the BMA in the coming year.
• Workshops aimed at helping you to prepare for the future of public health.
• Sessions in which you can engage with other attendees and raise and discuss general issues of importance with colleagues in public health and from other branches of medicine. 

There will be a teach-in for new representatives between 9.15am and 9.45am and a networking reception for those attending in-person at the end of day.  

Motions for debate

There will be an opportunity for all representatives to submit motions for debate that could shape the BMA’s agenda over the coming years. The deadline for submission of motions is 10.00am on Friday 26 January 2024. Emergency motions on issues that arise after the deadline can be submitted up to noon on 23 February 2024. The agenda committee would particularly welcome motions inspired by the theme of the conference. To submit motions you can use the Survey Monkey form, or e-mail [email protected]

Read the guidance on writing a good motion. 

For further advice on how to draft and submit a motion and on existing conference policy, please email the conference secretariat at [email protected]

You can also search the BMA’s Policy Database to search for existing conference policy by subject.

Attending the conference

Places at the conference are now open on a first come first served basis until the relevant places are filled.

Attendance is free for BMA members. Representatives will be entitled to expenses. Unfortunately, observers won't be entitled to expenses. In-person attendance costs £20 for non-members and includes refreshments and a delegate pack.

If for any reason after registering you should find yourself no longer able to attend, please let us know as soon as possible so your place can be allocated to someone else. 

Helping you to attend (BMA members only)

Caring responsibilities

If you need to make special arrangements to care for children or adult dependents in order to attend, the BMA is able to meet the cost of that additional care.

Support is available for those who request it by 29 January. Unfortunately, we cannot guarantee to provide this facility if the request is made after this date.

Please contact Winifred Annan on [email protected] for further information or if you wish to make a request for support.

Travel costs

Reasonable standard class travel expenses will be reimbursed for representatives on production of receipts. You are asked to make every effort to book advance tickets and to make use of the cheap deals that are available. If in doubt, please contact [email protected] prior to making your travel arrangements.

Accommodation costs

The cost of overnight stays will normally only be met if it is necessary for the representatives to leave home before 6.30am. Nonetheless you must gain advance approval for a claim of accommodation costs.  If you require the BMA to cover the cost of your overnight accommodation or have queries about it, you must email your request in advance to [email protected]

Accommodation expenses will be reimbursed up to a maximum of £220 per night. Delegates will be expected to cover any difference themselves.

Registration

You will need to register to attend this event using your BMA account details.

Get in touch if you've forgotten your details, or need a BMA account. 

Please let us know what we can do to make this event fully accessible to you.  If you would like to discuss your access requirements further, please contact [email protected]