The second part of Professor Reicks presentation was related to a study entitled ‘Cooking Matters for Families’, this is an intervention over a period of 5 years to assist with food preparation and behavioural economic strategies for low income families.  It focused on vegetable intake, liking, variety & habit formation for parent vegetable preparation practices.  Further information can be found at www.cookingmatters.org.

Both of Professor Reicks presentations were well received by those in attendance, with lots of engagement and questions from delegates.  Professor Reicks was interested in all questions asked and took the time to provide a relevant answer.

Some of the comments received from those present were 'Excellent presentation, would enjoy hearing more baout how to feel empowered in the workplace and interview settings', and 'Please encourage males to also attend - also senior academics would have benefitted from the Imposter Syndrome talk - please encourage to attend future events'. 

It was heartening to read the second comment in relation to males and senior academics.  This suggestion will be followed up for future events.

Gerry did not focus solely on clinical restorative dentistry, instead he gave an overview of his interest in dentistry, how networking and potential future trends in dentistry formed his current and existing career in clinical restorative dentistry.  

As with all WeCAN events, while most individuals present did not have or wish to have a career in clinical restorative dentistry, listening to Gerry speak about his desire to achieve and succeed in his chosen field can be transferred to all careers for all individuals.

What was obvious from both presentations is the importance of building relationships with individuals who are further along in their academic career internal and external to your organisation, to not be afraid to ask questions, have the confidence to hold onto and recognise your research achievements for your future advancement.

The presenters gave an open and honest synopsis of what is required to achieve a fellowship, a willingness to constantly work towards goals, being prepared to write and submit grants during family times such as Christmas in order to be considered for interview and eventual success in securing a Fellowship.

The majority of the audience was made up of those who would find the presentation most relevant to their career stage, and questions asked proved this.  The feedback received was very positive, and will be used to create future WeCAN events.

While Judy's presentation was relevant from an academic point of view for the PhD students and academics present, her career focus, goals and determination to realise her ambition was relevant to all levels of staff who came along to our event.

WeCAN has proven to be one of our most successful initiatives during the last few years, and as such it was no surprise that we had a good turnout.  For this year, our events have moved to the new Wellcome-Wolfson Institute for Experimental Medicine (WWIEM) on the main School of Medicine campus.

Professor Bradley received many relevant questions from attendees, all of which were answered as honestly and openly as possible.

It was very obvious that Dr Hill had a clear goal in mind based on a throw away comment she had heard in the past, and the comment kept knocking.  Eventually due to her own determination, belief in her by individuals in the bloodstock industry and her research findings, Equinome was born.

Due to the number and depth of questions asked by audience members after Dr Hill’s presentation indicated how well her words, innate ambition and achievements to date resonated with all those present.

We wish Dr Hill all the best with Equinome. 

Professor McMullin began by explaining her background where she trained in haematology and general medicine in Belfast and then in the Royal Postgraduate Medical school, Hammersmith Hospital.  On returning to Belfast Professor McMullin was appointed senior lecturer in 1991 and has been an active researcher and clinician in haematological malignancy in Belfast since that time.

There was a great deal of interest in Professor McMullin’s presentation from those in attendance, and many of the comments received were positive, along with questions asked during the Question and Answer session which was held after the presentation.

Dr Keane provided the audience with a detailed and enthusiastic presentation about her career to date, the steps she took, and the people who influenced her to choose lecturing as her chosen career.

Some of the comments received as feedback from the attendees were:

• I have just started my PhD and it was valuable insight to careers beyond my PhD.  I know I must be pro-active on this front.  Also like the relaxed, casual environment.
• Dr Keane’s presentation was excellent.  More career sessions.  Good balance between networking & the main session.
• An excellent overview of a career path in education for PhD’s / postdocs.  Very, very informative.  Thank you!!

From 1998-2005, she was Divisional R&D Manager  in Molecular Biology at Randox Laboratories Ltd., led a research team developing biomarker-based microarrays for diagnosis of cancers and cardiovascular disease, and collaborated with national and international partners in clinical trials and technology development.   Janice put a human face to her time at Randox Laboratories Ltd.,  as she explained how her research played a part in finding a cure for a condition from which a family member suffered.

Janice joined the then HPSS R & D Office as Programme Manager in January 2005. The office has a regional remit for promoting, supporting and facilitating research and development in health and social care.  Janice was appointed as Assistant Director of the office, which has now become the Health & Social Care R&D Division within the Public Health Agency, in April 2013.

There was a lot of interest from those present in Janice’s career path and many significant and relevant questions were asked, and answered honestly and openly by Janice.

Many of the individuals who attended this WeCan event would have been largely unfamiliar with the background statistics and the purpose of the Athena SWAN Charter. Dr McCloskey’s talk was informative in this regard and was also very encouraging in terms of highlighting the support that is available in the School and the University for women who want to pursue an academic career.

The final WeCan event of this academic year is scheduled for 21st May 2014, 1-2pm when Dr Janice Bailie, Assistant Director, HSC Research & Development Division, Public Health Agency, will speak on ‘Role Models- Non-Academic Careers’ followed by an open discussion.

Professor Eileen Harkin-Jones (School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering) and Professor Noemi Lois (Centre for Experimental Medicine, SMDBS) shared their perspectives on this topic with over 30 members of staff from Postdoctoral Researcher to Professor who attended this event.

The event ended with an interactive discussion, chaired by Dr Michelle McKinley (WeCAN Co-ordinator).  Feedback indicated that the event had been enjoyable and useful and the staff who attended said they would encourage other colleagues to come along to future events.

Dr Michelle McKinley (WeCAN Co-ordinator) then chaired a lively, interactive discussion.  Informal feedback showed that staff found the event to be informative and supportive as well as being a good opportunity to network with colleagues across the school.

The Leadership Foundation has also developed a programme designed for mid-career people which helps improve confidence in leadership skills.

Francis Guinane and Paula Teggart from the Queen’s University Staff Training & Development Unit (STDU) also attended the WeCan Launch to discuss the support available from Queen’s University. SDTU has ensured its leadership programmes link with individuals’ real jobs and the strategic plans of the University. The programmes are mapped onto the Leadership Foundation and National Occupational Standards for Leadership and Management.

During the informal event, Tracy spoke about her career in Medicine, her interest in science and how it led to her current career pathway.  Tracy spoke openly about building a career while raising her children, and the support she receives from her partner and family members who live close by.

One of the student’s present felt comfortable enough to tell Tracy she wanted to start a family, but was unsure of this as she was uncomfortable with the thought she may have to move to different Universities around the world to eventually secure tenure.  Tracy was delighted to be asked this question, and one of her first responses was women helping women, those who have been there already sharing their experiences, setting up buddy or mentoring programmes for this.

The event was a success, Tracy was very much in tune with the pressures females in academia are under, working to achieve your career goals while raising a family.

Professor Bird is Emeritus Professor and Consultant at the Institute of Ophthalmology at the Moorfields Eye Hospital, London.  Professor Bird is the author or co-author of more than 400 publications in peer-reviewed journals. He has given numerous named lectures in Europe and North America.

The event commenced with Dr Derek Brazil, CEM asking Professor Bird questions about why he choose medicine, what led him to ophthalmology, what he learned from his career and what suggestions or tips he would give current PhD students at the beginning of their academic career.

There were many interesting and relevant questions from the students who attended the event, and Professor Bird had many exciting and relevant suggestions for those present.

A comment from one of our students who attended - “Just to say thanks for organising a really beneficial lunch – I really enjoyed chatting with the Professors, and benefiting from their experience!  Thanks for taking the time and effort to set this lunch up for us – I received some memorable words of wisdom and advice, and very much appreciate the opportunity this lunch afforded to meet with female Professors”.

Our next ‘Meet the Professor’ Lunch will be held in November 2014.

Professor Whelton spoke of the impact of micro-inequities that can accumulate to impact career progression and shared her clinical academic career pathway and the challenges that she overcame to reach her current position. Professor Whelton’s inspirational presentation also offered insight into how she successfully balances her professional and personal life.

The lecture was well attended by students and staff from MDBS and other parts of the University.  Feedback and comments from those who attended were full of praise for Professor Whelton and her ability to engage and encourage people at all stages of their careers.

Dr Karen McCloskey, Director of MDBS Gender Equality Office said “The motivational impact of the lecture on those present was significant, with conversations taking place in MDBS in the weeks that followed around gender equality issues and the need to support early-career researchers and academics."

IMAGE: Dr Karen McCloskey, Director MDBS Gender Equality Office, Prof Stuart Elborn, Dean of MDBS, Prof Yvonne Galligan, Director Queen’s Gender Initiative, Prof Helen Whelton, Guest Lecturer

As well as all things physiological, Professor Wray is particularly passionate about basic research to improve pregnancy and labour outcomes for women not only in the UK but around the world.  To this end she is the Director of the "Centre for Better Births" at Liverpool (www.betterbirths.org) and this is her main research focus.

Prior to the lecture, the GEO hosted a "Careers and Coffee" informal discussion for female PhD students, Clinical fellows and Postdoctoral Researchers with Professor Sue Wray.

After a networking lunch, Professor Graham McGeown, Deputy Head of SMDBS welcomed everyone to the event and introduced Professor Wray.

The lecture was entitled "Reflections on an Academic Career in Women's Health - A womb with a view".  Approximately 50 people attended the lecture, including PhD students, Clinical Fellows, Postdoctoral Researchers and Academic staff from the SMDBS and across the university.  Professor Wray's lecture was interesting, motivating and highly relevant to all who attended.

The lecture was followed by an interactive Q & A session focussing on career progression and gender / diversity areas which Professor Wray had addressed during the lecture.

Professor Buitendijk lecture was entitled 'Increasing gender diversity in academic leadership: time for action'.  The current lack of gender diversity in academic leadership in Europe implies that universities lose out on important opportunities to achieve excellence in teaching and research.  It is clear from a large body of recent studies which measures can and should be implemented to change the present imbalance.  The time for action appears to have arrived.  In her presentation, Professor Buitendijk focused on concrete measures that universities can take.  She discussed some of the recommendations from the recent League of European Research Universities (LERU)-report 'Women, research and universities: excellence without gender bias' that she co-authored.

Prior to the lecture, the Gender Equality Office hosted workshops with Professor Buitendijk: Sharing Good Practice within EU Universities with members of the committee and the School SWAN team, followed by a Career Development Workshop with clinical fellows and post-doctoral scientists.

The charity we supported this year was Belfast and Lisburn Women’s Trust, a local charity which assists women and children escape domestic violence.  The total amount raised for the charity was £208.04 and we presented this to Sarah Stafford and Lois Bailie from the charity recently.

Mervyn is one of the Senior Technicians within the Centre for Biomedical Sciences Education in the SMDBS, and has been instrumental in providing facilities for the people of Nakasongola.

Mervyn has been Captain of Raffrey BB for almost three decades, and has been a member of the Boys’ Brigade’s Down Battalion Executive for 28 years, holding the position of President for the past eight years. He has been the BB’s Northern Ireland vice president for the past nine years.

In 2000, the Down BB Battalion took a team of 29 to Uganda to build a primary school as part of their millennium celebrations, with Mervyn part of this enthusiastic team. The school was built in the bush area of Nakasongola where 93 children were schooled under the shade of a large tree and it has greatly improved the education of the children of the area. 

In 2007, the Down Battalion raised money so a bore hole could be drilled to provide children with clean water to drink for the first time in their lives which reduced the incidence of dysentery in the school from every child in 2007 to none two years later. Mervyn responsible for raising a substantial amount of money to finance this particular project.

Since 2009, Mervyn has been regularly returning to Uganda taking groups of volunteers, many of whom are students. Six years ago, the team bought sewing machines and taught some girls and women how to sew which has now become a source of income for many.

In 2009, the Down Battalion raised funds towards the building of a new high school in the village which was constructed a year later, while two years ago Mervyn led a team of 27 to work at the new school which has now educated around 700 students. Each team member took a laptop with them to leave at the school and supplied funds to install solar power to ensure they could be used. 

Last summer, Mervyn took a team of 58 people back to the high school, teaching practical skills which included sewing and knitting, first aid, music, sport, welding and joinery to students and local women. The fundraising efforts of the BB also helped build two new homes for some of the poorest families and a new health centre of which Mervyn is a Trustee. It is located just beside the school and receives his continued support.

This summer, Mervyn is heading back to Uganda with a 42-strong team to teach skills to students and the poorest families in the community, many of whom are suffering from HIV. Since he made his first visit 15 years ago, the transformation he and many others have helped make has been nothing short of amazing, particularly in the education and health sectors.

Children are not just educated in school buildings, but drink clean water and get at least one good meal a day, while the women are no longer solely relying on the land to provide them with an income as many are using the skills they have been taught to provide themselves with employment. 

The new Rapha Health Centre provides care to the most vulnerable and poorest people in Uganda, with Mervyn self-financing his trips to ensure all the fundraising income goes directly to where it is needed most.

Hazel explained that the money raised will go directly to 'development work at Peeragarhi Slum Colony, specifically the installation of a pre fabricated portacabin which will be used as a primary healthcare and referral centre on a large plot of land which has been donated by the Delhi Development Authority'.

The SMDBS Gender Equality Office were very pleased to be able to contribute to this excellent cause.

Thanks to everyone who donated home baked or purchased goods and to those who were generous with their time in the preparation and serving at the events.  The coffee morning raised over £600.00 across the two sites for our chosen charities.