Has January finally ended? It is said that January is the longest month of the year but the speed at which we have come into Shaban, we know that Ramadan is round the corner and many of us will be prepping physically and emotionally to welcome the blessed month.
A new year brings fresh opportunities, and with a new Council in place, it is the perfect time to reflect, renew, and refine our vision. In the upcoming months the Council will be reviewing our strategies and objectives, ensuring that we remain aligned with our core mission: to support, connect, and empower Muslim healthcare professionals while serving our communities with excellence and compassion.
We are in full swing with our #TeamBIMA25 recruitment drive and healthy Ramadan Campaign. Please consider joining our team of committed volunteers or signing up your local mosque for our Healthy Ramadan presentation. We are also very proud of our former President, Dr Salman Waqar, giving evidence at the UK Covid19 Inquiry and being the voice of ethnic minority healthcare professionals and our communities.
Above all, I want this to be a year of connection with each other. I encourage our members to get involved, join us at upcoming social events, share your ideas and help shape the future of our organisation. And for the coffee lovers here, let’s get in as many good mugs as possible before the detox happens.
Wassalam, Dr Sahira Dar BIMA President
January Highlights
BIMA New President and Council
The new BIMA Council formally took charge on 16th January 2025 for 2 years.
Together, we move towards our vision of healthier communities through the unity and empowerment of Muslim healthcare professionals. Join us and make BIMA your professional home. We will continue to connect, represent, and advocate for muslim HCPs and the communities we serve, and we will do this through our values of collaboration, excellence, compassion, and integrity.
May Allah swt help and guide us to fulfil our duties with excellence.
TeamBIMA25 Recruitment
Applications for TeamBIMA25 are now open!
Be a part of an amazing community of healthcare professionals & students, inspiring one another to serve their colleagues & their communities through various projects on offer.
Our Healthy Ramadan campaign has started and we invite you to take part!
Deliver our ready-made presentation at your local mosque or to your healthcare colleagues and help the Muslim community make the most of the blessed month.
Deliver our Ramadan Presentation to your Healthcare colleagues
We are calling on healthcare professionals to share valuable knowledge with their colleagues on fasting in Ramadan with various health-related conditions.
Help us address health inequalities within the Muslim community this Ramadan!
The Bradford Women’s Health Event brought together over 50 attendees from the local community for a day focused on community wellbeing. 25 health checks were conducted, and seven stall holders provided vital information on maternal health, cancer screening, mental health, diet, and lifestyle. The event fostered awareness, support, and empowerment for women’s health in Bradford.
BIMA Support Clinic Report
The BIMA Support Clinic is now one year old, Alhamdulillah, and we are pleased to share our first report. Thanks to the amazing dedication of our support team and the generous contributions of our members, we’ve been able to help many people facing challenges at work due to their Muslim identity, standing up against Islamophobia, or supporting causes like Palestine.
JazakAllah Khair to all those who have made this possible.
Former BIMA President, Dr Salman Waqar, recently gave evidence at the UK Covid19 Inquiry in his role as the Co-Secretary of FEMHO – an alliance of minority health workers that BIMA is a founding member of.
A revealing study, Religious Identity-Based Discrimination in the Physician Workforce, sheds light on the significant discrimination faced by Muslim doctors, highlighting the urgent need to address religious inclusion as a key component of workplace equality. The study, conducted as part of a US-UK research project led by the Initiative on Islam and Medicine, involved 104 Muslim doctors in the UK. Alarmingly, 40% reported experiencing religious discrimination during their careers, with 44% encountering it as early as medical school.
In both the UK and the USA, religious discrimination has a profound and systemic impact on Muslim doctors, and it is crucial that this issue be addressed. The team put forward several recommendations for the NHS, which BIMA urges the NHS to adopt, aimed at reducing discrimination and improving workplace inclusion for Muslim doctors.
Research on BIMA's intervention for bowel cancer screening
The University of Hertfordshire conducted a feasibility study exploring the British Islamic Medical Association’s (BIMA) culturally adapted, “faith-placed” educational intervention aimed at increasing the uptake of bowel cancer screening in Muslim communities. The results suggested that the intervention was more effective than conventional cancer screening campaigns in conveying the health message.
Free Course: Supporting Patients with Diabetes During Ramadan
BIMA, in collaboration with the Diabetes and Ramadan International Alliance (DaR) (hyperlink), is offering a free online course to help healthcare professionals and Muslim patients manage diabetes safely during Ramadan.
This course aims to bridge the knowledge gap and empower both healthcare professionals and patients to make informed decisions about fasting in Ramadan with diabetes.
New Report on Scottish Parliament's assisted dying consultation
A report published by SPICe (the Scottish Parliament's internal research centre) on the Assisted Dying (Scotland) Bill, includes reference to BIMA's submission, alongside a broad spectrum of views. The report is a detailed summary of 21,000 submissions to the call for views by the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee in summer 2024. It highlights key concerns such as the potential for coercion, the impact on healthcare professionals, and fears of a "slippery slope" towards more expansive legislation. While some supported the Bill for providing choice and dignity, the majority of detailed responses opposed it, advocating instead for improved palliative care and safeguards to protect vulnerable individuals.
BIMA's submission outlined our opposition to the introduction of assisted dying. We highlighted concerns about the potential for coercion, particularly among vulnerable individuals, and questioned whether adequate safeguards could prevent abuse. BIMA also emphasised the ethical and professional challenges for healthcare workers. We expressed concerns about the erosion of trust in the doctor-patient relationship, stressing the principle of "do no harm," and advocated for improving palliative care and addressing inequalities in end-of-life care access, rather than legalising assisted dying.
The results of BIMA's assisted dying survey can be accessed here.
BIMA delivered a workshop on Muslims, Islam, and Islamophobia at the all-staff meeting of York Hull Medical School on 8th January. We extend our thanks to Prof Anna Hammond, Dean Matt Morgan, and the team for their warm welcome and the productive discussions. We look forward to continuing these conversations in the future.
Webinar on Assisted Dying: Ethical Challenges and Islamic Perspectives
Life and death are among the most profound realities of human existence, raising complex ethical questions that intertwine faith, morality, and modern medical practices.
Watch the recording of this webinar jointly organised by AlBalagh Academy and BIMA as the panellists delve into the sensitive and timely topic of assisted dying, offering a unique exploration of the ethical challenges it presents through an Islamic lens.
Join us for an insightful session where Heena Mahmood will share strategies and solutions with us to overcome barriers to career progression with the NHS.
Working within a system that has many EDI policies but has yet to confront and solve its underlying prejudices, Heena speaks from her experience and research of navigating the workplace , utilising real case studies to highlight impact.
Join our webinar for Healthcare professionals "Get Ramadan Ready: How to manage patients with chronic conditions during Ramadan" taking place on Monday 10th February at 7:30pm.
The webinar will be hosted by Dr Salman Waqar and Dr Nazim Ghouri from BIMA.
Webinar: The Future of Healthcare and Islamic Finance
The UK healthcare system is at a critical juncture, facing challenges such as rising costs, an aging population, workforce shortages, and the need for digital transformation.
In this webinar, our panellists discuss the evolving landscape, emerging trends, and solutions that will shape the sector in the UK in the coming years.
Early CPR and defibrillation can more than double the chances of surviving an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.
The British Heart Foundation is continuing their mission to fund defibrillators in local communities using data to identify and reach areas across the UK with limited access.
Help your community have better access to a defibrillator by visiting the BHF's Community Defibrillator Funding Programme.
There are 40+ BIMA professional and regional WhatsApp groups that you can benefit from. These groups are a chance to network and discuss topical issues with colleagues in your professional area(s) and/or region.
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