History
The Brighton and Sussex Medico-Chirurgical Society is one of the oldest medical societies in England. Established in 1847 by the society's first president Dr William King - founder of the Brighton Co-operative Society. Regular meetings were held for many years in the music room of the Brighton Royal Pavilion. In the 1970s, meetings were transferred to the Sussex Postgraduate Medical Centre on the Brighton General Hospital site. The 100th anniversary meeting, held in the Pavilion was attended by many distinguished guests including the Presidents of the three Royal Colleges. The Society has an extensive library containing many valuable historical medical books.
What We Do
Our aim is to provide a forum where doctors, medical students and interested 6th formers from all over Sussex can meet and hear distinguished speakers deliver interesting and stimulating talks on a variety of medical and non-medical topics. These talks aim to tackle some of the major medical, ethical, philosophical, educational and medico-political issues that confront health professionals and the general public alike.
Bursaries and Prizes
We currently offer three prizes for year 4 BSMS students' Independent Research Projects.
We are particularly keen to welcome medical students and foundation doctors at all meetings. All you need to do is to take a seat in the Audrey Emerton lecture theatre before the presentation starts! The meetings are a great opportunity for career development, networking and continuing professional development (CPD).
Membership
Membership is open to senior clinicians in both primary and secondary care, retired doctors, junior medical staff and Brighton & Sussex Medical School (BSMS) students from all years.Annual membership fees are as follows:
Full member £55.00
Joint member £80.00
Retired member £30.00
Joint retired members £45.00
Student member FREE
To join the society, click here.
Additionally, pupils in their final two years at local schools who are interested in a career in medicine are more than welcome to attend lectures. Please note that attendees under the age of eighteen must be accompanied by a responsible adult.
Meetings
Meetings are held in the main lecture theatre of the Audrey Emerton Education Centre at the Royal Sussex County Hospital. They typically start at 6.30pm but please always check website or publicity for timings. Evening meetings are normally held on the first Thursday of the month excluding July, August & September. Additional meetings may be arranged at the discretion of the president. The speaker programme is arranged by the current President and the invited speakers often have an international or national reputation. Please also be aware that occasionally meetings have been cancelled for reasons of very severe weather.
Annual Dinner
There is an Annual Dinner held at an interesting local venue which is open to members and their guests.
The Council
The council is a small body which ensures the aims and objectives of this charity are upheld. The council comprises officers and members who, once elected remain as council members for 3 years. The officers are elected at the AGM which is usually held before the May meeting. There are also ex officio members of the Med Chi council ensuring close links to local hospitals and the Brighton and Sussex Medical School. The council must always have 2 medical student representatives. New ideas of how to run the Society can be brought to council members attention and then are discussed and approved if there is a majority of council in agreement. The council is supported and advised by a Secretary who organises the daily running of the society, notifies members and interested parties of future open meetings and council meetings as well as collecting membership dues and encouraging new members. The Society is also supported by a Treasurer whose task it is to ensure the appropriate collection and disbursement of the Society's funds. Ordinary members are very welcome to make suggestions for improving the running of the society through one of the council members. The Secretary can always supply the contact details of council members. The current council is listed below.
| Role | Name | |
|---|---|---|
| Officers | President | Prof Rob Galloway |
| Vice Presidents | Mr Andrew Hobkirk | |
| Dr Sonali Kaushik | ||
| President Elect | Professor Malcom Reed | |
| Chief Medical Officer | Professor Catherine Urch – ex officio | |
| Deputy Chief Medical Officer | Dr Madhava (Bob) Dissanyake – ex officio | BSMS Dean | Prof. Richard McManus - ex officio |
| Director of Medical Education | Dr Paul Smith - ex officio | |
| Council | Professor S. Waquar Yusuf | |
| Mr Charles Zammit | ||
| Mr John Quin | ||
| Junior Doctor | Dr Rajlakshmi (Sohini) Mukhopadhyay | |
| Non Medical | Director of Integrated Education | Mr Martyn Clark |
| Deputy Director of Integrated Education (Interim) | Ms Carrie Weller | |
| Student Members | Angelica Lupu (Angie) Arooba Ali |
|
| Trustees | Mrs Janet Thompson | |
| Mr Varadarajan Kalidasan | ||
| Max Cooper | ||
| Secretary | Kennis Lau |