Steve also shares how we are advocating for child health with members, as we reflect on the first budget of the new Government and prepare to respond to the 10 Year Health Plan in England.
One of the College鈥檚 four charitable objects is to advance the education of the public in child health. And one of the four goals in our newly published College strategy is to ensure child health is at the centre of decision-making.
The Government鈥檚 Tobacco and Vapes Bill provides us with another opportunity to fulfil this aim and commitment. The 鈥渓ibertarian cause鈥 will argue against aspects of the Bill, eg proposals to stop smoking and vaping in school playgrounds and around hospitals.
However, addiction is never a form of freedom; most adults started smoking as children, and now wish they had never started. But they are trapped by their addiction.
Exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) is harmful, and the harm is enhanced in susceptible members of society, including the young, the old and adults with cardiovascular disease and diabetes; the rights of the large numbers of susceptible people in our communities not to be exposed to SHS need to be respected. Creating a smoke-free generation and ultimately freeing the UK from its addiction to nicotine is the right thing to do. With no sight of the Bill last week, we wrote to the Prime Minister urging for its publication and we will now help persuade MPs to support the measures within the Tobacco and Vapes Bill to advance public health.
And if this can be achieved in the UK, other countries could follow suit and also become nicotine-free.
We have also been in the media recently discussing new research on how cutting the amount of sugar children get in the womb and as toddlers can protect them against diabetes and high blood pressure in adulthood. In light of this news we reiterated our calls for the implementation of mandatory guidelines on the levels of salt and sugar in infant foods and drinks. We need to look after our children. They are 25% of the population and 100% of our future!
#WDYCD4Y - What Does Your College Do for You
We are hosting a full day online training, From curiosity to discovery: research essentials for paediatricians in training on Tuesday 3 December. The event aims to support paediatricians in training with little or no previous research experience to learn more about research. We will explore content related to the Progress+ curriculum such as quality improvement, systematic reviews and patient and public engagement in research.
We called for a pause in recruitment of PAs in paediatrics
Many of you contributed to our recent member consultation on views and experiences of working with Physicians Associates (PAs) in paediatrics. Over 2,000 paediatricians in the UK responded, and 80% agreed or strongly agreed that 鈥PA recruitment should be halted whilst the NHS develops structures for appropriate deployment of PAs鈥.
The College is now working with Research by Design, who conducted the survey, to review the findings of the consultation and publish a full and comprehensive response. We are committed to publishing the independent report (containing the full data and analysis from the survey) and our response by the end of this month.
Paediatricians continue to call for protection of children and families in the Middle East
We published a new statement continuing to call for the protection of children and young people in the Middle East. We also wrote to the Foreign Secretary, the Rt Hon David Lammy, to encourage him to use all diplomatic channels to prioritise the safety and wellbeing of children caught up in the conflict while ensuring a significant increase in humanitarian aid into Gaza.
10 Year Health Plan - engagement for members and for children and young people
We are really pleased to be supporting the Change NHS public conversation on the NHS 10 Year Health Plan for England, which many of you will have already heard about or been invited to a session at work. We鈥檝e published a page for members to explain how you can have your say 鈥 with lots more resources coming over the next two weeks.
The online engagement portal is for those aged 16+ only, so the RCPCH &Us network has quickly mobilised and created a . This is our call to you, please print out the flyer and share with patients to take part online. Or reach out to your hospital school, forum or local groups and share the session plans. Time is tight - deadline for this first round of children and young people's engagement is 17 November as the NHS portal closes soon after.
This is our chance to advocate for and champion children and young people's rights in England. Don't worry: the team will be in the nations in the New Year, too!
We responded to the UK Government Autumn budget
An historic moment last week 鈥 the and the first from a female Chancellor. Now the dust has settled it feels like there is still a way to go to avoid a scattergun approach to funding that will improve our children鈥檚 health, recover our services and support our workforce.
My statement has more on the good, the bad and the ugly of last week鈥檚 budget and we now look ahead to influence the government ahead of the Spring Budget when multi-year settlements will be agreed. Our devolved nations benefited from an additional 拢6.6 billion this budget and our teams are engaging local policy makers in advance of devolved budgets later this year.
We just hosted a membership ceremony in Edinburgh
This was our third, and final, membership ceremony of the year, following two other wonderful events in Manchester and Birmingham. Over these three events we have welcomed 578 new Members and 50 new Fellows into the College. The events were attended by members (and their families) from 22 countries, with UAE, Egypt, Pakistan, India and Malaysia particularly well represented.
SAS week activities
SAS week was 14-18 October (#SASweek24) and we published a series of new resources related to specialist, associate specialist and specialty doctors on this website. This includes an SAS careers resource and stories directly from the SAS community, covering the experience of supporting and navigating career change and reflections on what led them to a career as a SAS doctor in paediatrics.
In case you missed it!
Early bird registration is open for RCPCH Conference 2025. Register now to get 15% off the normal ticket price. You can book for one, two or three days at the venue in Glasgow, or for a virtual pass. Watch this space for more details on keynote speakers, line-up, Conference activities and specialty session dates.
Best wishes,
Steve
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