Charity Artwork Unveiled By Richard Kemp Celebrating Diversity At Liverpool University NHS Hospitals

Charity Artwork Unveiled By Acting Lord Mayor of Liverpool, Cllr Richard Kemp CBE, That Celebrates Diversity At Liverpool University NHS Hospitals

BIDA is the oldest organization in the UK representing international-origin doctors working in the country and has over 50 active divisions across England, Scotland & Wales (Credit: Supplied/Image was provided to The Liverpudlian to share, courtesy of the Publicist on behalf of their client. We make no claim to this content).

Charity artwork launched to celebrate diversity Initiative by the British International Doctors Association (BIDA) Student Wing.

A new display of fundraising artwork was recently launched at the Royal Liverpool University Hospital in an initiative by the Student Wing of the British International Doctors Association (BIDA).

The BIDA Student Wing is the very first organisation dedicated to representing International Medical  Students studying in the UK and have hundreds of members across the country representing more  than 40+ different nationalities.

'All of us at BIDA are very proud of this initiative led by Sai and our younger members. The legacy of our Covid heroes who fought on the front lines must never be forgotten and this fundraiser to support their families is a wonderful tribute.' - Dr Chandra Kanneganti, BIDA National President.

The ‘Beauty in Diversity’ project, launched during the COVID-19 pandemic, invited students from  across the UK to submit diversity-themed artwork which would later be auctioned to NHS institutions  to raise money for families of bereaved healthcare workers.

This student wing initiative was inspired by BIDA’s earlier fundraiser which raised £50,000 for COVID relief. Recognising students do not have much money to donate, this ‘Creative Philanthropy’ initiative  was launched.

The artwork will be displayed across all 3 Hospital sites: The Liverpool Royal (Main Atrium), Broadgreen (Alexandria Wing) & Aintree.

BIDA is the oldest organization in the UK representing international-origin doctors working in the country and has over 50 active divisions across England, Scotland & Wales (Credit: Supplied/Image was provided to The Liverpudlian to share, courtesy of the Publicist on behalf of their client. We make no claim to this content).

This initiative was led by Dr Sai Pillarisetti who founded the BIDA Student Wing in 2020. He now serves as Chairman of BIDA’s Junior Doctor Forum where he currently supports international doctors working in the UK.

Speaking about the event Dr Pillarisetti said: 'It is wonderful to see the diversity themed artwork installed in hospitals across Liverpool. The aim of this initiative was to provide some financial support to bereaved families of frontline healthcare workers from the pandemic, while promoting diversity in healthcare and I am very grateful to Dr Gardner & the Trust for supporting us in this endeavour by displaying the beautiful artwork. This initiative goes to show how incredibly talented our students are and we are delighted they have offered to donate their artwork to celebrate diversity and raise money for charity.'

Dr Pillarisetti, added: 'Furthermore, very little of the artwork in NHS hospitals is representative of the incredibly diverse workforce & populations they serve. Almost half of NHS doctors come from minority ethnic backgrounds and this number is rising quickly across other healthcare professions too. This initiative also hopes to promote representation and celebrate the multicultural and diverse communities we live in.'

The artwork was recently unveiled by The Acting Lord Mayor of Liverpool - Cllr Richard Kemp CBE. Speaking after the event Cllr Kemp, said: 'I was delighted to attend the event at the Royal Liverpool Hospital. In a multi-cultural city if was great to see art work on the walls which reflect the cultural backgrounds of both patients and staff. I was pleased to hear about the work of BIDA and its student wing and to learn also of the commitment to art in all its form that the Royal has as an aid to patient and community wellbeing. I look forward to working with BIDA to undertake more multicultural work within our city'.

BIDA is the oldest organization in the UK representing international-origin doctors working in the country and has over 50 active divisions across England, Scotland & Wales (Credit: Supplied/Image was provided to The Liverpudlian to share, courtesy of the Publicist on behalf of their client. We make no claim to this content).

Others in attendance during the launch were Dr Jim Gardner, Chief Medical Officer Liverpool  University Hospitals, Paula O’Malley Healing Arts Manager of the Trust, Prof Shiv Pande MBE DL, and Dr Husnaa Khan, artist of the winning painting ‘The New Normal’.

Dr Husnaa Khan, a medical student at the time of submission but now a doctor in Leicester, said: 'As an artist, I have incorporated the challenges faced by the public during these unprecedented times into artwork, turning the limitations imposed on them into a source of inspiration. The title of my painting, ‘The New Normal’, is shown to depict that wearing a mask has become the new norm and sighting someone not wearing a mask has become foreign and unusual today!'

Paula O’Malley, Healing Arts Manager at the Trust said: 'It has been a pleasure to be part of the 'Beauty In Diversity' inititiave by the British International Doctors Student Wing. This is the beginning of reflecting the diversity of our patients and workforce through our art collection on every hospital site across the Trust.'

'I was delighted to attend the event at the Royal Liverpool Hospital. In a multi-cultural city if was great to see art work on the walls which reflect the cultural backgrounds of both patients and staff.' - The Acting Lord Mayor of Liverpool, Cllr Richard Kemp CBE.

Dr Chandra Kanneganti, BIDA National President added: 'All of us at BIDA are very proud of this initiative led by Sai and our younger members. The legacy of our Covid heroes who fought on the front lines must never be forgotten and this fundraiser to support their families is a wonderful tribute. I am also thankful to all who have donated and supported the fundraiser with the beautiful diversity themed artwork and I hope these thought provoking pieces will resonate with the public.'