The Unusual Suspects 2024 Rare diseases in everyday medicine

Medics4RareDiseases (M4RD) is proud and excited to announce details for its 11th annual symposium; The Unusual Suspects 2024: Rare Diseases in Everyday Medicine will take place on the afternoon of 21st February, at the Royal Society of Medicine, London in association with The Medical Genetics Section.

This year’s focus will be ‘communication and inclusivity in rare diseases’. Speakers from different corners of the rare disease world will be there to educate, inspire and encourage doctors, medical students and other healthcare professionals to ‘dare to think rare’.

Why this event IS relevant to you?

Rare diseases cross all disciplines and collectively affect 3.5 million people in the UK. The Department of Health and Social Care’s ‘UK Rare Diseases Framework’ highlights ‘healthcare professional awareness’ of rare diseases as a key health priority. However, there can be a dearth of clinical evidence when it comes to rare diseases and so relying on a guideline-driven, evidence-based medical system alone simply doesn’t work effectively for this huge subset of patients. The majority of patients with rare conditions take years to reach diagnosis with multiple misdiagnoses and never receive a disease-modifying treatment or specialist service. This conference aims to empower clinicians to change the narrative to focus on what healthcare professionals CAN do when it comes to caring for those with rare diseases.

Take home skills

By attending this conference you will gain valuable insight into what it is to live with a rare condition and the common challenges faced by patients, and carers, along with an increased understanding of how best to approach management with sensitive communication and an inclusive attitude.

Speaker line-up includes

● Dr Lisa Kauffman – Consultant Community Paediatrician & Associate Medical Director at Children’s Community Health Services, Manchester Local Care Organisation
● Jono Lancaster – author of ‘Not All Heroes Wear Capes’
● Kevin Ward, Healthcare Improvement Scotland – What Matters to You campaign
● Kerry Leeson – CEO, Breaking Down Barriers
● Aisha Seedat and Hope Winter – M4RD Patient Ambassadors
● Student Voice Prize 2023 Winner – to be announced

M4RD is a charity founded by medics to provide pragmatic, free rare disease training to doctors and medical students. Our yearly symposium provides a fantastic opportunity to bring together an eclectic group of inspiring spokespeople to share their stories, provide invaluable learnings and empower medical professionals to suspect and better support those living with rare diseases.’

Dr Lucy McKay, CEO of Medics4RareDiseases

Register and reserve your place here: https://www.rsm.ac.uk/events/medical-genetics/2023-24/mgs03/ For more information email jo@m4rd.org

About Medics4RareDiseases

Medics4RareDiseases (M4RD) is a registered charity committed to providing and promoting rare disease education for medical professionals, students, and doctors in training, with the primary goal of helping improve the journey through healthcare for people living with rare diseases, in order to achieve an earlier diagnosis. m4rd.org

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