Medact London: Meeting
2020-09-23 18:30 - 20:00 (Europe/London)
Our London Group will be meeting online on Wednesday 23rd September at 6:30pm. They will be working on building a campaign tackling food insecurity, aiming to tackle the underlying causes of the vital issue of food poverty.
If you are interested in joining the meeting please email london@medact.org

Monthly Economic Justice Issue meeting: Housing & Income insecurity
2020-09-24 18:30 - 20:00 | Zoom
The eviction ban is set to end soon, and the furlough scheme will be ending on the 31st of October. Housing and Income insecurity have been the faultines that have exacerbated the unequal impact of the coronavirus pandemic. They are also barriers in preventing isolating measures working, as many are afraid to lose income and their livelihoods if they have to self isolate or take time off work.

The public health response must address underlying economic determinants of health if peoples wellbeing is to be protected and improved, especially as the economic crisis deepens, further entrenching inequalities that have been the lead cause of ill health and suffering.

At this meeting you will hear from other members who have been working on an evidence report on these issues, actions that we can take to prevent the harm caused and plan for a collective public health response that address the dual risks of the pandemic & the economic recession.

Please RSVP for joining details.

[Registration has now closed]

Fridays for Future ─ online action in solidarity with the climate strikers
2020-09-25
One year ago, members of the health community mobilised to show solidarity with the Youth Climate Strikers taking action for the Global Climate Strike. As thousands of young people all over the world took action for climate justice, health workers stood with them, knowing the extent of the public health crisis posed by climate breakdown.
This year, on Friday 25th September, Fridays for Future, the international group representing the climate strikers, has called for another global day of action. They will be calling for a just and green recovery from Covid-19 that sets us on the right path to tackling the climate crisis.
On the 25th, Medact, in partnership with Health Declares and Students for Global Health, will be coordinating an online action for members of the health community to show support for the climate strikers remotely. RSVP now to join us!
[Registration has now closed]

Migrant Solidarity Group: Meeting
2020-10-01 18:30 - 20:00
Our Migrant Solidarity Group will be meeting on Thursday 1st October at 18:30.
To find out how to join the online meeting please email migrantsolidarity@medact.org

A Green New Deal for Scotland ─ how do we mobilise the health community?
2020-10-05 18:30 - 19:45
At the start of September, Nichola Sturgeon sparked excitement when she announced proposals to introduce a green jobs guarantee. However, despite the rhetoric, the Scottish government is yet to fully commit with concrete details of what this guarantee will mean.
As we build back from Covid-19, we have the chance to create a fairer and greener society that prioritises health and wellbeing.
In the run up to next year’s COP26 in Glasgow, Scotland has the opportunity to set an example to the world by investing in a transformative Green New Deal.
As health workers and students, we have a vital role to play in putting pressure on Holyrood to bring about the changes we need to safeguard public health and end the climate crisis.
Join us for this interactive session as we begin creating a plan to mobilise the health community in Scotland for a Green New Deal.
[Registration has now closed]

Prevent duty in NHS ─ October planning meeting
2020-10-06 18:30 - 20:00
We are having our monthly meeting to discuss the different ways that the health community can take collective action on issues related to the Prevent counter-extremism policy in healthcare.
The meeting will take place online on Tuesday 6th October from 6:30-8pm.
You must register for this meeting below, and details of how you can join the meeting will be sent to you.
If you are unable to attend but are interested in being involved in future meetings or actions, you can sign up to our Securitisation of Health mailing list.
Our main priority is that as much as possible, health workers, patients and others impacted by Prevent who may attend this event feel safe both professionally and personally participating in Medact’s activities. As such, we ask that if you work in Prevent, the police or the Home Office, that you do not register to attend this event.
For any queries or for further discussion on this, please e-mail reemabuhayyeh@medact.org
[Registration has now closed]

Climate & Health Group - October Meeting
2020-10-08 18:30 - 20:00 | Zoom
Join us for the October big meeting of the Medact Climate & Health Group on Thursday, 8th October at 6.30pm as we discuss and build plans to take action this Autumn.

Register your place for the meeting below to receive joining details. These will be sent out on the day.

[Registration has now closed]

Making effective Freedom of Information Requests [repeat]
2020-10-13 18:30 - 20:00
Due to the popularity and success of our first FOI training in August, we are organising this repeat session on 13th October.
Government and other public bodies often hide their activities behind a wall of secrecy. This session will offer practical advice on how to penetrate these walls, extract information and increase transparency using a key investigative research technique.
Our Research Manager will provide you with the know-how to make effective Freedom of Information requests, which can form a useful part of many campaigns for social justice. The session will be suitable for people who have never made an FOI request before and those who have done but would like to improve their skills.
The workshop will include:

What information the the FOI Act entitles you to, and from whom
The ways public bodies are legally obliged to help you find information
How to draft an effective request and avoid cost exemptions
How to appeal against unjustified disclosure refusals, including arguing the public interest case

We are now oversubscribed, but you can register your interest below to be added to the waiting list and we will let you know if a space becomes available
[Registration has now closed]

East Midlands Group: Meeting
2020-10-13 19:00 - 20:30
Our East Midlands Group will be meeting on Tuesday 13 October 7:00pm – 8:30pm, to decide which intervention to target as part of their new climate and health campaign.
Everybody is welcome to join and work with this new and up-coming group! To find out how to join please email eastmidlands@medact.org

Medact Bristol: Patients Not Passports Meeting
2020-10-17 11:00 - 15:00 | Zoom
Join the next Medact Bristol meeting on Saturday 17th October.
James Skinner and Aliya Yule from the national Patients Not Passports Campaign will support us to learn about government charging policies and to think about local campaigning and actions we can take to advocate against charging migrants for NHS care.
The session will run from 11am-3pm (don’t worry if you can’t join for all that time).
[Registration has now closed]

Planning Session ─ Health for a Green New Deal Scotland
2020-10-22 19:00 - 20:30 | Zoom
At the start of September, the Scottish government announced some commitments to investing in a green recovery. While this announcement was welcome, it was just a first step. The Scottish government now needs to turn its words into action and ramp up its plans for creating green jobs and infrastructure.
Between 4th-11th November, Friends of the Earth Scotland are organising a week of action, including a virtual lobby of MSPs, calling on Holyrood to implement a just & green recovery from Covid-19.
Join us for our planning session to get involved in building a plan to mobilise the health community for a Green New Deal in Scotland!
[Registration has now closed]

Climate & Health Research Group ─ October meeting
2020-10-22 19:30 - 20:30 | Zoom
If you’re a health worker or student interested in helping build exciting research projects to inform effective and strategic campaigning around climate change and public health, then Medact’s Climate & Health Research Group is the place for you!
With pressure building on the UK government to invest in a just and green recovery post-Covid, as well as the run up to the COP26 climate talks in Glasgow next November, the upcoming year is full of opportunities for the health community to set the agenda on climate change.
At our October meeting we will discuss new projects to help boost and inform our campaigning work on Climate & Health in the coming year. If you would like to join the meeting, please contact robabrams@medact.org

Medact Brighton: Open Meeting
2020-10-25 11:00 - 12:30 | Zoom
Join us, members new and old, for an open meeting on Sunday 25th October. We look forward to welcoming new members and introducing what medact is, and why and how we are organising down here in Brighton. This meeting will be a great chance to learn more about Medact for those brand new, and find out how to get more involved for those on the periphery.

In the meeting we will spend time exploring the issues you care about and delving into ways we could take action on it. We hope the meeting will inspire us to realise the power we have as a movement and to help build confidence in the health community to take action for health justice.

[Registration has now closed]

Scotland Group: Meeting
2020-10-26 19:30 - 21:00
Our Scotland Group will be meeting on Monday 26th October at 7.30pm.

If you would like to find out how to join the online meeting, please sign up below for email updates from Medact Scotland.

The International Struggle for Universal Healthcare
2020-10-27 19:00 | Zoom
Join NEF and Patients not Passports to discuss what the UK can learn from these international and historical struggles for universal healthcare to organise and win.
A new report by the New Economics Foundation and the Patients not Passports coalition shows that the struggle for universal healthcare is not unique to the NHS in the present moment. Similar restrictions on migrants’ access to healthcare have been advanced by Governments across Europe, and have been tried before in the NHS’s past. But these policies have been met by strong resistance and opposition, with coordinated campaigns successfully organising against them.
What can we learn from other campaigns that have successfully fought for the principle of universal healthcare for all, regardless of immigration status? How can we organise collectively to ensure that the NHS is accessible for everyone? How can we win the fight against racism, discrimination and the scapegoating of migrants that excludes migrants and BME communities from public services?
Speakers TBA
Register for the Zoom call

Migrant Solidarity Group: Meeting
2020-11-05 18:30 - 20:00
Our Migrant Solidarity Group will be meeting on Thursday 5th November at 18:30.
To find out how to join the online meeting please email migrantsolidarity@medact.org

Climate & Health Group - Research Meeting
2020-11-05 19:30 - 21:00
Are you interested in getting involved in exciting research projects that help inform our campaigning on climate & health?
Join our Climate & Health Group’s Research Meeting on Thursday 5th November at 6:30pm. To find out how to join the online meeting please email office@medact.org

Economic Justice & Health Group: Research Meeting
2020-11-09 19:00 - 19:30
Our Economic Justice & Health Group’s research working group will be meeting on Monday 9th November, 19:00 – 19:30.

To find out how to join their online meeting, please email office@medact.org

You can get updates on Economic Justice by filling out the short form below:

Economic Justice & Health November briefing call
2020-11-10 19:30 - 20:00 | Zoom
We are having a short briefing meeting for members and supporters to come hear about our plans in the light of the new lockdown and continued worsening of the COVID19 outbreak in the UK. There will also be an opportunity to get involved with the work we are doing as a group and suggest areas that the issue group should collectively work on.

[Registration has now closed]

East Midlands November meeting
2020-11-11 19:00 - 20:30 | Zoom
Join us on Wednesday 11th November to get involved in our work to tackle climate change in the East Midlands!

Please RSVP below for joining details.

[Registration has now closed]

Climate & Health Group - November Meeting
2020-11-12 18:30 - 20:00 | Zoom
Register below to join us for the November Climate & Health Group meeting on Thursday, 12th November at 6.30pm.
[Registration has now closed]

Why Health Justice Means Climate Justice
2020-11-16 18:00 - 19:30
This November, COP26 was due to take place in Glasgow. To mark this moment, the COP26 Coalition is hosting From the Ground Up – a global gathering providing the space to educate, strategise and co-ordinate, to build power and connect within our global justice movements. This is an opportunity for Scottish, UK, European and international climate justice movements to build momentum and capacity, and to connect to broader civil society to build power for system change.

We are excited to be organising an event at the global gathering on Monday 16th November, 18:00 to 19:30 – Why Health Justice Means Climate Justice.

Register your place for Why Health Justice Means Climate Justice

Why Health Justice Means Climate Justice

Covid-19 has brought into consciousness the deep pre-existing health inequalities. It has highlighted how our health is shaped by the wider social, economic and environmental conditions in which we live. At the roots of health injustice is an extractive, economic system that serves to concentrate power in the pursuit of profit through the exploitation of people and the planet. This is the same system that is driving climate breakdown. This panel discussion seeks to reflect on the connections between health and the climate, the public health impacts of extractive industries and how the Green New Deal can also be a Public Health New Deal.

We will be hearing from voices across the world as to how we build the health movement for transformative climate justice. There will be space for questions and deeper reflection for how we organise from the ground up in the lead up to COP 26. Join us as we explore why health justice means climate justice.

Speakers:

Dr Rita Issa, GP Trainee, Climate & Health Activist (Chair)

Dr Alice Gardner, GP & Medact Member

Araceli Camargo, science lead for Centric Lab, who use neuroscience to focus on improving public health & health justice

Erika Arteaga-Cruz, doctor & health campaigner with the People’s Health Movement Extractive Industries Circle

Sophie Gepp, Medical Student and member of Health for Future

Register your place now

If you want to help us build the health movement for transformative climate justice, you can join our Climate & Health Group.

Prevent duty in NHS ─ November planning meeting
2020-11-20 17:00 - 18:30 | Zoom
We are having our regular meeting to discuss the different ways that the health community can take collective action on issues related to the Prevent counter-extremism policy in healthcare.

The meeting will take place online on Friday 20th November from 5 – 6:30pm.

You must register for this meeting below, and details of how you can join the Zoom meeting will be sent to you.

If you are unable to attend but are interested in being involved in future meetings or actions, you can sign up to our Securitisation of Health mailing list or email reemabuhayyeh@medact.org

Our main priority is that as much as possible, health workers, patients and others impacted by Prevent who may attend this event feel safe both professionally and personally participating in Medact’s activities. As such, we ask that if you work in Prevent, the police or the Home Office, that you do not register to attend this event.

For any queries or for further discussion on this, please e-mail the address above.

[Registration has now closed]

Launch Day: Health Letter on a Just & Green Recovery for Scotland
2020-11-23
As we build back from the Covid-19 pandemic, it is vital that we prioritise health and wellbeing. A recovery program must set us on the right track to tackle the biggest challenge of our generation, climate change.

On Monday 23rd, we are launching a letter from the Scottish health community to the First Minister calling on her government to tackle both the climate and Covid crises with an ambitious Green New Deal that invests in jobs and infrastructure.

Join us on the day to help amplify the letter to a wider audience. RSVP to receive the action guide containing draft social media posts and emails that you can use to get more sign-ons!

[Registration has now closed]

How to facilitate Medact meetings ─ top tips for best practice
2020-11-25 19:00 - 20:30 | Zoom
An introduction to good facilitation in Medact meetings for group co-ordinators. We will discuss how to create an inclusive group culture and learn top tricks for facilitating in an inclusive and practical way.
If you are interested in joining please contact Becky on rebeccadaniels@medact.org

Health & Climate Justice at COP26 ─ health community letter to the UK Government and COP26 leadership
2020-11-30
With just under a year to go until the COP26 climate talks start in Glasgow, the UK Government is far off track to meeting its legally binding emissions targets. To make matters worse, it was recently revealed that fossil fuel companies, including BP, Shell and Equinor have been meeting with the government to discuss plans for the talks next year.

On Monday 30th November, together with Students for Global Health, we launched our open letter from the health community calling on the UK Government and COP26 leadership to take bold, decisive action to both ensure a green recovery from Covid-19 and the success of the climate talks in Glasgow next year:

The letter makes 3 key demands:

The UK must commit to a rapid and historically accurate reduction of emissions;

All new fossil fuel extractive projects must be permanently cancelled;

COP26 must be fossil-free, with fossil fuel companies and lobbyists barred from decision makers.

RSVP below for the letter’s launch day to receive our action guide complete with template social media posts and emails to help get the word out to a bigger audience!

[Registration has now closed]

Local support for Nuclear Ban Treaty - strategy meeting
2020-12-03 17:00 - 19:00 | Zoom
In the new year, the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) is set to enter into force and become international law. And yet, the UK government has refused to engage with the TPNW, let alone sign up to the Treaty.

Around the world, cities and towns have come out in support of the Treaty, putting pressure on national governments to sign up to the Treaty. In the UK, cities such as Manchester and Edinburgh have joined the ICAN Cities Appeal.

Join us on Thursday 3 December at 5pm to discuss a strategy for Medact members and the wider health community to encourage local councils to support the TPNW.

We will also be hearing from Sean Morris, the UK & Ireland Nuclear Free Local Authorities (NFLA) and Mayors for Peace Chapter Secretary.

If you have any questions, please email reemabuhayyeh@medact.org

[Registration has now closed]

Migrant Solidarity Group: Meeting
2020-12-03 18:30 - 20:00
Our Migrant Solidarity Group will be meeting on Thursday 3rd December at 18:30.
To find out how to join the online meeting please email migrantsolidarity@medact.org

Medact Bristol & Patients Not Passports: Train the Trainers
2020-12-03 19:00 - 21:00
If you are a health worker in Bristol keen to find out more about the national Patients not Passports campaign, Medact Bristol are running a virtual ‘Train the Trainers’ session on Thursday 3rd December, 7-9pm.
This is a chance to find out more about Medact’s access to healthcare campaign as well as a step by step guide on how to run these training sessions to healthcare workers.
The session will be run by Medact Bristol/PnP campaigners Helen, James, Johanna and Livi.
Register to join the session
If you do want to join, it would be great if you could read through the PnP Briefing beforehand, so you know a bit about the charging policy, and we can focus the session how to deliver the content to different audiences.

Health & Climate Justice at COP26
2020-12-07 19:00 - 20:30 | Zoom
In November 2021, world leaders will be gathering in Glasgow for the COP 26 climate talks. This represents the first real opportunity to fully assess global commitment to tackling climate change since the Paris Agreement was signed in 2015. In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, these talks also form a key moment in which the international community has a clear choice to make: return to business as usual or bring about a global green recovery for the health of people and planet?

As highlighted by recent reports, the fossil fuel industry is looking to influence the outcome of the climate talks and block effective action to eliminate emissions. For the sake of the health and wellbeing of communities across the globe, it is vital that we stop them.

Medact, together with Students for Global Health, Health Declares and the Centre for Sustainable Healthcare is coordinating a letter from the wider health community to the UK Government and COP26 leadership, demanding that they act to safeguard the health of people and planet, laying the groundwork for the success of the talks in Glasgow, next year.

Join us on Monday 7th December as we launch our new briefing, ‘Health and Climate Justice at COP26’, authored by the Medact Climate & Health Research Group & Students for Global Health. We will hear from the authors of the briefing and then take action together to amplify our health community letter!

[Registration has now closed]
