Diversity is our strength at Central and South Genomics, with our population and colleagues representing a broad range of communities. The team in Birmingham recently celebrated this diversity with a Cultural Awareness Day held at Birmingham Women’s Hospital on 20 May.
We caught up with Bushra Mussa, Trainee Genomic Counsellor, who led on the planning of the event alongside her committee, the Genomic Diversity Inclusion Group. She told us, “This event exists to bring people together across departments and learn about each other’s cultures.
“It’s both social and educational: we serve such a diverse population here in Birmingham and these types of events allow people to get together whilst also providing insight into the cultures of those we serve and potentially positively impacting patient experience.”
The event took place throughout the afternoon and saw colleagues bring food, textiles, games, geographical resources and language sharing information to the hospital to share with colleagues and learn from one another. Attendees took part in a number of activities, including dances and games.
Bushra stated, “Colleagues may not always have the means to learn about other people’s cultures. These events provoke conversation and allow people to learn from one another, seeing what we have in common and learning from difference.”