Clubs & Societies

Welcome to The Spinal Column

We are a collaborative newspaper column where students can come forward to explore issues impacting healthcare today, because let's face it, medicine isn't just about biology and treatments, it's a complex interplay of ethics, economics and politics.

From the devastating effects of health inequities to the advancements of new technologies, this column will give us a platform to reflect on the challenges shaping our profession—and our patients’ lives. This isn’t just about writing - it’s about using our voices to spread awareness and learning how to communicate complex ideas with clarity and compassion. And it’s about understanding that medical school is not just about medicine—it’s about the patients we will meet, policies that can affect us, and progress in the medical realm around us.

This is an opportunity to develop the skills you'll need as a future leader. You'll learn to communicate effectively, think critically, and advocate for your patients. And you'll be part of a team of like-minded students, working together to make a real difference.

Two papers will be published each term, with regular meetings in between to debate and discuss topics for publication. Students are encouraged to bring forward their own ideas, but the meetings will also provide an opportunity to look at recent medical news, medicine in the media and other potential topics to spark interest.

Example topics: ‘NHS avoidable deaths in Nottingham’, ‘WHO launches plan for free child medicines’, ‘AI proves better than humans at analysing ECGs’.