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June News & Views
Firstly this month, a study in the journal Aging & Mental Health examining the association between refugee mental health, past traumatic experiences, and religious observance found that refugees with a higher level of religiousness did not show higher levels of PTSD after exposure to war trauma compared to those with a lower level. The authors argue that religious observance provides a buffering effect to refugees’ mental health from severe war trauma.
Read “Mental health among older refugees: the role of trauma, discrimination, and religiousness” here
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The Born In Bradford cohort study is an ongoing study following 12,500 pregnant women and their children recruited over a 3 year period from 2007 to 2010 at Bradford Royal Infirmary. A study this month in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health used the data from this study found that infants conceived by Muslim mothers fasting during Ramadan were not significantly smaller than infants conceived by Muslim mothers outside of Ramadan.
Similarly, there was no difference between the two groups in premature birth rates. From the results, the authors conclude that “Muslim women and their partners can be advised by doctors that Ramadan fasting around the time of conception appears unlikely to have a detrimental effect on the size of their infant at birth or result in premature birth.”
Read “Are babies conceived during Ramadan born smaller and sooner than babies conceived at other times of the year?” here
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And finally, a review published in the Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Canadaexplored the preference of female obstetricians/gynaecologists among immigrant women.
The identified reasons for preference of female providers include religious beliefs, modesty, and comfort. The review also briefly discusses the Islamic factors Muslim patients consider when preferring gender-concordant care such as ‘awrah (modesty) and khalwah (close proximity).
Read “Gender of Provider – Barrier to Immigrant Women’s Obstetrical Care” here
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We are always looking for relevant articles and news to include in our monthly newsletter. Please send any items to [email protected]
June Events Roundup
1. Shaykh Dr. Rafaqat Rashid hosted a Ramadan webinar discussing the medical and spiritual benefits of Ramadan, while Mufti Abdur-Rahman Mangera hosted another webinar later in Ramadan on maximising one’s time in Ramadan.
2. Our team in the North East hosted an iftaar in Newcastle. Attendees had the opportunity to network with fellow Muslim healthcare professionals and students, and we look forward to bringing more of our activities to the North East.
Attendees at our North East iftaar
F1 Induction Event 2017
The highly successful ‘BIMA F1 induction’ event is back! This year, our events will take place on Saturday 22 July from 11am – 3.30pm in the Midlands, London, North West and South West!
Delivered by current foundation doctors who have excelled through training, this is a must for all newly-qualified doctors about to start work this August. The event will make you feel more confident about starting work and hopefully enable you to sail through your F1 year!
- What will be covered?
- Top tips NO ONE else will tell you!
- How to conduct the perfect ward round
- How to own your on-calls! The most common bleeps
- The Eportfolio and passing the ARCP with flying colours
- Career tips to get you ahead of the career ladder
- Islamic advice: how to deal with issues which may affect you in the workplace. How to maintain your Imaan whilst working in a busy job.
- Update on our hijab and elbow policy.
All this for only £5!
Food will be served. Book your place below:
Ramadan Webinar 2017 Video
Learn about basic laws of fasting, the spiritual and physical benefits of Ramadan, and a chance to ask questions with the speaker.
Dr Shaykh Rafaqat Rashid is a traditional Muslim scholar, GP and professional trainer and educator. He is an academic in the field of Islamic medical ethics and medical law, and is also a honorary lecturer at the University of Leeds.
May News & Views
Firstly this month, a study published in the BMJ Open Diabetes explored the behaviour of patients with type 2 diabetes that chose to fast during Ramadan.
Through a series of interviews, the research team in Malaysia found that, among the sample of 53 patients studied, only one patient consulted a doctor before implementing a drug regimen change, which the authors state might be due to, among other reasons, a ‘perceived lack of understanding from doctors’.
Educating healthcare professionals around the UK on Muslim patients and Ramadan has been the mission of BIMA’s Ramadan Initiative project, which you can find out more about here.
Read “Type 2 diabetes patient’s perspective on Ramadan fasting: a qualitative study” here
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Annually, around 25,000 British Muslims head to Mecca to perform the Hajj, and some will inevitably be exposed to infectious diseases as a result of the profusion of pilgrims during the Hajj.
A study in the Journal of Infection and Chemotherapy set out to evaluate pilgrims’ knowledge surrounding the deadly Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) that could become epidemic during the Hajj season, and found that more needs to be done about educating pilgrims on recognising symptoms of MERS-CoV and expectations of its treatment (i.e. antibiotics cannot treat a MERS-CoV infecction).
Read “Muslim pilgrims’ knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding MERS-CoV during Hajj season” here
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We are always looking for relevant articles and news to include in our monthly newsletter. Please send any items to [email protected]
May Events Roundup
In preparation for Ramadan, our teams across the UK held Safer Ramadan sessions to improve the general public’s understanding on fasting in Ramadan with diabetes. This was an opportunity for attendees to take part in an interactive discussions on this important condition just before Ramadan.
14 sessions were held in the North West, 4 sessions in the East Midlands, and a session at Glasgow Central Mosque. We would like to thank all the health care professionals who have facilitated these sessions and for all those attending these sessions.
Attendees at our Safer Ramadan sessions
Ramadan Webinar
Join us for BIMA Professional Development team’s first Ramadan reminders webinar, discussing the medical and spiritual benefits of Ramadan as well as the essential Fiqh rulings surrounding the month.
The webinar will be delivered by Shaykh Dr Rafaqat Rashid, a traditional Muslim scholar, GP and professional trainer and educator. He is an honorary lecturer at the University of Leeds and an academic in the field of Islamic medical ethics and medical law.
Shaykh Rafaqat has been taught advanced Islamic disciplines by a number of scholars and has been issued ijaazah by a number of traditional scholars nationally and internationally.
After registration you will receive a confirmation email with information on joining the webinar.
Ramadan Initiative 2017
The Ramadan Initiative is one of BIMA’s many successful community projects.
The project’s aim is to increase awareness amongst healthcare professionals on safe and effective prescribing for Muslim patients who fast during Ramadan.
Our team of consultants, GPs and pharmacists have developed Powerpoint presentations (for hospital or GP settings) for teachers to deliver across the whole country in the weeks leading up to and during Ramadan.
We currently have over 70 teachers signed up this year, ranging from medical student to consultant level, and spreading from the South West all the way up to Scotland.
We have uploaded onto Dropbox all the relevant resources that will help you prepare and effectively deliver a teaching session, which you can access here
This content is a compilation of varied resources and does not necessarily represent the views of BIMA
April Events Roundup
1. The North West region hosted a health fair at the UKIM Khizra Masjid. Over 500 people attended to check out 25 stalls including: free health checks, information from local CCGs, stalls from Cancer Research UK, Macmillan Cancer Support, and the local hospital palliative team, the “Eye Pod” from RNIB, and various health care professionals who volunteered their time to help the community.
2. In London, BIMA collaborated with The Association of Muslim Lawyers and The United Kingdom Association of Jewish Lawyers in a discussion surrounding the health and legal issues of circumcision. Along with several other British Muslim organisations, BIMA also hosted a discussion on the Government’s Prevent strategy, both its current status and its future.
3. The North East team hosted a Meet & Greet at Newcastle Central Mosque to inform local healthcare professionals and students on current and future projects BIMA is working on. If you are from the North East of England and would like to get involved, please get in touch at [email protected]
Attendees at the BIMA North West Health Fair
April News & Views
Firstly this month, the first study on the feasiblity of a physical activity intervention in a mosque-based setting was published in the Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health this month.
The intervention, which included aerobic as well as strength training activities, targeted South Asian Muslim women (with a mean age of 51 years old) at the risk of diabetes, and received positive feedback from participants.
The authors recommend mosque-based health interventions like this to be evaluated on a larger scale in future studies. Health promotion is one of the main aims of BIMA’s activities, and we look forward to working with mosques interested in piloting health interventions. Please get in touch at [email protected]
Read “A Pilot Examination of a Mosque-Based Physical Activity Intervention for South Asian Muslim Women in Ontario, Canada” here
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A review in the Journal of Religion and Health this month discusses topics surrounding the Islamic ethics on end-of-life care, including Do Not Resuscitate orders, advance directives, and probity with terminally ill patients.
Read “Ethical Dilemmas at the End of Life: Islamic Perspective” here
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And finally this month, with Ramadan only weeks away, a study published in the journal Appetite looked at the effect of Ramadan fasting during the long hours of the summer in Germany, and found no significant difference in depression and fatigue scores between fasting and non-fasting individuals.
Read “Effect of Ramadan fasting on fatigue, mood, sleepiness, and health-related quality of life of healthy young men in summer time in Germany“ here
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We are always looking for relevant articles and news to include in our monthly newsletter. Please send any items to [email protected]
BIMA London – Prevent: Safeguarding or Spying?
We are collaborating with the Association of Muslim Lawyers (AML), Muslim Engineers’ Network, The City Circle, and the The Muslim Council of Britain on the topic of Prevent: Safeguarding or Spying?
Date: Friday 28 April 2017
Time: 6.45pm – 8.30pm
Venue: Abrar House, 45 Crawford Place, London, W1H 4LP
Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/500743613382979??ti=ia
Panel Speakers:
Max Hill QC (Independent Reviewer of Government legislation on terrorism)
Hashi Mohamed (Special Advisor to previous IR, David Anderson QC)
Kevin Courtney (National Union of Teachers)
Ismet Rawat (Association of Muslim Lawyers)
Dr Derek Summerfield (Spokesperson for Health Workers & Consultant Psychiatrist, King’s College London)
March Events Roundup
1. BIMA Yorkshire & Humber, in association with Leeds Muslim Medics, hosted an ‘Excelling as a Female Doctor’ event at the University of Leeds, where female doctors from various specialties spoke about the challenges and motivations of female Muslim doctors.
2. BIMA London held an outreach event to the homeless of London on the 11th of March. See a short video the team made on our, and keep an eye out on the group’s Facebook page for upcoming events.
3. BIMA West Midlands team organised a blood/marrow donation drive at the Solihull Islamic Education Academy.
4. BIMA North West held health awareness sessions on falls/dizziness and a multi-centre session on diagnosing and managing strokes by the public.
5. BIMA North West also held a very successful CPD seminar on ‘What Happens After Death’ at the European Institute of Islamic Sciences in Oldham with over 150 attendees. See below for the event steam
6. The BIMA Professional Development team organised a webinar where Dr. Zakia Akhter discussed work-life balance and incorporating our Islamic faith into our working lives. Look out for more webinars coming up soon.
Dr. Mohammed Iqbal, Consultant in Audiovestibular Medicine at the Salford Royal Hospital, delivering a health awareness talk on falls and dizziness.
March News & Views
Firstly this month, a study in the American Journal of Infection Control looked at vaccine compliance and parents’ stance on childhood vaccination. The study found that 85% of the Muslim parents surveyed support vaccination and were significantly more likely to be pro-vaccination than other parents from different religious affiliations.
While the sample size was small for this study, it would be interesting to see it replicated with a larger sample size with a further exploration of the reasons for the minority of Muslim parents being either anti-vaccination or hesitant about getting their children vaccinated.
Read “The behind-the-scenes activity of parental decision-making discourse regarding childhood vaccination” here
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A team from the University of Birmingham will be conducting a systematic review investigating the role of imams and mosques in health promotion in Western societies.
The systematic review protocol, published in the journal Systematic Reviews, states that the review will look at, amongst other things, studies done in Europe, North America, Australia, New Zealand, or South Africa.
BIMA aims to protect and promote the health of patients and the public, and with projects like Lifesavers and the Ramadan Initiative, we look forward to reading the final published review to identify what is being done and how much of it in the field of health promotion in the British Muslim population.
Read “The role of imams and mosques in health promotion in Western societies—a systematic review protocol” here
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And finally this month, another article relevant to Ramadan, which is now only 2 months away. Further to last month’s featured article on fasting and its positive impact on blood glucose, cholesterol, and triglyceride/HDL/LDL levels, an article this month in the journal Nutrition reviews the health benefits of religious fasting, including Ramadan, Orthodox Christian, and Buddhist fasting.
Read “Unraveling the metabolic health benefits of fasting related to religious beliefs: A narrative review“ here
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We are always looking for relevant articles and news to include in our monthly newsletter. Please send any items to [email protected]
What Happens After Death?
BIMA North West held a very successful CPD seminar on ‘What Happens After Death’ at the European Institute of Islamic Sciences in Oldham with over 150 attendees.
Ramadan Initiative 2017 Recruitment
LAST CHANCE to become a Ramadan Initiative teacher.
The Ramadan Initiative aims to increase awareness amongst healthcare professionals and advise them on Muslim patients who fast during Ramadan, looking at practical considerations to help optimise their healthcare.
Last year was incredibly successful, with the team delivering 20 teaching sessions across the UK – from hospital grand-rounds to GP practice updates – and presenting a poster at a national conference at UCL.
This year we intend to expand our reach nationally, focusing more on primary care, particularly in areas with a large Muslim population.
What will a teacher need to do?
📕 Book a teaching session in your chosen area
📕 Attend the monthly training webinars
📕 Deliver the ready made presentation and collect feedback using ready made evaluation forms
Examples of where to present are hospital grand rounds, specialty department meetings, GP surgeries etc.
What will BIMA provide?
📕 A certificate of participation for your portfolio
📕 FREE training and troubleshooting webinars including Fiqh of Ramadan training
📕 A regional lead to support you through the process
📕 Peer support via Whatsapp
📕 Email support via a clinical and islamic advisory panel
📕 Access to an e-resource bank
Applications will be closing soon. If you would like to present at a session please register your interest at the following link:
https://goo.gl/forms/qhxwc1V96HqKiAOj1
This is a great chance to be part of an exciting and expanding project and to develop your presentation skills, enhance your portfolio and work for a good cause. Teachers can be of any grade from medical student up to consultant level.
If you have any further queries please contact [email protected]