Findacure, the rare diseases charity, have launched their 2018 Student Voice Essay Competition! The competition is aimed at all medical, biological and pharmaceutical undergraduates and masters students, or those with a close personal experience of a rare genetic condition. There are three questions to choose from - the best essay for each question will win £100 in cash and free entry to Findacure’s annual conference on 27th February 2019 to receive a certificate, while the best essay overall will win an additional £100 and be published in the Orphanet Journal of Rare Diseases!
The questions are…
1. Patients are the most important group of people involved in a clinical trial, but many do not feel respected or listened to. With reference to rare disease examples, evaluate existing approaches to patient engagement in clinical research and suggest ideas for the future.
2. Living with a rare disease is a life-long learning experience in which patients become experts in their own disease. Use a case study to demonstrate what future doctors can learn from patients with rare diseases.
3. The diagnosis and delivery of treatment for rare diseases can vary greatly from country to country. Compare and contrast rare disease healthcare provision of two countries of your choice. You may want to focus on a specific disease or stage in the patient journey e.g. newborn screening, diagnosis, access to treatment or access to clinical trials.
Essays can be submitted until 9:00am on Monday 12th November. For more information, follow @findacure_fdn and @M4RareDiseases on Twitter and visit www.findacure.org.uk/student-voice-2018.
Good luck!
