Clinical placements are a cornerstone of medical education. They give students the opportunity to apply their learning in real-world settings, develop clinical skills and build professional confidence.

All students should be supported to thrive on clinical placements. However, we’re deeply concerned that, for some students, a lack of clarity about religious dress policies is a barrier to their participation and education.  

Advocating for equality and inclusion for all medical students is a key part of the role of the welfare co-leads for the BMA medical students committee. We know that the diversity, including religious diversity, of our medical school community is a strength.  

We have been very concerned to hear reports from medical students about facing discriminatory comments whilst on clinical placements for wearing religious headwear. For example, a Sikh student told us that he had been ordered, in a rude and dismissive way, to put a disposable wrap over his turban, even though this wasn’t not required by the trust’s uniform policy. He was left isolated and embarrassed, as well as confused after being given differing advice by various colleagues. We’ve have particularly heard experiences of issues on surgical placements.  

In 2017, a group of Muslim doctors highlighted dress code concerns in an article for the BMJ titled ‘I decided not to go into surgery due to dress code’.   

In 2020, the BMA’s The Doctor magazine highlighted the issue of the need for all uniform policies to be faith-inclusive in its article ‘Unfairness laid bare’. The BMA’s key message then was that medical students and doctors, of all faiths and none, needed to be included at work, and that remains our message now.  

In response to lobbying from the BMA and the British Islamic Medical Association, in 2020, NHS England published its Uniforms and Workwear guidance for NHS Employers. It states: 

'As far as possible, subject to the overriding requirements of patient safety and public confidence, staff should feel comfortable in their uniforms. This includes being able to dress in accordance with their cultural practices.'

It also makes clear that: 

'Headwear, for example, turbans and kippot, veils (Christian or niqab) and headscarves are permitted on religious grounds, provided that patient care, health and safety, infection control and security and safety of patients or staff is not compromised.'

Trusts should have their own local uniform policies, and they should align with the national guidance. We’re really concerned that this isn’t always the case, and this could  result in some students and doctors being exposed to bullying and harassment, facing difficult decisions about how they can work as a doctor while practising their faith, and being deterred from theatre-based specialties.  

MSC will continue to press on this issue. The recently elected co-leads of the welfare portfolio, Erin MacCabe and Gerald Herman, are grateful to Akshata and Ria for their efforts and remain committed to campaigning for the three key changes outlined above. We urge any student affected by an unclear or discriminatory uniform policy or process on a clinical placement to seek help from the BMA if needed.   

Akshata Valsangkar and Ria Bansal are the former co-leads of the BMA medical student committee’s welfare portfolio and passionate advocates of promoting equality in medicine. Akshata is a student at Nottingham University and Ria is a student at Bristol University