Event Type : Doctors

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RASH Bristol 25 Programme

RASH is a day course for all health professionals who want to support the health, system and spiritual needs of refugees and asylum seekers in the UK.

God calls us to care for the stranger in our midst, to protect orphans and widows, to ‘act justly and love mercy’. (Micah 6:8) How does this translate to the way we care today?

Over the past 20 years, hundreds of thousands of refugees have come to the UK, with many seeking asylum. The ‘Refugees and Asylum Seekers Health Course’ (RASH) aims to equip Christian healthcare practitioners and others to:

• Improve knowledge of the healthcare needs, responses and challenges for refugees and asylum seekers in the UK
• Hear examples of good practice
• Foster a dialogue among those working with refugees and asylum seekers for mutual encouragement and support
• Inspire creative ways to engage with health systems for better provision, support, and care

The programme is an interactive learning experience led both by those who have been refugees and those who are healthcare professionals in this field. Local charities or churches working with refugees and asylum seekers will also find this day useful. If you encounter people from outside the UK in your everyday practice, then this is the day for you.

To find out more, view the Programme:

Join us on Saturday 11 October 2025 at South Manchester Family Church for a day of encouragement, worship, and practical insight into life as a Christian in health and social care.

This conference will explore finding our identity in God, challenges in the NHS, long-term fruitfulness, and living out faith at work. With a mix of speakers, small group prayer, worship, and time to connect.

Lunch and refreshments included. Cost: £20 (£5 concession).

Open to all CMF Members

The health service day to day feels chaotic; too much demand, not enough resource, changing priorities and pressure, pressure, pressure……

How do we respond as Christians?

All our speakers have experience at the sharp end of the complexities and challenges of modern healthcare, but have also thought deeply about their faith and how to apply it when ‘the rubber hits the road’ on Monday morning.

8.00     Introduction                                                                    Chris Holcombe

8.05     My Journey through Chaos (video)                            Catriona Waitt

8.15     My Journey through Chaos – update                         Catriona Waitt

8.20     A Christian Response to the NHS in crisis                Oge Chese

8.35     The theological basis to the NHS in crisis                  Mark White

8.50     Discussion and prayer

Register in advance for this meeting:

Speakers

Chris Holcombe
Chris is a consultant breast surgeon and clinical lead for breast services in Swansea, and has held multiple leadership roles in the NHS locally, regionally and nationally.

Out of work he enjoys time with grandchildren, in the mountains or on the coast in West Wales and is involved in his local church and leads CHLN on behalf of the Christian Medical Fellowship.

Catriona Waitt

Is Professor of Clinical Pharmacology and Global Health with a particular interest in medication use among pregnant and breastfeeding women. Cat runs a research group in Uganda with collaborations around the world; and is a mother of five. 

Perhaps when you were younger it felt extremely exciting to ‘live on the edge’, and take bold steps to live by faith in a world which seems increasingly disinterested in spiritual things. But now you face increasing leadership responsibilities at work, in church and in the community, and are navigating the joys of raising adolescents whilst aware of your declining physical strength – you can feel hard pressed on all sides! If so, this short talk aims to give a fresh perspective on how to keep serving God as you lead ‘through the chaos’.

Oge Chesa

Oge is the convenor of the quarterly NHS Strategic Prayer Summits and weekly NHS Strategic Prayer Storms that have been praying around NHS matters since 2015. The vision, which is based on Hebrews 8:4-5, brings together those with a heart for the NHS to ‘stand in the gap’ to see that the NHS in every facet is aligned to the agenda of Heaven. 

Oge will look at what Jesus would do if he was in the NHS today.

Mark White

Mark is Chief Technology Officer at a large NHS Trust in London. He is a clinical scientist by background, mainly working in imaging and surgical navigation, then moved into digital leadership nearly ten years ago, joining his Trust’s senior directors’ team during the Covid pandemic. He lives in London with his wife and two daughters. 

Mark will be helping us think about what the Bible has to say about healthiness and longevity, and whether that perspective can help us understand our ever-increasing expectations of the National Health Service.

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Who are you?

It is a fundamental question to answer as you start your journey as a health professional. The world has a lot of answers, you are:

• your job
• your sexuality
• your gender or
• your racial and national identity

But the gospel of Jesus tells us that we are forgiven, we are chosen, we are beloved, we are made holy, and we are God’s own treasured possession. How do we live out that truth in our everyday life, our studies, and our careers?

Join us at CMF’s Student Conference – from 30 January to 1 February 2026 (Yarnfield, Stone).

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