Professor Gillian Leng CBE vows to “look to the future” as she becomes RSM President
Professor Gillian Leng CBE vowed to develop a forward-looking Royal Society of Medicine (RSM) as she was inaugurated as president at a ceremony last night (23 July 2024).
She is the Society’s 109th president and only the fourth woman to have held the office. She is also the first RSM president to have been elected by the Society’s membership.
She told around 200 gathered RSM members and guests at the RSM’s home in central London that it is an “absolute privilege” to be taking on the role.
She said: “I intend to do my absolute best to do a good job, to be an effective and accessible president who listens to people’s ideas and to develop a forward-looking society.
“I want to build on that innovative spirit of the past. I need to have my feet on the ground and look to the future, to make sure we have a sustainable organisation, a Society that members are proud to be part of, with a reputation for collaboration, community and effective challenge.
“We need to listen to members, prospective members and the wonderful body of 55 specialist sections to agree priorities for the future.”
Innovation will be a key focus during her presidency, Professor Leng said: “There is a real tsunami of new technologies on the horizon. This mixture of stunning new developments is going to create significant change in the prevention of disease, in the practice of medicine and how it is if you are a patient.
Professor Gillian Leng speaks at her inauguration
“The challenge for me as president is to make sure the RSM can support our members and wider audiences to engage with this massive, transformative agenda.
“Let’s work together to create a vibrant, energetic Society so that together we can make a difference to the future of medicine and to the outcomes for patients.”
Having spent two decades at NICE and serving as its Chief Executive between 2020 and 2022, Professor Leng has spent the past two years as the RSM’s Dean of Education. She has held several other roles within the Society, including section president and honorary librarian.
Handing over the ceremonial gown and presidential medal, outgoing president Professor Roger Kirby said that Professor Leng is a “most exceptional person”, adding: “I think she’s going to be an absolutely great president.”
In response, Professor Leng paid tribute to Professor Kirby’s contribution to creating the “highly popular and hugely influential” COVID-19 webinar series. She said: “It should definitely go into the history books as a great contribution to the sharing of critical of information at a time when we really needed it. It was a fantastic initiative.
“Lockdown was a challenge and we really needed that spirit of innovation.”
The series garnered over a million views across 100 episodes, attracting a global audience.
You can watch Professor Leng’s first interview as president and Professor Kirby’s reflections on his term on the RSM’s YouTube channel.
Last night’s ceremony also saw the RSM award Honorary Fellowships to Baron Adebowale CBE, Professor Sir Simon Baron-Cohen, Major General Timothy Hodgetts CB, Professor Martin McKee CBE, Professor Dame Robina Shah and Professor Irene Tracey CBE.