Meeting Sir Harry Burns - Monday 1st April

Today has been beyond exciting. When I planned my sabbatical, it appeared that all roads were leading to Glasgow so I emailed Sir Harry Burns to see if I could come to visit him and his colleagues to talk about Social Determinants of Health. He began his career as a surgeon then became Chief Medical Officer at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary and moved into population health. he was later the Chief Medical Officer for Scotland before handing that role on to Jason Leitch who I've also met this trip. I'm so excited to be seeing first hand what they are doing here in Scotland to reframe health and social care into something that is integrated and addresses the early childhood experiences upstream from the diseases we learn to treat in medical school.

Today, I've had a tour around Glasgow (on a typically drizzly day) to see the east end, Calton, where industry was based and people lived in crowded conditions, to the west end with it's detached Georgian mansions surrounded by gardens. But the city is changing. I was challenged to spend my afternoon researching ideas like the wellbeing economy of inclusive growth that aims to deliver human and ecological wellbeing. I listened to how Sir Harry presents the stories and evidence to both sides of politics in a way that appeals to their ideals to effect change. I heard about his impressions of what we see happening in Australia - he was just back from Hobart where he spoke at the Rural Health Conference last week.

He has generously set aside time in the next 10 days to ensure I meet with key partners and see firsthand how QI methodology of iterative change across multiple sectors can transform lives and tackle complex problems. I'm beyond excited and want to soak up all I can, to inform my future actions back in Australia.

I did take a brief break in the afternoon to visit the Glasgow Council Chambers across George Square and marvelled at the amazing architecture. That way I have a photo to blog!