Author: preetikaur
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Why Vaisakhi is a special day for humanity – and how it marked a turning point for the British empire
What makes Vaisakhi so special? Vaisakhi falls on April 13th (the first day of the Punjabi month of Vaisakh), and is an important day for Sikhs marking the birth of the Khalsa, a community of Sikhs, committed to justice, equality, and service. In 1699, Guru Gobind Singh Ji asked for five volunteers who were willing…
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The Asylum System and Refugee Mental Health: Talk at LSHTM, March 2025
I was recently invited to talk at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine about refugee mental health at a seminar. This was a great chance to bring together my professional and personal interests in migration, as two generations of my family have been through migration. I spoke about the asylum system and mental…
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Fifth WHO Global School on Refugee and Migrant Health
The World Health Organisation held the fifth Global School on Refugee and Migrant Health in 2024. The theme of the year was “Advancing Universal Health Coverage for Refugees and Migrants: From Evidence to Action.” It was hosted in Bogotá, Colombia, bringing together leading experts from around the world in both humanitarian medicine and refugee and…
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RCPsych: Rehabilitation and Social Psychiatry Conference 2024
Conference reflections I had the pleasure of attending the faculty of Rehabilitation and Social Psychiatry’s conference at the Royal College of Psychiatrists recently, after being selected for the faculty’s Psych Star fellowship for this upcoming academic year. It feels like a perfect amalgamation of the different disciplines I enjoy, bringing together my social sciences background…
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On transitions
Recently, I had to walk past my former office in this beautiful part of London. The walk made me reflect on the process of going through a transition. It was a really hard decision when I left the firm to change my career, because I liked my work and the culture there. I was filled…
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How our career changes are really career additions
My thoughts on reframing the term “career change” to “career addition”, to harness the unique combination of skills and experiences, to find a unique superpower
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Book Review: Bullsh*t Jobs by David Graeber
This book is not a list of every type of pointless job. Instead, it provides a breakdown of why society has pointless jobs, how we got to this stage, and what we can do about it. It is deeply honest and revealing, sharing unspoken truths about the human condition, ultimately asking how we can reach…
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Book Review: This is London: Life and Death in The World City by Ben Judah
What side of London do you never get to hear about in general media? This book is a literary masterpiece, as journalist Ben Judah takes the reader on a tour around London, meeting the people who make the city live and move and who are usually ignored (literally – bus drivers, the homeless, shop keepers…
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Book Review: Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain
What is your personality type? How can you be an inclusive leader? These are only a couple of the questions that Susan Cain addresses in this empowering book. Cain dispels myths about having an introverted personality type to change society’s perception of what it means to be introverted.
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Book Review: Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End by Atul Gawande
This book explored on a deeply philosophical level, what really matters at the end of life? How can we have a good death? By cleverly combining the science of medicine with the philosophy of life, Gawande explores how modern medicine has changed over time.
