Professor Mark Strong

Dean of the School of Medicine and Population Health
Population Health, School of Medicine and Population Health

Email

m.strong@sheffield.ac.uk

Telephone

+44 114 222 0812

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Abstract

My name is Mark Strong and I am the Dean of the newly formed School of Medicine and Population Health at the University of Sheffield. The new School brings together the majority of the medical and applied health teaching and research at the University, and for the first time for many years, Sheffield has a single "Medical School" department that combines both teaching and research. At the heart of the School is our community of 2,400 undergraduate and postgraduate students, the biggest cohort being our 1,600 medical students. Our 900 staff include a large number of researchers who work on a wide range of topics from basic lab-based discovery science right through to international health policy research. Our aim is that our teaching and training develops the next generation of health professionals and researchers, and our research and innovation has a real and lasting positive impact on the health of patients, their families and the public. As a medical school, our closest partnerships are with our local NHS organisations, and Sheffield Children's Hospital is a particularly important partner for our medical student training and for some key areas of our research. I'll talk a bit about my career, the work of the School and then open up a discussion about how we can develop our collaborative relationship for the benefit of child health.

Biography

My career has been largely unplanned and I never expected to become the Dean of a Medical School! I started my working life as a care assistant with adults with learning disabilities and only by chance decided to apply to study medicine. After qualifying I spent two very enjoyable years working as an SHO at the Children's Hospital before starting Public Health training in Rotherham. I then moved to the University on an academic training placement during which time I wrote a successful MRC fellowship bid. Two fellowships later I had established my research credentials and, again rather by chance, had started getting involved in university departmental management and leadership. This has brought me to my current Dean role - which I greatly enjoy!