A TIRELESS campaigner, Dr Chaand Nagpaul’s passion for narrowing the racial inequalities in medicine, health and other sectors in Britain has become the stuff of legend. Last year, he stepped down as chair of the British Medical Association (BMA), but his workload shows no signs of abating. He started his three-year term on the national council of the Royal College of General Practitioners in November 2023, and serves actively as a board member of the NHS Race and Health Observatory, an independent body which tackles health inequalities among people of colour.

“I’ve spoken at several national conferences in the past year on behalf of the Race Observatory, and in particular highlighting the cost of racism in the NHS, and why tackling inequalities in health is vital for the sustainability of the NHS,” he told the GG2 Power List. The pioneer – he was the first person of col our to lead the BMA in its 192-year history – is a champion of what he describes as his “calling” – making lives better.

And, a lot has changed since he graduated in 1985. “I must continue to campaign for equality, but I do believe that we are making progress,” he said. “When I started out in medicine, issues around race weren’t even talked about. There was no cultural awareness of the different ways in which diseases affected different communities. And as for inequalities amongst the NHS workforce, basically there was just silence.” “We have progressed a long way, and what I feel now is that there should be no let up until the NHS actually lives up to its founding principles, which is a principle of equality, and equality that must not only apply to the population it serves, but also apply to its own workforce. “This is something that I