Shaping the future of care and advocacy

Posted:

09 Oct 2025

From changing national health policies and attending parliament to organising a surgical skills competition and receiving the first-ever General Shabeg Singh Award, it has been an incredible and jam-packed year for final year medic Harshvir Grewal. Getting involved in several opportunities across the University and beyond, Harshvir has used this past year to contribute to the lives of patients, Parliament policy and prospective students, through his passion for inclusion and advocacy.

We recently caught up with Harshvir to hear about what he’s been up to over the past year at College and his highlights from his time at Trinity Hall.

Harshvir with a group of friends standing in their gowns in Front Court at graduation 2023.

Why did you choose to study medicine at Trinity Hall?

I personally chose Medicine for its unique blend between scientific discovery and the opportunity to make a real difference in people’s lives. Having done some work experience during sixth form, including shadowing in surgery and volunteering in a care home, I realised that I had a passion for wanting to deliver patient-centred care and improving health outcomes for all.

In terms of why Trinity Hall, my mum always encouraged me to apply to Cambridge but my choice of Trinity Hall, however was inspired by the Cambridge Students’ Union’s Shadowing Scheme – the very same outreach programme I would later volunteer with myself. Spending time with then-first-year medical student Sujal Gurung, I experienced College life, lectures, and supervisions (including a memorable anatomy supervision with Dr Jai Chitnavis). Seeing the College’s supportive environment first-hand not only confirmed Trinity Hall as my first choice, but also inspired me to contribute to further outreach work for both the College and the University.

Group photo of participants in the Oxbridge Access Conference

What have you got involved with during your time at Cambridge?

During my time at Trinity Hall, I’ve explored everything from College sports clubs to university-wide AI societies but one society has been a particular focus and has taken up more of my time than any other, the Cambridge University Sikh Society.

I have been heavily involved with the Sikh Society throughout my years here, serving as its President, Events Officer ,and Treasurer during my time. The society has allowed me to connect with people of a shared faith and background to me from across the UK and beyond, while also allowing me to give back to the community. Some of my personal highlights include organising our termly “Langar Drives” to provide free hot meals to Cambridge’s homeless population, and coordinating our annual Oxbridge Sikh Societies Access Conference (pictured), which has supported over 300 Sikh students from disadvantaged backgrounds in applying to Oxford and Cambridge in recent years.

Harshvir with fellow Sikh Education Council volunteers, joined by Dr. Sadhu Singh (Director, British Sikh Consultative Forum) and the Rt Hon Pat McFadden MP (Wolverhampton South East), at the annual Vaisakhi celebration in the Speaker’s State Rooms, Houses of Parliament.

What have been the highlights of your year so far?

This year has been filled with many memorable moments, experiences and achievements.

The most memorable was receiving the first-ever General Shabeg Singh Award at the Sikh Education Council’s inaugural Guru Nanak Global Perspectives Conference at Keble College, Oxford, where I presented my paper “World Security: An Approach to Public Health Challenges”. The paper, soon to be published in the International Journal of Sikh Studies, introduced a novel healthcare framework “IK Health”, linking global security to public health, climate change, policy, economics, and technology. It was a true honour to receive an award named after the revered 20th-century Sikh military strategist, and I look forward to building on this work in my final year.

Another standout moment for me this year was being invited to the annual Vaisakhi celebration at the Speaker’s State Rooms in Parliament, organised by the British Sikh Consultative Forum. I was honoured to attend in recognition of my work within the Sikh community. The event brought together MPs, community leaders, and Sikh representatives from across the UK to celebrate the Sikh community’s contributions to British life. Hearing so many newly elected Sikh MPs speak through the lens of Sikh values – such as seva (selfless service), equality, and education – was truly inspiring and reminded me of the real impact that my community and outreach work can have, both here in Cambridge and beyond.

Other highlights for me this year included organising the Cambridge University Surgical Society’s first-ever National Surgical Skills Competition, which brought together medical students from across the UK to test and refine their surgical abilities in a friendly but highly competitive environment. It was inspiring to see so much enthusiasm for surgery and to help create an event that I hope will become a regular fixture in the society’s calendar.

Harshvir Grewal (far right) sitting at table with fellow Candesic colleagues.

What have you got up to most recently?

For my medical elective, I decided to step outside of the clinical environment and spend seven weeks at Candesic, a London-based healthcare and life sciences consulting firm. I wanted to understand how strategic decision-making, policy, and commercial considerations shape patient care – both within the NHS and internationally. During the elective, I contributed to projects ranging from digital pathology transformation in the NHS to public health strategy for governments in the Middle East. The experience gave me a richer understanding of how healthcare systems operate and showed me the breadth of career pathways available to doctors. My most memorable moment was seeing research I had contributed to feed directly into national health policy discussions – a clear reminder to me that, even as students, we can make real system-wide impact. I would personally recommend this experience to every medical student. Not only did it offer me reflective time away from the clinical environment, but it also deepened my appreciation of what it takes to build and sustain a service as complex as the NHS.

Overall, my time at Trinity Hall has been incredibly rewarding, filled with opportunities, friendships, and experiences that have shaped both my personal and professional growth. And, as I look forward to my final year, I am determined to make the most of every moment, while cherishing the memories I have created and the wonderful people I have met.

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