2025 George Lewith Prize Winner | Insights from the SAPC Conference

Milou Ottolini and Dhanush Ammineni Medical Students University of Oxford

Dhanush and I were extremely grateful to receive the George Lewith Prize for General Practice for our research exploring the experiences of patients taking GLP-1 receptor agonists, with a particular focus on the support they received and the food they were consuming. It was a real privilege to attend the 53rd SAPC ASM in Cardiff as a result of this prize.

This year’s conference theme was Embracing New Approaches and Adjusting to Diverse Needs. As someone early in my medical career, I found it incredibly exciting to hear about emerging technologies that could transform how we deliver healthcare. For instance, there were discussions on using AI to improve drug prescribing for hard-to-manage hypertension and on blood tests designed to detect cancers at an early stage.

While these innovations are promising, they also raise many important questions. In Dr Margaret McCartneys talk, Evidence or Bust, she highlighted the potential harms of overdiagnosis, explaining how screening blood tests for cancer could result in, on average, 14 additional tests to confirm a false positive. Throughout the conference, there were diverse and often conflicting opinions on these issues, and I found it valuable to observe how participants were able to disagree respectfully. A skill that will no doubt be essential in my career ahead.

Although this year’s theme was about embracing change, a recurring message throughout the conference was the importance of not losing sight of the fundamentals. In an era of increasing strain on the healthcare system, continuity of care is becoming ever more difficult to maintain, yet its value cannot be overstated. The trust that patients place in a familiar doctor is invaluable, particularly in communities that are marginalised or feel stigmatised. This made me pause and reflect that, while new technologies are exciting, it is crucial to ensure we continue getting the basics right.

This conference opened my eyes to the importance of understanding the context of the patient in front of you. Every patient has their own background and unique challenges that must be considered to deliver the best possible care. For example, I was fascinated to learn about initiatives using hairdressers to help promote cardiovascular health among ethnically diverse women, a high risk of group for cardiovascular disease but yet are often less likely to engage with traditional screening services.

I am extremely grateful to the NIHR SPCR for the opportunity to attend such a thought-provoking conference. I hope to return in future years and perhaps even present my own research!