“It is important to be conscious of and advocate on behalf of our disabled colleagues all year round”: Meet Dr Alan Courtney

Dr Alan Courtney is a Principal Clinical Scientist at North West London Pathology. He was given an official diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in April 2023. Here, Alan reflects on his role at the NWLP and how we can make the organisation a more inclusive workplace for individuals with disabilities.

What is your role at the NWLP and how long have you been working in the organisation?

I’m a Clinical Scientist working in Clinical Biochemistry, and have been employed by the NHS now for nearly 20 years. I first started my career after completing my PhD at Sussex University before entering into the Clinical Scientist training programme.

I originally trained at St Mary’s hospital and undertook secondments at Great Ormond Street and Barnet General Hospitals before moving sites and working in the specialist clinical biochemistry laboratory at Charing Cross as a senior Clinical Scientist. I have since specialised in Protein Biomarkers and I’m now the lead (Principal) Clinical Scientist for the Specialist Protein Lab. We analyse a range of biomarkers for myeloma/paraproteinaemia (cancer of plasma cells), multiple sclerosis, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leaks, osteoporosis bone turnover markers, irritable bowel syndrome/inflammatory bowel syndrome, specialist lipid markers, and alpha 1 antitrypsin deficiency (a genetic disorder that may result in lung disease or liver disease) amongst others. As you can imagine from this list, it is a very busy lab! We process over 50,000 serum electrophoresis samples alone annually – this is when the proteins found in blood or urine are separated.

What inspired you to pursue this career and what do you love most about your role?

I’ve always enjoyed science and data handling from a young age and having graduated with Biochemistry degrees/a doctorate, looked to apply this knowledge on a daily basis and in a clinical laboratory setting. I particularly enjoy that my role gives me the opportunity to improve and refine the service that we offer, and this process typically involves reviewing data in detail. In fact, our service has been praised by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) as one of the highest quality services that the laboratory assessors had seen in the country!

I also really enjoy working alongside my colleagues in the lab and being a union representative at work as an accredited FCS (Federation of Clinical Scientists) member. This has given me the opportunity to do much more than just represent individual needs at formal or informal meetings/hearings. I have been able to play a direct role in collaboratively shaping policy and decision making to improve the working environment. This has in turn given me the confidence to speak up and believe in myself. In particular, I have made a positive contribution to how the disability, carers and flexible working policies are interpreted and used.

What does a typical working day look like for you?

A typical day for me would involve the review of results and data to ensure that the right results are available at the right time. This would include writing reports, providing advice to our users, supervising other members of staff, reviewing quality assurance data/procedures, implementing new clinical guidance, submitting business plans/evaluations for new tests, clinical audit and research and development (R&D).

Why is it important to recognise and celebrate our disabled colleagues at NWLP?

I am a proud member of I-CAN, our disability staff network. I believe that it is important to be conscious of and advocate on behalf of our disabled colleagues all year round. Any disability is not a choice and although it is not necessarily something that defines who we are, it is something that individuals live with and experience on a daily basis. It can of course be particularly challenging, not only practically, but also from a psychological perspective. My experience is that it is unfortunately necessary to fight for what you are supposed to be provided with.

I was pleased to see Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, who host NWLP, acknowledge Disability History Month throughout November and December. This month has become something of real importance in the last few years for me. Since 2018, outside of work I have spent time campaigning on behalf of both my children’s disabilities (autistic spectrum disorder and a very rare and severe neuromuscular disease called CMT4J). This involved learning the legal framework and law that governs what they are entitled to and ensuring that everything is enacted appropriately. This has included two successful tribunals, petitions to my local authority, winning an award for setting up a local free advisory group for parents with special educational needs and disabilities in my borough, attending the House of Commons on behalf of a campaigning charity and visiting the Department for Education, as well as featuring on national and regional news outlets. Whilst stressful, this has been a rewarding and enlightening experience overall. It has led me to re-evaluate what is important and led me down my own route to discovering my own neurodiversity. It has lit a fire inside me that I never knew was there!

Hopefully I will be able to continue to advocate for both my family and work colleagues and use my experience to make society a little bit more just and fair. I’m currently trying to introduce the first wheelchair accessible swing for a public children’s playground in my London borough.

What advice would you give to staff who want to create a more disability inclusive organisation?

To me much of the world of disability is invisible to the majority of people and if I’m honest it was to me before my own personal experiences. This is okay, but we should try to acknowledge it. I think it is important to identify the struggles and successes and to remember that having a disability is something that could happen to all of us in life without warning. People should not dismiss other individuals’ needs or reasonable adjustments that have been put into place out of hand. Many things that might appear insignificant or trivial are often important and should be given proper consideration. You never know the life history or experience that an individual has had. The ultimate moral test for society is the way it treats its most vulnerable people: children, the sick or disabled and the elderly.

It is crucial to know what help disabled members of our organisation are entitled to. I’d recommend that staff (including managers) look carefully through the available content on the intranet, in particular ensuring that if you need, or have reasonable adjustments made, to complete the Disability/Reasonable Adjustments Passport. Reasonable adjustments aren’t necessarily about being fair, but about equity. It is about making an adjustment so that an individual can do their role to the best of their ability. Lastly, look to the ICAN network for advice – we are a welcoming group who are always happy to share advice or lend an ear to any issues.

*A biomarker, or biological marker, is a measurable indicator of some biological state or condition. Biomarkers are often measured and evaluated using blood, urine, or soft tissues