That belief has guided much of my professional life, from my early involvement in student and medical association governance through to now as I step into my ninth year on the RACS Council and into the role of vice president of our College.

I’m based in Adelaide, working as a specialist breast and endocrine surgeon, and like many of you, I balance a busy clinical practice with family life. I understand the realities of juggling competing priorities. Yet throughout my career, I’ve continued to invest time in the College because I believe in a surgeon-led profession.

I’ve never been content to simply observe from the sidelines. If we want to shape the future of surgery, we need to be prepared to step forward, contribute and lead. That conviction has guided much of my involvement with the College over the past decade and more.

My involvement with the College began early in my early career after I’d already had a taste of leadership through the Australian Medical Association (AMA) and my medical student society. Governance and advocacy were never abstract ideas for me, but practical ways to make change happen.

That belief really crystallised when I stepped into the Younger Fellows chair role during the early years of the Building Respect, Improving Patient Safety initiative in 2015. It was a time when the culture of surgery was rightly under scrutiny. I didn’t want to stand on the sidelines and comment on it. I wanted to be at the table helping shape the response. That decision has guided much of my work ever since.

From there, I’ve had the privilege of serving as chair of the Women in Surgery section and Professional Standards and Fellowship Services Committee and now continue that journey as I step into the role of vice president.

Outside of the College, you might recognise me from my Instagram platform, where I share reflections on surgery, training and the realities of working life in medicine. I’ll also soon be one of the faces of the FRACS campaign, which is something I’m proud to be part of.

For me, FRACS is more than a professional qualification—it is a Fellowship. It represents a community that holds us to high standards, not only in clinical expertise, but in collaboration, teamwork, leadership and advocacy.

I’m looking forward to helping share what that means in practice, and to seeing the campaign amplify the ongoing work we do to ensure excellence for our patients.

Over the coming year, I want to see the momentum of Building Respect not only continue but deepen. We’ve done important work, but culture is not a project with an end date but rather an ongoing commitment.

At the same time, I believe we are in a strong position as a College. While we’ve faced challenges in recent years, we are now on firm financial ground, strategically focused, and have a clearer understanding of what our members need from us. That gives us space to focus on what matters most.

For me, that includes advocacy. It is one of the most important responsibilities we have as a College.

Across both Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand, we are seeing increasing external pressure on the College system and on surgical practice itself. We need to be careful not to allow popular rhetoric to shape policy in ways that don’t reflect the realities of delivering safe, high-quality surgical care.

Whether it is the current debate around specialist fees in Australia, or the opportunities emerging in an election year in Aotearoa New Zealand to improve equity, workforce and infrastructure, we need to ensure surgeons remain at the table shaping the future of our profession.

Because ultimately, we understand the system best, and we are best placed to lead its evolution.

That is what I hope to contribute in this role, and I look forward to serving you.

Warm regards
Dr Christine Lai
Vice President