Kallol Ray Chaudhuri talks to Marika Davies about facing racial discrimination during his career and putting patients at the heart of research

After a long and arduous clinic, Kallol Ray Chaudhuri likes to take his team to the pub. I strongly believe that work should also be pleasurable and fun, he says.

Ray Chaudhuri, professor of neurology and director of the Parkinson Foundation Centre of Excellence at Kings College Hospital and Kings College London, was born in India to a medical family. His interest in neurology was sparked at a young age, sitting in on his fathers medical clinics on the ground floor of their home. I used to find it fascinating, he recalls. That concept of being in medicine and seeing patients was ingrained into me at a very early stage.

In 1984 Ray Chaudhuri graduated from Calcutta Medical College and moved to the UK to continue his training. Despite pressure to return to India to work in his fathers practice, he decided to pursue a career as a clinical academic in London, becoming a consultant neurologist in 1995 and research director at Kings College Hospital in 2018.

Ray Chaudhuri is proud of the work at the Parkinson Centre and of the feedback they get from patients. We have a plan to develop care for people based not only on medicine but on overall wellness, he explains. This has become incredibly popular and is being adopted in many different countries. Patient feedback is proof that what we do is relevant and has a tangible impact on the people we serve.

As a clinical academic Ray Chaudhuri says his research is very patient orientated. People think research is where you go to the laboratory and do cell culture stuff, but theyve forgotten about the real beauty of clinical research, he says. I love seeing patients and trying to bring innovation to the clinic by mixing education and research.

Ray Chaudhuri says that throughout his career he has encountered racial discrimination. Some consultants would refuse to talk to me directly or make derogatory comments about colleagues whose English wasnt that good. I learnt pretty early that if I was going to make a mark Id have to work really hardone of my bosses once told me I had to be twice as good as a local person to get a job, he recalls. Even after I became established and formed my own research group there was a lot of focus on trying to find errors in my work; the scrutiny was extremely high compared with colleagues who were doing the same sort of work.

Outside of work Ray Chaudhuri enjoys playing in a folk rock band and writing music. He is currently composing songs about the lived experiences of patients with Parkinsons disease. He is also active in rhinoceros conservation in South Africa, where he travels twice a year to raise money and awareness.

Ray Chaudhuri encourages his juniors to travel abroad to meetings wherever they can and to choose a career path that they enjoy. Enjoyment in work is absolutely crucial so its important that you get job satisfactionthat will often give you joy and help your work-life balance, he says.

He also tells his juniors not to be daunted by challenges that come their way. From my own experience, if I let those things into my head I wouldnt be where I am, he says. Sometimes if you have to be better than the others to be where you are, so be it.

Ray has made exceptional contributions to the field of medicine and his dedication to nurturing the next generation remains unmatched. Despite being snowed under with work and other commitments he still gives his team the attention and help they need to succeed.

He has worked to get Kings College Hospitals centre recognised as a Parkinsons Centre of Excellence, one of only two in the UK. He created the UKs first Parkinsons patient group to review all studies before we take them on, emphasising the need to have patients at the heart of our research and care. Ray sits on the equality, diversity, and inclusivity panel at our trust, working to improve representation of our communities in research.

Our career plans and projections have been shaped by Ray, and we will be forever grateful to his guidance, help, and kindness.

Mubasher A Qamar, Lucia Batzu, Silvia Rota, Valentina Leta, and Aleksandra Podlewska are fellows at the Parkinson Foundation Centre of Excellence at Kings College Hospital.

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Caring for the whole person: the consultant neurologist - The BMJ