ABSTRACT
According to American Medical News, one purpose of the British Medical Association (BMA) convention in San Diego was to explain the workings of the British medical system to American physicians. The Annual Dinner of the Barnet and Finchley Division of the BMA was due to be held in March and Shirley was Chairman of the Division. The Member of Parliament for Finchley was Mrs Margaret Thatcher. She wrote to the Member for Chipping Barnet, Sydney Chapman, asking him to convey to the guests 'my warm regards and appreciation for the splendid work they do and especially for the way in which they uphold the highest professional standards'. Social change and 'political correctness' caused the BMA problems as participants could be accompanied by people of either the same sex as themselves, or the opposite one. The election of the Chairman of the Representative Body takes place every third year.
