The Medical Defence Union (MDU) has announces it’s sponsorship of the upcoming NHS Parliamentary Awards ceremony, which will be held in Westminster on Monday 14 October 2024.
The NHS Parliamentary Awards were created in 2018 for health and care organisations as well as MPs to celebrate and recognise the outstanding achievements of staff, volunteers and others working across the NHS.
As sponsor, the MDU’s Dr Caroline Fryar and Thomas Reynolds were honoured to be part of the national judging panel to select the winners of this year’s ten awards. With 918 nominations, an increase of over 160 on 2023, selecting the finalists and winners proved to be particularly challenging.
Dr Matthew Lee, chief executive at the MDU, said: “The MDU is proud to be supporting this year’s NHS Parliamentary Awards. Day in, day out, we see how hard healthcare professionals are working on the frontline – and we are proud to speak up for them in Westminster, and champion their professional interests.
“It is important that the hard work and dedication of NHS colleagues is recognised. This shortlist, drawn from nearly 1,000 nominations, is a testament to the achievements and commitment of colleagues across the nation. I offer my warmest congratulations to everyone who has been shortlisted.”
The MDU’s support of the NHS Parliamentary Awards is one of the ways that the MDU is championing members and taking their concerns to the heart of Westminster. Recently, the MDU published its latest policy paper: An Agenda for Change. The paper calls for the government to reform healthcare professional regulation, to tackle the huge cost of clinical negligence claims and to do more to protect doctors’ health and wellbeing. An earlier survey by the MDU found these were among the areas doctors want the government to prioritise.
The full list of priorities, include:
Reform of healthcare professional regulation
- Bring forward a Section 60 Order to enable doctors to get the reformed, fairer, more timely and more proportionate model of regulation they have long promised.
- The same legislative steps should immediately follow for dental professionals in respect of the GDC.
Action on clinical negligence costs
- Repeal Section 2(4) of the Law Reform (Personal Injuries) Act 1948, which will allow courts to factor in the existence of the NHS when determining compensation.
- Tackle disproportionate legal costs by ensuring fixed recoverable costs in lower value clinical negligence claims is promptly enacted.
Supporting the health and wellbeing of the workforce
- Direct NHS employers to ensure that staff catering, and rest facilities are provided, including for those working out of hours.
- Commit to continued funding for programmes like NHS Practitioner Health which can ensure support for doctors when they feel at risk of, or experience burnout.
Click here to learn more about the NHS Parliamentary Awards
