Exceptional colleagues from across the partnership recognised in New Year’s Honours list
The honours have been awarded to a selection of outstanding colleagues working in health and healthcare delivery, research and innovation, including the following:
Professor Sir Michael Marmot, Director of the UCL Institute of Health Equity, has been appointed a Companion of Honour for services to public health – which is limited to only 65 people at any one time. For 50 years, Sir Michael has conducted ground-breaking research on the social determinants of health, linking health inequalities to the circumstances in which we are born, live, grow, work and age.
Professor Lyn Chitty, Professor of Genetics and Fetal Medicine at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust, has received a Damehood for services to medicine. Professor Chitty has pioneered research into rapid and non-invasive prenatal diagnosis, offering families lower risk options to find out about the health of their unborn child. She is Deputy Director of the NIHR GOSH Biomedical Research Centre, where she also leads the Genomic Medicine theme. Professor Chitty’s work as Medical Director of the North Thames Genomics Laboratory Hub spearheaded the provision of genomic and genetic testing in the region, including the start of whole genome sequencing, as part of the new Genomic Medicine Service in the NHS.
Professor Nishi Chaturvedi, Director at the MRC Lifelong Health & Ageing Unit at UCL, has been made a Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to medical research. Her research considers how ethnicity and lifestyle affect people’s risk factors for disease.
Professor David Price, who stepped down earlier this year as Vice-Provost (Research, Innovation and Global Engagement) at UCL, has been awarded an OBE for services to science and research. Professor Price served as Vice-Provost for 15 years, overseeing efforts to facilitate and promote UCL’s research, its benefits for the public and impact on the wider world.
Professor Isobel Heyman has been made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services. Professor Heyman is an honorary consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist at Great Ormond Street Hospital and Consultant Psychiatrist in the Psychological Medicine Team at Addenbrooke’s Hospital. Professor Heyman is also an Honorary Professor at the University College Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health.
Betsey Lau-Robinson, a nurse from University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (UCLH) has been awarded an MBE for her safeguarding work with adult patients as well as her work on the Mental Capacity Act. Betsey has dedicated her career to advocating for the safety of patients and their human rights.
Zebina Ratansi, Director of Nursing at Whipps Cross Hospital part of Barts Health NHS Trust, has been awarded an MBE. Described as an outstanding leader in nursing and a role model to many, Zebina has dedicated 38 years to the profession and has quietly led significant change and improvement in one of East London’s most challenged hospitals.
Sharing his reflections on the honours, Dr Chris Laing, Chief Executive Officer, UCLPartners said: “I’m delighted that outstanding colleagues from across our partnership have received much-deserved recognition in the New Year’s Honour list – huge congratulations! It is a testament to their dedication and unwavering service to patients and the future of healthcare. We are privileged to work alongside these exceptional individuals as well as with all of our hard-working colleagues who go above and beyond on a daily basis to improve people’s health and provide high-quality care.”
Dozens of wider NHS staff have also been recognised in this year’s New Year Honours list ahead of the health service’s 75th birthday.