Dr Steve Taylor, Jacqui Smith and Jess Phillips MP and the Heartlands team
The Heartlands HIV Service team were recently nominated for the NHS Parliamentary Awards, in the Care and Compassion category. Today, Jess Phillips MP, who originally put forward the nomination from her constituent, attended the clinic to present the team with a certificate of acknowledgement.
Accompanied by the Rt Hon Jacqui Smith, Chair of University Hospitals Birmingham, Jess presented the team with a certificate that was the result of an anonymous submission by one of her constituents. “This innovative Multidisciplinary Team practices HIV medicine incredibly skilfully, but as importantly, recognises the risks resulting from such anxieties and works tirelessly in the hospital /community settings to dispel fear and correct misinformation,” they wrote to the Birmingham Yardley MP.
“The MDT are passionate about preventing needless loss of life and deliver educational programmes to a wide audience,
encouraging both HIV testing and engagement with care.”
The team looks after an outpatient cohort of over 1,200, and dozens of inpatients annually. This recognition of our work to enhance the lives of our patients both clinically and in the community means so much to us. “The very visibly compassionate care delivered by this team and their enthusiasm and passion to make a difference has a very positive knock on effect to others.”
We hope that the certificate helps, in the words of the submission, emphasise publicly “that HIV is not just something that affected gay men in the 80’s – it is still a considerable health issue that affects many thousands of individuals from all walks of life in Britain.”
Many thanks to Jess, Jaqui – and our nominator. Recognition like this is always welcome – and helps advance our work immeasurably.