RCVS Knowledge awards formally conferred
11 September 2020
RCVS Knowledge was delighted to confer formally our suite of 2020 awards at a virtual Honours & Awards Evening held yesterday by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. Our outgoing Chair of the Board of Trustees, Jacqui Molyneux presented the following RCVS Knowledge Awards, which all reflect our mission to improve the quality of veterinary care by advancing the use of evidence-based veterinary medicine and inspire quality improvement.
Knowledge Champions
Vale Vets, PDSA and the Animal Health Trust were crowned Champion Practices for their Quality Improvement (QI) initiatives. Their work included the development, implementation and assessment of audits, guidelines, checklists and enhanced communication. These interventions have led to improved patient outcomes, increased client satisfaction scores and increased team unity.
Louise Northway of Wendover Heights Veterinary Centre won the individual award for the second consecutive year, highlighting her dedication to continuous quality improvement.
The Veterinary Evidence Knowledge Summary Student Award
The winning Knowledge Summary was written by Carla Husband, Abbie McMillan and Lauren Sweeney, all studying veterinary nursing at the University of Bristol. The team highlighted the paucity of evidence regarding the impact of educational interventions on hand hygiene compliance in small animal environments, a highly relevant topic during the COVID-19 pandemic, and called for more research to be carried out to support hand hygiene compliance in the veterinary professions.
Plowright Prize
The biennial RCVS Knowledge Plowright Prize recognises individuals working in Europe or the Commonwealth who have made significant contributions to the control, management and eradication of infectious diseases. The award, worth £75,000, is made in memory of Dorothy and alter Plowright.
Professor Morrison, who is Professor of Immunology at The Roslin Institute Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, The University of Edinburgh, plans to use the £75,000 Plowright Prize funding to advance his current research into creating a cost-effective vaccine for the cattle disease East Coast Fever.
Congratulations to all of the award winners.
The full ceremony is available to watch here.