‘I am honoured and humbled’: NHS workers recognised in 2024 New Year Honours List
Two NHS workers from Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Trust have been recognised in the 2024 New Year Honours List.
Professor David Edwards, consultant neonatologist at Evelina London Children’s Hospital in Westminster Bridge Road, Lambeth, was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE), and Moses Ayoola, director of estates and facilities, was given a British Empire Medal (BEM).
Professor Edwards was recognised for his breakthroughs in health research which have increased the survival rates of babies and improved the quality of life of some of the sickest newborns in neonatal units around the world.
He said: “This is really a recognition of the work done by my scientific and clinical colleagues past and present which I have had the pleasure to be associated with.”
Professor Edwards spent more than 20 years working on the discovery of the first – and still the only – effective treatment for oxygen starvation in newborn babies.
The treatment, known as therapeutic hypothermia, is now used globally and doubles the normal chance of survival rate for babies affected by the complications.
More recently, Professor Edwards and his team have completed the largest-ever study on how connections form in the brain just weeks after birth.
The data is now being used across the world, providing a greater understanding of how the brain develops and of conditions like autism and cerebral palsy.
Like Professor Edwards, Mr Ayoola has spent more than two decades working at the NHS and has been recognised in the honours list for his services and leadership.
A spokeswoman from the trust described Mr Ayoola as an “inclusive and values-based leader” who has “championed” the patient experience.
Mr Ayoola said: “I am honoured and humbled to have been awarded the British Empire Medal for services to Leadership in the NHS.
“I would like to thank those who have helped me along the way and all the great leaders who helped shape my leadership style.”
Pictured top: From Left, Moses Ayoola and Professor David Edwards, who have been recognised in the 2024 New Year Honours List (Picture: Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Trust)