The Gateshead Secondary Prevention Service, led by Dr Su Ann Tee (consultant endocrinologist) and Jonathan Fenwick (Lipid Management and Secondary Prevention Specialist Pharmacist) has been named the winner of the Medicines, Pharmacy and Prescribing Initiative of the Year at the 2025 Health Service Journal (HSJ) Awards.
The Secondary Prevention Service at Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust is the first team in the UK dedicated to looking after patients who have had a whole range of serious heart and circulation problems in a comprehensive manner. This specialist team works to manage all related heart, kidney and metabolic risk factors (like diabetes and obesity), to reduce chances of a repeat event, after people have experienced a heart attack, angina, a stroke, a mini-stroke (TIA), or poor circulation in the limbs.
The service brings together a team of different consultants including a diabetes and cholesterol specialist, cardiologist, kidney specialist and stroke specialist, along with a specialist pharmacist and specialist nurses. The team focuses on helping patients achieve recommended targets for cholesterol, diabetes, and blood pressure control using evidence-based medical treatments. This is through providing high-quality, personalised treatment plans and supportive counselling to improve medication adherence during the crucial initial months following a cardiovascular event.
This collaborative and streamlined approach, implemented in Gateshead since 2023, has been shown to deliver better clinical results while providing value for money within the local health system, as patients receive a bespoke treatment plan addressing multiple risk factors, built on advice from a team of specialists while only needing to attend a single clinic.
This year’s competition for a HSJ Award was strong, with 1,250 entries received and 246 organisations, projects, and individuals shortlisted. Following two rigorous rounds of judging by a panel of more than 200 respected healthcare leaders, the Gateshead service emerged as the winner in its category.
All entries were assessed against five key criteria: ambition, outcome, spread, value, and stakeholder involvement.
Dr Su Ann Tee, Clinical Lead of the Gateshead Secondary Prevention Service, said:
We are incredibly honoured to be recognised by HSJ for this work on a national level. This is a testament to the power of collaboration, and a story of like-minded colleagues rallying towards a common objective to deliver better patient care. I would like to acknowledge the other valued members of our team – Dr Hannah Sinclair (consultant cardiologist), Dr Ian Logan (consultant nephrologist), Dr Louise Southern (stroke consultant); Sarah Errington (cardiology nurse) and Claire Davies (diabetes pharmacist). Sincere thanks also to Novartis Pharmaceuticals for the initial short-term collaborative funding support at the start of the project.
“This award spurs us onward to keep supporting people in Gateshead towards reducing their cardiovascular risk. We are grateful to the HSJ Awards for acknowledging our contribution to patient care.”
Alastair McLellan, Editor of the Health Service Journal, commented:
The calibre of entries this year has been exceptional, making for some difficult decisions for our judging panel. The Gateshead Secondary Prevention Service stood out as a truly worthy winner in the Medicines, Pharmacy and Prescribing Initiative of the Year category.
“For over four decades, the HSJ Awards have recognised the dedication and innovation of those working in and with the NHS. These awards remain truly inclusive, welcoming entries from all corners of the service, from trusts to primary care teams, public health to the voluntary sector.
“Every finalist receives valuable feedback that can be taken back to improve their services. Congratulations to the Gateshead team and welcome to our growing family of HSJ Awards winners.”
The 2025 HSJ Awards were supported by headline partner Vodafone Business, with NHS Charities Together as the charity partner. All winning projects are featured in the HSJ Awards programme and the HSJ Solutions best-practice database. The full list of Winners and those Highly Commended for the 2025 HSJ Awards can be found at awards.hsj.co.uk/winners-2025