National Recognition: MFT Haemoglobinopathy Team Highly Commended at Prestigious HSJ Awards 2025
Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT) is celebrating a major national achievement after its Haemoglobinopathy Team received Highly Commended status at the UK’s most prestigious healthcare awards, the Health Service Journal (HSJ) Awards 2025.
The team, which provides expert care for patients with sickle cell and thalassaemia – conditions that predominantly affect patients from Black Caribbean, African, and South Asian heritage communities – was honoured in the highly competitive Innovation and Improvement in Reducing Healthcare Inequalities Award category.
Celebrating Excellence and Innovation
For 45 years, the HSJ Awards have been the gold standard for recognising healthcare excellence in the UK, providing a platform to showcase the most impactful projects and transformative innovations shaping the future of NHS care.
This recognition highlights the success of the Manchester Sickle Cell Improvement Programme, which was judged for its significant strides in addressing health inequalities and delivering tangible improvements in patient experience and clinical outcomes.
The Highly Commended status is a testament to the team’s dedication and is particularly noteworthy as the 2025 awards took place at a defining moment for the NHS, celebrating individuals and organisations proving what the NHS at its best can be – delivering innovation and improving outcomes.
The Sickle Cell Unit: A Model for Patient-Centred Care
The recognition centres on the outstanding work of the dedicated Sickle Cell Unit at Manchester Royal Infirmary (MRI), which was co-designed with patients and community groups.
The team’s improvements focused on creating a service that actively tackles health inequalities by ensuring patients from these often-underserved communities receive timely and responsive care. Key features of the service that led to the national commendation include:
- A 24/7 Triage Line: Providing instant access to specialist advice and support, preventing unnecessary emergency department visits.
- Dedicated Beds: Ensuring swift admission for patients experiencing a sickle cell crisis.
- Instant Access to Digital Care Plans: Facilitating seamless, coordinated care across multiple services.
This innovative model of care dramatically improves the experience for people living with sickle cell disease and serves as an exemplar for other services seeking to embed equity and accessibility into their operations.
MFT Time Recognition too!
If receiving Highly Commended at the HSJ Awards wasn’t enough the team also featured in MFT Time – the internal newsletter for Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust. Here is their piece:
“Congratulations to teams at MRI and our LCOs, who have been Highly Commended in this year’s HSJ Awards for their outstanding work to improve care for people with sickle cell disease. Our dedicated Sickle Cell Unit at MRI was designed with our patients and community groups and features a 24/7 triage line, dedicated beds, and instant access to digital care plans – improving their experience using our care and help us tackle health inequalities”.
Well done to everyone involved!
