Faculty Principal named Innovator of the Year

Faculty Principal named Innovator of the Year. Professor Stephen Smith receives an NHS Leadership Award %0A " - By Laura Gallagher - Tuesday 22 December 2009 The Faculty Principal who helped to create the UK's first Academic Health Science Centre (AHSC) has won the Innovator of the Year award in the NHS Leadership Awards, announced on 25 November 2009. Professor Stephen Smith, Principal of the Faculty of Medicine and Chief Executive of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, was honoured for pioneering the AHSC, the unique partnership between Imperial College London and Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust that formed in October 2007. The AHSC's aim is to improve the quality of life of patients and populations by taking new discoveries and translating them into new therapies as quickly as possible. Professor Smith said: "We think that our AHSC is a hugely important innovation and that AHSCs have the potential to transform healthcare in the UK. Bringing together research, healthcare and education allows you to turn great new discoveries into new therapies for patients much more quickly than ever before, and improve people's quality of life. It's great that our pioneering approach has been recognised with the NHS Leadership Award." Professor Smith also ranked 13th in the 2009 Health Service Journal list of the 50 most powerful people in NHS management policy and practice in England.