25 Apr 2025
The presentation in July will be the first of its kind since the medal was established more than a decade ago and college leaders said they were “very grateful” to his family for agreeing to accept it.
Allister Webb
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Simon Doherty, here with a previous prestigious award, has posthumously won the RCVS' highest honour – the Queen’s Medal.
An award-winning clinician, academic and former BVA president is to be posthumously granted the RCVS’ highest veterinary honour.
The college has announced that its Queen’s Medal will be formally bestowed on Simon Doherty, who died last December, aged 49.
It is the first time the award has been presented posthumously since it was established in 2013 and college president Linda Belton said: “We’re very grateful to Simon’s family who agreed to accept his posthumous award.
“Despite the very sad circumstances, I hope they take immense pride in all he achieved in areas such as one health, sustainable agriculture and aquaculture, veterinary public health and international trade.”
Prof Doherty was separately nominated by the current BVA president Elizabeth Mullineaux and former college president Niall Connell.
Dr Connell, who chairs the college fellowship of which Prof Doherty was also a member, described him as “a veterinary surgeon in the fullest sense, working for animals right across all fields, and for society, making a massive contribution to one health, which is so critical”.
The award is one of 12 announced by the college on 24 April, and which are due to be formally presented at RCVS Day in Westminster on 4 July.
The VN Golden Jubilee award will be presented to the RVC’s director of veterinary nursing, Perdita Welsh, in recognition of her work in professional development, including developing the college’s own skills training centre, which was the first of its kind in the UK.
Another senior RVC academic Dan O’Neill is one of two Impact award winners this year, alongside John Innes, while the college’s Compassion award will go to Murray Corke, who retired as a Vetlife volunteer at the end of last year having served on its helpline since its launch in 1997.
There are also two award recipients in the International category – Worldwide Veterinary Services founder Luke Gamble and Hong Kong-based Paweł Beczkowski, who became a fellow of the college last year.
Charity work has been further recognised in the Inspiration category where Redwings Horse Sanctuary’s head of veterinary care Nicola Jarvis and RVN Kerry Flynn, who chairs the London-based Protected Paws Animal Rescue are set to receive awards.
And three new honorary associateships are to be bestowed on Federation of Independent Practices chairperson Rita Dingwall, VetNI secretary general Jo Gibson and University of Bristol vet school operations manager Stuart Pope.
