The PatientsVoices@RCoA Award recognises innovative projects and initiatives which have made a tangible improvement to patients’ experience of anaesthesia and perioperative care. The award is designed and judged by members of PatientsVoices@RCoA a group of diverse people who support, advise and influence the College by providing patients’ perspectives on its activities. Applications will be judged based on how well a project meets the criteria below.
The 2025 award is now closed.
The 2026 award is now open. Please read the information below if you are interested in applying.
Partnership
- Describe how you involved patients at different stages of the initiative.
- Describe how best practice and learning from the initiative were shared/will be shared within your organisation and other NHS organisations.
Impact
- Describe the impact or improvement which you were hoping to achieve with the initiative.
- Explain how the initiative has made a difference to patients’ experience of anaesthesia and/or perioperative care.
The award is open to projects designed and delivered by individual anaesthetists, anaesthetic teams or departments and multidisciplinary teams (the trophy will have the name of the Trust or hospital where the project takes or has taken place).
Projects which have previously won a PatientsVoices@RCoA award will not be considered.
All entries and award recipients will be subject to due diligence checks, eg GMC status, ongoing investigations of Trusts or departments etc.
Entries must not contain any patients’ personal and identifiable data.
The top three scoring projects will be eligible for the gold, silver, and bronze prizes, which will be announced at the College Annual Awards Dinner on 13 May 2026, held as part of the Anaesthesia 2026 conference in Brighton.
Up to two award recipients (individuals who have been or are involved in the initiative) for each winning entry will be invited to attend the awards dinner for free and will be offered hotel accommodation for one night by the College. Award recipients will also be offered a 20% discounted rate for the full conference.
Please note:
- we are unable to accommodate partners or plus ones of award recipients at the dinner
- award recipients will need to arrange and cover the cost of their own travel to the dinner.
How to apply and deadline for application
Applications must be submitted through the online portal.
Applications submitted via email or post will not be considered.
Deadline for applications for the 2026 awards is midnight Sunday 21 September 2025.
Writing you application
Entries will be reviewed and scored by lay people. Please do not assume medical and healthcare knowledge. You should use plain English, short paragraphs, avoid complex medical terminology and if you use acronyms make sure that you explain what they stand for.
Please complete and submit your application below.