Merit award delay isn’t all bad news

By Edie Bourne

Consultants who have already applied for national clinical excellence awards (CEAs) for the 2020-21 round have been disappointed to discover the scheme has been suspended.

The Government’s advisory committee on awards took the decision to defer applications because of the impact of Covid-19 on all NHS staff. 

Patrick Convey, technical director at specialist financial planners Cavendish Medical, said: ‘It is not yet known when applications will reopen, but the committee has agreed that doctors whose awards expire in April 2021 will not be disadvantaged by being unable to submit a renewal application. All current applications have also been saved.’

He believed many specialists would not have found time to complete applications or have them supported by employers, adding that it was totally appropriate for doctors to be focused on their clinical priorities during the pandemic.