The BSH team would like to extend our warmest wishes and gratitude to Dr Josh Wright, who stepped down as BSH President after completing his two year term at the Annual Scientific Meeting in Liverpool on Tuesday 30 April.
Josh has been on the Board of BSH since 2016, and as well as holding the Ordinary Trustee, Vice President and President positions has acted as a Trustee link on the Global Haematology Special Interest Group, Education Committee, Nominations, Governance and Awards Committee, Programme Committee and Education Committee. He has also sat as a BSH Enterprises Director in his role as President. He has been a dedicated volunteer embedded in the work of BSH for over a decade and leaves a legacy of pioneering work for future Presidents to follow.
When Josh was nominated to be Vice- President at the 2020 elections, advocacy and workforce issues were front and centre in his nomination statement. He has more than followed through on this – setting up the workforce project, appointing a world leading research team at London South Bank University to provide BSH with a solid understanding of the current status of the wider MDT, which will allow BSH to support the membership in a productive and positive way through direct action and collaborations with key partners. Josh has tirelessly engaged with the membership on these issues, supported work by our stakeholders and ensured that these issues remain a key part of the future advocacy work of BSH.
With a passion for global haematology, Josh, with other members of the Global Haematology SIG is working with colleagues in Zambia to map out a pathway for monitoring and treating sickle-cell disease among newborn babies. He is also assisting with clinical haematology training in areas such as anaemia, and haemoglobinopathy care and diagnosis. This is work that he hopes to continue beyond his presidency.
Alongside these fantastic projects, Josh has supported volunteers and staff across all BSH activities – growing and diversifying the membership to over 3000 members, expanding our guidelines provision, bringing the ASM back to a fully in person event that continues to grow, solidifying our governance structures, and expanding the staff team to increase support for our over 300 volunteers,
Our volunteers, membership and BSH Staff all send our heartfelt thanks to Josh for a productive, engaging, enthusiastic leadership of the BSH Board of Trustees. We will very much miss you in this role, and hope that he will continue to contribute and build on his work for BSH in other capacities.