An NHS Forth Valley Infectious Diseases Consultant who has helped to develop a new service for patients in Forth Valley has been awarded the prestigious William Cullen Prize by the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (RCPE).

Dr Amy Baggott, who has a special interest in HIV infection, has been in post for less than two years but has already, working with another consultant, Dr Manjul Medhi, set up new models of care. This includes introducing outpatient clinics for infectious diseases referrals so that patients no longer have to travel to Glasgow for specialist review. She has also developed a service which allows patients, who require intravenous antibiotics but are well enough to be discharged from hospital, are able to continue treatment as an outpatient. In its first year this has benefitted more than 100 people.

In addition, Dr Baggott has worked closely with orthopaedic surgeons, maxillofacial surgeons, cardiologists and vascular surgeons, to provide shared care for a range of patients with complex conditions and helped set up infection training for trainees in Ward A31 at Forth Valley Royal Hospital.

On receiving the 2019 William Cullen prize she said: “It really has been a very unexpected honour to be put forward for this prize. I owe a huge amount to NHS Forth Valley for supporting me as a new Consultant and providing me with the team and resources to take on the challenge of developing a new service here. I love being able to do this work and could not do the job without the support of my excellent consultant colleagues, the doctors in training, nurses and Allied Health Professionals who comprise our team. It is great to work for an organisation that is committed to improving the patient experience and developing a new specialty service in this way.”

Dr Baggott qualified at Edinburgh Medical School in 2008 and completed her foundation training in South East Scotland. Whilst doing this, she obtained the Diploma in Tropical Medicine and Hygiene through part time study at the University of Glasgow, which deepened her interest in infectious diseases. She carried out core medical training in Lanarkshire and then undertook specialist training in infectious diseases in Leeds and Bradford.

She explained: “I was drawn to this specialty by the variety of patients we see, the breadth of unusual and interesting conditions that we treat, the constant possibility of new and emerging infections and the challenge to develop strategies to deal with increasing antimicrobial resistance. I am particularly interested in HIV infection and obtained a Diploma in HIV Medicine whilst training in Leeds.”

Commenting on her success, NHS Forth Valley Medical Director Andrew Murray, said: “Since arriving in NHS Forth Valley, Dr Baggott has been instrumental and tireless in developing new out-patient models of care that are person-centred, high quality and a revolution in terms of treatment for our patients.

“She has also dedicated time and effort into redesigning Ward A31, creating valued learning opportunities for trainees and supporting other specialties with advice on infectious diseases. She has accomplished this in a short period of time in the organisation and has already come to be regarded as a highly respected consultant colleague, very deserving of this award because of her dedication to teaching, supportive nature and the quality of her practice.”