If you feel like you or a colleague has helped make a difference in the NHS IT community over the last 12 months then make sure you get your nominations in for the 2022 Digital Health Awards.

Nominations are now open for the awards – which celebrate the digital achievements of NHS IT leaders. Making a welcome return in 2021 after being put on hold in 2020 due to the pandemic, they are the only health IT awards in which all 7,000 plus members of Digital Health Networks are invited to vote online for the winners.

The award categories are:

  • Digital Health Networks CCIO of the Year
  • Digital Health Networks CNIO of the Year
  • Digital Health Networks CIO of the Year
  • Future Digital Leader of the Year
  • Rising Star in Digital Nursing
  • Digital NHS CEO of the Year

The CCIO, CNIO and CIO categories are voted for by members of the Digital Health Networks and the Future Digital Leader, Rising Star in Digital Nursing and Digital CEO categories will be awarded by our judging panel.

Our 2021 CNIO of the Year winner, Emily Wells from Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital Trust, said: “It was an absolute honour to have been awarded CNIO of the Year at the Digital Health Awards, I am passionate about digital and ensuring our nursing, midwifery and clinical professionals voices are heard.

“Digital nursing and the CNIO role is increasingly being recognised as such a crucial role and to have been nominated and voted for by my peers in the digital health network made it particularly special.

Another winner from 2021 was Paul Charnley, who is the digital lead at the Healthy Wirral and was crowned CIO of the Year.

He said: “I started my career in IT and Information in 1980 and it is a crowning achievement to be given the award after 40 plus years.

“I look forward to seeing who is nominated this year and wish them all the best.”

Our 2022 winners will be announced during a gala dinner on Thursday 14 July, which is the middle night of Digital Health’s Summer Schools.

Now in it’s ninth-year, Digital Health’s Summer Schools 2022 is a two-day residential event dedicated to local NHS IT leaders, focused on CCIOs, CIOs and CNIOs, plus future digital leaders.

The event will explore the evolving challenges of being an effective digital leader in the NHS and the different dimensions of leadership roles. The event will focus on the networks, future leaders, nursing, diversity and equality and emerging leadership in the ICS space.

The Digital Health Awards are open to anyone currently working in a UK-based NHS or private healthcare provider environment. You can put yourself forward for an award or you can nominate a colleague (with their permission).

Nominations are now open and will close on Monday 6 June at 5pm.