The Director of Research and Development (R&D) for NHS Grampian has been become the first recipient of a prestigious new award.

Professor Seshadri Vasan – a member of the NHS Research Scotland Management Board and Director of the Grampian Commercial Research Delivery Centre (CRDC) – has been awarded the inaugural Taylor Medal by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow.

Professor Vasan was honoured at a Diploma Ceremony on Wednesday with the silver gilt medal, introduced to mark the Royal College’s 425^th anniversary, for his dedication to patient care, innovation, and leadership.

The medal bears the name of Professor Jackie Taylor, the College’s first female President, and recognises individuals with a demonstrable positive impact.

Professor Vasan has helped Grampian become one of the UK's CRDCs for pioneering clinical trials, creating opportunities to test new treatments and address unmet needs. He also co-leads on research inclusion, skills, training, and workforce development for the network of centres.

Throughout his career, Professor Vasan’s research and commitment to knowledge exchange have played an important role in the fight against dangerous pathogens, including Covid-19, Dengue, Ebola, and Zika.

He has three decades of academic, public, and private sector experience across Australia, India, Malaysia, UK and the US, with the last 16 years focused on infectious diseases at the level of Professor/Director.

He said:

“I pray for strength to live up to an award that bears the name of our first female President. It will be a constant reminder of our personal responsibility to improve health equity.”

Professor Jackie Taylor became College President in December 2018. Over her three-year term, she led the College through the Covid-19 pandemic, with a strong focus on the wellbeing of the profession, workforce challenges and inclusivity.

She said:

“I’m delighted that Professor Vasan is the first recipient of this award. Leadership is a privilege, but it comes with many challenges. It is right that we should recognise and value the pivotal role that good leadership plays in improving patient care.”

Compassionate leader

Professor Vasan has a longstanding career in medical leadership and is an Honorary Professor at Edith Cowan University in Australia.

Previously, he led Australia’s pre-clinical response as Covid-19 Science Leader for the national science agency, CSIRO. In 2020, he led his team to the Chair’s Medal, the CSIRO’s highest award.

In 2024, he received the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow’s Triennial Travel Medicine Research Fellowship Award for his work on ‘Disease X’, furthering research into a potential pandemic and global preparedness.

For Public Health England – now known as the UK Health Security Agency – he played a key role as the innovation lead and contributed to the agency’s response to the Ebola and Zika emergencies.

Today, he is also Chair of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow’s Sustainability Steering Group, which is helping both the College and its 15,000 Fellows and Members worldwide play their part in addressing climate change and healthcare sustainability.

Congratulating Professor Vasan, Professor Hany Eteiba, President of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow, said:

“When we celebrated our 425th year, we were reminded of great innovators of the past. Now, we turn to the individuals who are leading medicine into the future.

“It my great pleasure to see Professor Vasan be the first recipient of this award. He is a compassionate leader who is committed to improving the health of people across the world.”

This article is written as part of a promotional agreement between NHS Research Scotland (NRS) and Healthcare News Scotland.

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