Bill Marshall Award

ESPID offers the Bill Marshall Award, its most prestigious award, every year to a senior member of the society.

The award is named after Dr William Courtney Marshall (1929-1983), a founder member of ESPID who tragically died in his prime and not long after the society was founded. Dr Marshall trained at Sydney University, Australia and held junior appointments in Sydney hospitals before moving to London in 1958. He was briefly attached to Queen Charlotte's Maternity Hospital before his appointment to Great Ormond St. Hospital for Children, where he worked for the rest of his life.

As a consultant and senior lecturer, he built up an international reputation as a unique clinician and teacher, especially in south east Asia. His special interest was infectious diseases in children, including the causes of infection and prevention by immunisation.

The criteria for nomination and selection of candidates combine a track record of high level achievement in clinical practice, teaching or research in paediatric infectious diseases and any combination thereof with personal contribution to the activities of ESPID, often in the form of work as one of the officers of the Society or in one or more of its committees although members who have contributed through their regular attendance and contributions to annual meetings or who have undertaken other kinds of organisational, teaching, training, editorial or research work for or on behalf of the Society are also recognised. The balance between the two broad criteria of merit (PID track record and contributions to ESPID) can vary from one awardee to another.

Members do not apply for the award but are instead nominated by other members. No cv is solicited from nominees. The only specific criterion for eligibility is to be a paid up member of ESPID. Any one member can only receive the award once. In any one year there is only one awardee. Any member nominated by at least one other member in any year is considered equally alongside other nominees on their merits. Selection is not based on the number of nominations made although clearly a nomination reflects the opinion of the member making it and those advising and deciding on the award are made aware of the numbers of nominations made and who made them. All paid-up ordinary members and all honorary members are eligible.

AWARD