MBE honour for leading emergency medicine consultant

A consultant at Guy’s and St Thomas’ has been recognised in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list for her services to emergency medicine during COVID-19.

Dr Katherine Henderson was made an MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire). She has been an emergency medicine consultant for more than 20 years and has worked at St Thomas’ Hospital since 2006.

Dr Henderson became the first female President of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine in 2019.

She was instrumental in the redevelopment of the emergency department at St Thomas’ Hospital, which was officially opened by The Princess Royal in 2018. It remained open as normal, 24 hours a day, whilst being completely rebuilt.

Dr Henderson said: “I am very pleased to receive this honour which I consider to be for all the emergency medicine teams who have worked tirelessly throughout the pandemic.  

“Emergency departments have been there 24/7 for everyone who needed to see a doctor or nurse face to face in whatever medical emergency they found themselves in.  

“The pandemic challenged our clinical skills, but we learnt fast. I am proud of my role as College President and proud of everyone who has been in the front line of care in our emergency departments. This award is a tribute to the incredible work of all in our specialty.”