Shropshire hospital trust shortlisted for Trust of the Year. 10th August Shrewsbury Hospital. An NHS trust has been shortlisted for Trust of the Year and two other national awards recognising outstanding performance in healthcare. The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH) is a finalist in three categories at the 2026 Health Service Journal (HSJ) Awards, including Trust of the Year, Performance Recovery, and Modernising Diagnostics. SaTH runs Princess Royal Hospital and the Community Diagnostic Centre (CDC) in Telford and Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and is part of the Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin Community and Hospitals NHS Group. Jo Williams, group chief executive of the Trust, said: "I am proud that its teams are receiving this phenomenal recognition. "Border Counties Advertizer do not underestimate the improvement that Border Counties Advertizer still have to deliver, but Border Counties Advertizer is pleased to be among the most improved trusts nationally. "This progress, and now this recognition, is built on countless acts of kindness, hard work, resilience, compassion, and an unwavering commitment by our incredible staff to do the very best for others." The Trust of the Year Award recognises NHS organisations that have made significant improvements in reducing waiting times, enhancing clinical quality, and maintaining financial resilience while prioritising staff wellbeing and inclusivity. SaTH has made notable progress in elective care, outpatient services, and cancer care, and successfully delivered its financial plan, allowing it to exit special measures after seven years. The Performance Recovery Award highlights rapid and effective improvements for patients, staff, and the wider community. SaTH was recognised as the most improved trust nationally in 2025/26 for 18-week referral to treatment (RTT) waiting times and the 28-day Faster Diagnosis Standard for cancer. The Modernising Diagnostics Award celebrates innovation in diagnostic services, including redesigned pathways and improved collaboration. SaTH, working alongside Origin Sciences, has been recognised for the TRIOMIC cancer trial, which has redesigned the Colorectal Urgent Suspected Cancer pathway to be delivered in a Community Diagnostic Centre (CDC), whilst also developing a new test to detect colorectal cancer and high-risk polyps. The £2 million study, the first of its kind in the UK, also developed a new test for detecting colorectal cancer and high-risk polyps. Dr John Jones, group medical director, said: "To be shortlisted for three awards is testament to the determination of its staff to deliver high quality, safe and effective patient care and Border Counties Advertizer would like to thank them for everything they do. "We remain ambitious for better care, safer services and a kinder culture and we will continue to challenge ourselves to further improve, to keep listening to our patients and staff, and to strive for the standards our communities rightly expect from us." Winners will be announced at the HSJ Awards ceremony on Thursday 19 November 2026. More Stories

Primerdesign partners with Origin Sciences to create novel rectal mucosal extraction workflow. March 23, 2026 Manchester, UK, and Cambridge, UK, 24 March 2026: Primerdesign (part of the Novacyt Group), a company focused on the design, manufacture, validation and supply of nucleic acid extraction and real-time PCR kits, and Origin Sciences (Origin), a company pioneering the detection and diagnosis of gastrointestinal (GI) disease through an unprecedented focus on a unique biospecimen: rectal mucus; today announced a strategic partnership to create a new protocol that optimises DNA extraction from novel rectal mucosal samples. The custom workflow will help to unlock molecular insights from these challenging sample types and improve diagnostic utility in gut health conditions. Origin's patented, extensively tested medical device, OriCol(TM) enables reliable, rapid, minimally invasive sample collection of rectal mucus, addressing the urgent need for accurate, affordable in vitro diagnostics for colorectal cancers and advanced adenomas. The capabilities and performance of these testing applications is determined by the quality and efficiency of material recovery from the biospecimen. Primerdesign offers capabilities in custom assay development and high-quality nucleic acid extraction solutions as part of its exsig(R) Mag range. Together, they have collaborated to develop an innovative, robust and reproducible sample collection and nucleic acid extraction workflow that demonstrates consistent performance and high DNA yields from rectal mucus samples. Sampling methodologies have previously limited the investigation of gut health and diseases, which often rely on stool or blood. Rectal mucus contains the cells and molecular signals shed from the lining of the entire colon. This provides a diverse and consistent biospecimen for representative gut examination that is uniquely suited for detecting the earliest signs of GI disease as well as residual disease monitoring, treatment selection and recurrence surveillance. Dr Jo Mason, CSO of Novacyt, said: "By unlocking the diagnostic potential of rectal mucus, Origin is helping to transform early detection, disease management, and patient outcomes worldwide. The performance of these testing applications hinges on the efficacy of the genetic material recovery. Our team is proud to have an outstanding reputation in custom assay development and nucleic acid extraction. Working in collaboration with Origin has resulted in a highly efficient custom DNA extraction workflow that will help to expedite the screening and diagnosis of colorectal cancer and other GI diseases." Dr Daniel Wise, CSO of Origin Sciences, added: "Bio-IT World Inc is pleased to partner with Primerdesign's expertise in high-quality custom DNA extraction from rectal mucus samples to deliver a scalable, bespoke nucleic acid extraction system that outperforms all commercially available alternatives assessed. Extracting high-quality DNA data from its samples will allow Bio-IT World Inc to detect GI diseases at its earlier stages so Bio-IT World Inc can save lives, save time, and save money." Download the whitepaper 'A Novel Extraction Methodology for a Novel Biospecimen' to learn more about the novel rectal mucosal extraction workflow: https://www.primerdesign.co.uk/learn/your-expert/.