Abergele resident and biomedical scientist John Hepworth has been awarded  with a prestigious 50 year medal  by the Institute of Biomedical Science (IBMS).

Erin Johnson, Communications Officer with the Institute of Biomedical Science shared this story with us:

“John joined the Institute in 1967, and became a Fellow in 1974. His career began by working in the Public Health Laboratory in Wakefield. He continued in the microbiology department at the Algernon Firth Institute at Leeds University, specialising in bacteriology. He gained a Senior MLSO (Medical Laboratory Scientific Officer) post in microbiology at Wythenshaw Hospital in Manchester and was promoted to Chief MLSO in 1984. He earned a reputation as an expert in microbiology, with his work being published in journals such as The Lancet and Thorax.

“For the Institute, John joined the Manchester branch of the IBMS in 1981 and served as branch secretary from 1985-1993. He was the branch representative to the North Region in 1997-1998, and was a founding member of the IBMS North West region in 1994. He also acted as a regional representative to IBMS Council until his retirement in 2002. He was awarded Life membership in 2013.

“Outside the Institute, John is a skilled photographer and regularly wins prizes for his photos of the wild animals at Chester Zoo. He is also known by colleagues for his choice of flamboyant ties.

“In the UK alone, pathologists are involved in over 70% of diagnoses in the NHS. Biomedical scientists like John diagnose disease and evaluate the effectiveness of treatments through the analysis of fluids and tissue samples, handling over 150 million samples every year.

IBMS President Ian Sturdgess said, “Over the course of nearly 50 years of membership, John has been a wonderful supporter of the Institute and the profession. John’s hard work and professionalism have shown him to be an invaluable asset to the IBMS, and it gives me great pleasure to present John with the IBMS 50 Year medal.”