The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) is delighted to announce the winners of the 2025 Turner-Warwick lecturer awards, which celebrate excellence in clinical research, medical education and quality improvement.
Now in their fifth year, the awards showcase the breadth of innovation and leadership among resident doctors, giving them the opportunity to share their work at conferences across the UK.
Quality improvement
Winner: Dr Jun Yu Chen
Dr Chen’s lecture, Novel preventive cardiology clinic associated with reduced risk of recurrent major adverse cardiovascular events for patients with prior acute coronary syndrome, highlights the impact of a secondary prevention clinic following an acute coronary syndrome. Patients attending the clinic had a significantly reduced risk of recurrent cardiovascular events compared with standard care.
Dr Chen, who is training in internal medicine and cardiology as an academic clinical fellow at the University of Birmingham, is driven by research to improve long-term outcomes in cardiovascular disease and recently received a best oral presentation award at the British Cardiovascular Society conference.
Reflecting on her win, Dr Chen said: ‘I am very grateful to my supervisor, Dr Mark Thomas, for the opportunity to work on this project, and to the RCP for the privilege of taking part in the Turner-Warwick lecturer scheme.’
Medical education
Winner: Dr Stephen Joseph
Dr Joseph’s lecture, Addressing the elephant in the room: diagnosing and treating unprofessional behaviour among doctors, explores how unprofessional behaviour is understood and managed in medicine. He has developed a framework for understanding the systemic, cultural and individual factors that contribute to unprofessional behaviours, with implications for how professionalism is taught and how lapses in professionalism are addressed.
Dr Joseph, who is training in respiratory and general internal medicine, has long been committed to education, completing a master’s in clinical education at King’s College London and serving as an education fellow with NHS England. He is co-chair of the RCP Resident Doctor Committee.
Following his win, he told the RCP: ‘I am honoured to be selected as the Turner-Warwick lecturer for medical education. Medical professionalism is at the heart of what it means to be a doctor, and I am grateful for the opportunity to discuss how we approach this often taboo subject.’
Clinical research
Winner: Dr Sarah Bowers
Dr Bowers’ lecture, Navigating healthcare at the end of life: exploring the experiences of people with multimorbidity, draws on her PhD research investigating how patients with multiple long-term conditions use healthcare in the last year of life. Her findings highlight the crucial role of caregivers in advocating for patients, and proposed solutions to improve experiences of care at the end of life.
Dr Bowers, who is training in palliative medicine and internal medicine, is passionate about ensuring that everyone can access healthcare in a way that brings meaning to them, through person-centred, values-based approaches.
‘It is an absolute honour to be awarded the 2025 Turner-Warwick lecturer award for clinical research,’ she said. ‘This recognition highlights the RCP’s commitment to valuing and celebrating the work of resident doctors, and I am excited to share my research with the wider community next year.’
Celebrating innovation
‘The Turner-Warwick lecturer awards highlight the extraordinary contributions of resident doctors to research, education and quality improvement,’ explained RCP president Professor Mumtaz Patel.
‘This year’s winners have shown real vision and commitment in tackling some of the most pressing challenges facing healthcare – from improving cardiovascular outcomes, to addressing workplace culture, to rethinking care at the end of life. We are proud to celebrate their achievements and to provide a platform for their voices to be heard,’ she added.
The winners will present their lectures at RCP Update in medicine conferences in Liverpool, London and Birmingham in 2026.