BDA member Rhia Kaur Saggu received an Advancing Healthcare Award on Friday 23 May 2025, for a project developing the allied health profession (AHP) and healthcare science workforce.
Rhia is a clinical dietitian, who worked as programme manager for the Healthcare Leaders’ Fellowship at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust.
The Healthcare Leaders’ Fellowship offered a targeted development programme for professionals from AHP, healthcare science, nursing and midwifery backgrounds. It supported 60 fellows with the aim of improving equity in leadership pathways and to increase representation in senior roles across the trust. The fellowship resulted in a 20% promotion rate into NHS management roles and an increase in reported confidence and job satisfaction.
Reflecting on her Advancing Healthcare Award, Rhia said, “This award is incredibly meaningful. It represents not just personal achievement but a collective journey of growth, ambition and equity. It affirms my belief that when we invest in underrepresented talent with intention and care, real transformation follows.
“On a personal level, it has been both challenging and rewarding to take my first step into NHS leadership whilst also navigating motherhood for the first time. It’s been a period of immense growth in every sense.
“This award highlights the critical role dietitians and AHPs play in shaping inclusive, forward-thinking leadership across the NHS. It sends a strong message that we are not only clinicians but also strategic change-makers and system leaders. It shows the power of creating space for diverse voices and how doing so strengthens our entire workforce and improves outcomes for patients and communities.”
The BDA extends its congratulations to Rhia on this brilliant accolade.