Prof. Nick Shaw receives award honouring his career achievements
Professor Nick Shaw, a recently retired Consultant Paediatric Endocrinologist based at our Children’s Hospital (BCH) for almost 30 years, has been honoured with a highly prestigious award.
He was recently presented with the James M Tanner Lifetime Achievement Award by the British Society of Paediatric Endocrinology and Diabetes (BSPED) in recognition of his efforts and achievements in driving forward care for patients and families.
Throughout Prof. Shaw’s career he has passionately led a number of research studies;
helping innovate in the field of bone health and endocrinology, improving treatments and understanding on a variety of topics.
Amongst his many achievements includes the establishment of a metabolic bone disease service at BCH, which grew and grew before being designated a national centre in 2011 for Complex Childhood Osteogenesis Imperfecta.
Through the setup of this service, Prof Shaw pioneered the routine introduction of regular bisphosphonate treatment for young people with the condition in the UK. This has had a life-changing impact for those he cared for with a reduction in pain and increased mobility.
A huge passion for improving outcomes through research was something evident throughout Prof. Shaw’s career. He was a senior author on one of the first publications on the use of Bisphosphonates in children and in 1996 he published one of the earliest reports on Type 2 Diabetes in young people and followed that up in 2000, focusing on what was then an emerging problem.
An outstanding and prolific collaborator, Prof. Shaw has been involved and worked on more than 250 peer reviewed publications.
Together with one of his PhD students, he was responsible for the creation of normative bone density data using DEXA of 3,500 healthy children and the subsequent understanding of fracture risk in a range of chronic diseases in children. Importantly, this also focused on the impact they have on bone density in young people with cerebral palsy, cystic fibrosis, juvenile idiopathic arthritis, galactosaemia, thalassaemia major, chronic liver disease and Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
Working with Dr Nicola Crabtree, Prof. Shaw also developed a new method of interpretation of bone density in children. This was published as an algorithm and is now provided as part of the paediatric bone density software by GE-Lunar.
Another area that Prof. Shaw passionately worked on understanding more was the prevention of vitamin D deficiency. He contributed to national guidance on this problem and supplementation.
He played a key part in the development of a public health initiative within
Birmingham called ‘My little ray of Sunshine’, which through the provision of free vitamin D supplements to families, led to a documented reduction in the incidence of deficiency in children across the city.
This initiative was cited in the Chief Medical Officer’s report as an example of good practice that should be explored for the rest of the UK.
In addition, Prof. Shaw has held the roles of clinical expert and clinical reviewer for multiple NICE consultations, including those for asfotase alfa and Burosumab; both life-changing drugs for hypophosphatasia and hypophosphatemia rickets respectively, as well contributing to European consensus guidelines on the prevention and treatment of nutritional rickets.
He has held numerous positions on national bodies, including the BSPED, who bestowed the prestigious honour to him at its recent UK conference in Glasgow.
He became only the sixth recipient of the award named after James M Tanner, a leading light in the field who developed the Tanner Scale, a growth chart now used by paediatricians across the globe.
Prof. Shaw, who retired in 2022, leaving a lasting legacy at our Children’s Hospital, said: “I was very surprised when I received the news. It’s humbling, especially when you look at the people who have been awarded the James M Tanner Award previously.
“I joked at the ceremony, it felt like I’d now made it to the Champions League. It is a huge honour.”
Professor Jeremy Kirk, Research and Innovation Director at Birmingham Women's and Children's NHS Foundation Trust, said: "I was absolutely delighted that my good friend and colleague Prof. Shaw had been given this prestigious award.
"As one of the first consultants in the department, Nick has been instrumental in building the unit into a world-class department, the largest of its kind in the UK.
“Nick’s career has been dedicated to improving knowledge and treatment of Endocrine disorders in children. He is a tireless and passionate advocate for his patients and making their lives better through medicine.
“Nick is someone who is not only highly respected at our hospital but also much further afield. His work has truly had a global impact and he is truly deserving of this honour.”