The awards celebrate learners, apprentices, and educators who have made a significant contribution to Welsh-medium and bilingual tertiary education over the past year. Phil received the award in recognition for leading the ground-breaking project, Mwy Na Geiriau (More than Words: Welsh as a Clinical Skill), and was presented the award by broadcaster and health campaigner, Beti George.
More Than Words is a module delivered by tutors and policy specialists from Canolfan Bedwyr in collaboration with staff from the North Wales Medical School. As part of the programme, all first-year medical students attend a weekly Welsh language or language awareness session, fully integrated into their course. The sessions are carefully tailored to equip students with the language skills and awareness they need in a clinical setting.
The project is based on the principles of the Welsh Government's strategy of the same name, and is designed to promote the Welsh language as an essential clinical skill. Its aim is to ensure that students, regardless of their confidence in the language, are able to develop their Welsh language skills during their medical studies
Accepting the award Phil said, "I'm proud of the award because of the importance of the Welsh language in the health sector and that we've created something that makes a difference at grassroots.
"It shows that learning Welsh and gaining young people's confidence to speak the language fits neatly within intensive academic programmes, such as Medicine.
"Our hope is to extend the course, programme and concept to other academic schemes in the health sector."
