Edgware anaesthetist and Hatzola doctor wins prestigious award

An anaesthetist from Edgware who helps Jewish emergency ambulance charity Hatzola has been awarded a coveted British Citizen Award for Volunteering.

Dr Asher Lewinsohn, a Senior Registrar specialising in Anaesthetics and Intensive Care within the NHS, was one of 29 individuals recognised last week at a prestigious ceremony at the Palace of Westminster.

Lewinsohn helped establish the Edgware branch of Hatzola, where he now acts as lead trainer and senior medical officer. The charity provides a 24/7 emergency ambulance response service for the community and has worked with London Ambulance Service and first responders.

He is also a critical care response doctor for East of England Ambulance Service as part of the BASICS Herts Volunteer Group, where he helps on some of the most serious 999 calls such as roadside emergency surgical procedures.

The British Citizen Awards (BCAs) are awarded twice annually, after being launched in January 2015 to recognise exceptional individuals who work tirelessly and selflessly to make a positive impact on society. Winners receive a Medal of Honour, inscribed with the words ‘For the Good of the Country’.

Describing it as “a fantastic surprise and an incredible honour,” he said: “I don’t think any of us do voluntary work for recognition, but to receive something like this and to know that our work is valued and appreciated is truly a heart-warming and humbling experience.”

He added: “There have been many missed bed times, dinners, appointments and family gatherings that I have either failed to turn up to or have dashed out in the middle of to attend a call, so thanks to my incredible family not only being supportive of that, but picking up the pieces at a moment’s notice.”