Dr Judith Dawson (née Barton)

(Churchill College, Cambridge, Green College, Oxford 1989)

Died February 2024

Judith Dawson was a GP in Bedford and Northamptonshire, and latterly at Blackbird Leys in Oxford, for whom patient care and integrity were the crucial attributes of her practice. She was a highly experienced GP with a long track record in partnership roles, with a strong focus on the patient experience, probity and quality of care. Her facility for languages, including fluent idiomatic French, basic Classical Arabic, were significant advantages in dealing with émigré and migrant communities.

Judith’s career began as a junior house officer in Milton Keynes followed by an oncology rotation at Addenbrookes, which included attachment to the Hôpital St Luc, Université Catholique de Louvain, Brussels as an Interne dealing with HIV and Infectious Diseases. Qualifying as a GP in 1991 she remained in hospital medicine, including an SHO appointment in the Paediatric ITU and Liver Unit at Kings College, London.

Following completion of the Huntingdon Vocational Training Scheme she maintained a deep interest in clinical governance which led to roles in the management of out-of-hours services. This led to Chairmanship of Northampton Urgent Care Board (2011-2014) and the Care Homes Board for Nene Commissioning (2011-2013) as well as membership of the GMC Registration Panel dealing with issues of relevant qualification and misconduct prior to registration. Judith was a Specialist Advisor, Primary Medical Services for CQC from 2014 until 2020.

From 2016 Judith was the National Clinical Lead for Leonard Cheshire Disability. During the Covid Pandemic, working remotely and firmly advocating good governance, she steered the organisation to avoid excess deaths due the virus, despite the high level of dependency amongst the clients.

In 2022 Judith was appointed to the appeal board of the Prescription Medicines Code of Practice Authority, but in late 2022 the breast cancer from which she had first suffered in 2016 had returned. Judith will be remembered for her kindness, her generosity and her selflessness by her patients, friends, and colleagues.