Reflections on Healthcare Science Week 2026
Celebrating the Scientists Behind the Health Service
Healthcare Science Week 2026 was a week-long celebration of the people, skills and innovation that sit at the heart of modern healthcare in NHS Scotland. Taking place from Monday 9th - Sunday 15th March 2026, the week brought together national and local events that showcased the vital contribution healthcare scientists make every day to diagnosis, treatment, patient safety and service improvement.
With a strong focus on visibility, inspiration and engagement, Healthcare Science Week provided opportunities to celebrate the profession, recognise excellence, and inspire the next generation of healthcare scientists.
Starting the Week with a National Spotlight
The week began on Monday 9th March with a national Spotlight on Healthcare Science webinar, hosted by the Healthcare Science team at Public Services Delivery Scotland (formerly NHS Education for Scotland). The event attracted a significant audience, shining a light on innovative work across the full breadth of healthcare science specialisms.
Colleagues from across Scotland came together to celebrate the diverse roles within healthcare science's five professional groups, and to highlight how scientists support patient care, drive innovation and help transform services across NHS Scotland. The webinar set a positive and inspiring tone for the week ahead.
Inspiring Young People Through Hands‑On Experiences
A key theme of Healthcare Science Week 2026 was inspiring future talent through direct engagement with children and young people.
On Wednesday 11th March, healthcare scientists from NHS Tayside worked in partnership with Dundee Science Centre to deliver hands‑on activities for primary and secondary school pupils across Tayside and Angus. Pupils explored healthcare science through practical games and interactive experiences linked to disciplines such as Genetics, Medical Physics and Bowel Screening. This marked the third year of collaboration between NHS Tayside and Dundee Science Centre, demonstrating the lasting impact of partnership working.
On the same day NHS Lothian hosted a Healthcare Science Insight Day for 16-18‑year‑olds, offering learners the chance to gain hands‑on experience and career insights across Laboratory Sciences, Physiology, Medical Physics, Clinical Engineering, Bioinformatics and Data Science. By meeting professionals and exploring real‑world applications of science, young people were able to see first‑hand how their interests and school subjects could lead to healthcare science careers.
Reaching Schools Across Scotland: DYW Live Sessions
Engagement with schools was further strengthened through DYW Live sessions, delivered on Thursday 12th March reaching out to pupils across Scotland.
Two live, interactive sessions were delivered virtually, featuring healthcare scientists working in:
- Biomedical Science
- Neurophysiology Science
- Respiratory Science
These sessions gave pupils the opportunity to hear directly from professionals, learn about the science behind diagnosis and patient care, and explore the wide range of healthcare science careers available within NHS Scotland. By connecting schools with real scientists through DYW Live, the sessions helped make healthcare science roles visible, relatable and inspiring for young people at an early stage of their career thinking.
The sessions were recorded and are now available at Healthcare and British Science Week 2026 Videos | e-Sgoil
Recognising Excellence Across Scotland
Healthcare Science Week 2026 also provided the opportunity to celebrate excellence and leadership within the profession.
On Thursday 12th March, the Chief Scientific Officer’s Healthcare Science Awards 2026 were held virtually, celebrating outstanding contributions from healthcare scientists, researchers and innovators across Scotland. The awards highlighted the significant impact healthcare scientists have on patient care, service improvement and the future of healthcare, reinforcing the importance of recognising and celebrating the scientific workforce.
The winners for 2026 are detailed in the CSO wrap up newsletter.
Raising Awareness with the Public: NHS Scotland Careers Campaign
Alongside in‑person and virtual events, Healthcare Science Week 2026 was supported by a coordinated NHS Scotland Careers awareness campaign, led by the Public Services Delivery Scotland marketing team.
Throughout the week, social media content was shared across NHS Scotland Careers channels to help raise awareness of healthcare science roles with wider public audiences. The campaign highlighted the breadth of healthcare science careers, celebrated the contribution of healthcare scientists across NHS Scotland, and signposted audiences to further careers information and resources.
As part of this activity, colleagues from a wide range of healthcare science specialisms also took part in careers blog stories on the NHS Scotland Careers website. These blogs shared personal insights into working in healthcare science, real‑world examples of roles in practice, and reflections on what motivates people to work behind the scenes to improve the quality of care and health outcomes of patients. By featuring authentic voices from the workforce, the blogs helped bring healthcare science careers to life and provided relatable role models for people exploring future career options.
Here are the career stories from colleagues in NHS Scotland, detailing their careers in Healthcare Science:
My career switch from medical records to medical physics
My journey from work experience to clinical scientist
Healthcare Science Week: Spotlight on audiology
How healthcare science is transforming newborn care
Starting out in respiratory science
Together, the coordinated marketing campaign and careers storytelling significantly extended the reach of Healthcare Science Week beyond individual events. Supported by the Scottish Government Healthcare Science social media campaign, this collective effort helped raise the national profile of healthcare science and reinforced key messages about career pathways within NHS Scotland.
We would like to thank colleagues across the sector for sharing their activities and resharing campaign content, which played a vital role in increasing visibility and awareness of healthcare science during the week.
Reflecting on the Impact of the Week
Healthcare Science Week 2026 demonstrated the strength, diversity and reach of healthcare science across NHS Scotland. From national webinars and school‑focused DYW Live sessions to hands‑on local NHS board engagement and professional recognition, the week highlighted:
- the vital role healthcare scientists play behind-the-scenes in patient care
- the importance of engaging and inspiring young people across Scotland
- the power of collaboration across NHS Boards, national teams and partners
Together, these activities reinforced the message that healthcare scientists are truly the scientists behind the health service.
Looking Ahead
The success of Healthcare Science Week 2026 provides a strong foundation to continue raising awareness of healthcare science careers throughout the year. Building on the momentum of national events, school engagement and celebration of excellence will help inspire future talent and showcase the ongoing impact of healthcare science across NHS Scotland.
If you want to get involved for next year, or looking for ideas/inspirations about career engagement activities, we have our PSD Scotland Healthcare Science website pages Promoting Healthcare Science and Healthcare Science Week which provide resources. We have also created a HCS Career Engagement network and newsletter that you can sign up for, get involved and participate in, or share ideas for raising awareness of Healthcare Science by contacting the team via email to HCS@nes.scot.nhs.uk. Our latest career engagement newsletter is available at the following link: https://sway.cloud.microsoft/oEE3ElGP8zo6o6ZO?ref=Link.