President’s Blog – Dr Cara Saxon – April 2026
17 April 2026
(Last updated: 17 Apr 2026 11:30)
As we move into April, I would like to share a number of important updates from across both BASHH and the wider sexual health landscape. This month brings a strong focus on national surveillance and response, opportunities to connect and learn at our upcoming joint conference with BHIVA, and your role as members in shaping BASHH’s future direction.
UKHSA updates: responding to a complex sexual health landscape
BASHH has recently welcomed the publication of the UKHSA Syphilis Response Plan, which sets out a clear and coordinated approach to tackling rising rates of syphilis across England. The plan recognises the need for strengthened surveillance, improved partner notification, targeted prevention, and close collaboration with sexual health services and community partners. BASHH will continue to seek to work closely with UKHSA and system partners to support delivery of this response and to ensure clinical expertise remains central to its implementation.
Alongside this, newly published STI surveillance data from UKHSA highlights an increasingly complex picture of sexual health in England. While there are early signs of progress in some areas, rising cases of antibiotic resistant Shigella and gonorrhoea are a particular concern highlighting persistent inequalities and growing pressures on our services. These data reinforce what many of you see daily in practice, and further strengthen the case for continued advocacy on behalf of our patients and services, and urgent need for sustained investment.
BASHH President’s Dinner
On a lighter note, I was delighted to welcome colleagues to the BASHH President’s Dinner last month, which was a wonderful opportunity to come together as a professional community and celebrate the dedication and expertise we are blessed with across our community. It was without doubt a genuinely uplifting, inspiring evening, marked by thoughtful conversation, connection and shared purpose.
I was particularly pleased that we were joined by newly appointed Minister Sharon Hodgson MP, Parliamentary Under‑Secretary of State for Public Health and Prevention, whose presence and engagement made the evening especially meaningful. We were grateful for her words of welcome during the pre‑dinner reception, recognising the vital contribution of the sexual health and HIV workforce and the importance of continued partnership in delivering the ambitions of the HIV Action Plan. Her conversations with members throughout the evening underscored the value of close collaboration between government and our sector as we work towards ending new HIV transmissions by 2030.
Joint BASHH & BHIVA Conference
Looking ahead, the Joint BASHH & BHIVA Conference in Liverpool is now fast approaching, and I am very excited to reunite with colleagues from across the UK and beyond. At a time of increasing clinical complexity, service pressure and widening inequalities, this year’s conference offers an invaluable opportunity to step back, share learning and reconnect with the values, partnerships and research that underpin our work and drives us forward.
A reminder that pre‑conference registration will close at midday on Monday 20th April, and there will be NO on‑site registration available so make sure you register now!
The programme reflects the breadth of our specialty and the real‑world challenges facing sexual health and HIV services. A particular highlight I’m personally looking forward to will be the BASHH Guidelines session, focusing this year on how evidence, equity and impact shape our approach to testing for asymptomatic chlamydia and gonorrhoea in GBMSM. Bringing together expertise from UKHSA, frontline clinical services and community organisations, this session provides an important space to explore how guidelines can remain robust, inclusive and responsive to both epidemiology and lived experience.
I would also draw attention to the session exploring a brief history of sexual health from a queer perspective, taking place on the morning of Tuesday 28th April. We are pleased to welcome Henry de Vries, Professor of Skin Infections at the University of Amsterdam, to deliver what will without doubt be a truly fascinating session. Alongside many other excellent talks, this is certainly one to make a note of.
I very much hope to see as many of you in Liverpool as possible.
BASHH Member Survey
Finally, I would like to extend my sincere thanks to everyone who has taken the time to complete the BASHH Member Survey. Your responses will directly inform our priorities for the coming years, and we greatly appreciate your input in helping to ensure BASHH remains responsive, representative and impactful.
Thank you again for your continued commitment to BASHH and for the vital work you do every day to support sexual health and HIV care.
With warmest wishes,
Cara
Dr Cara Saxon
BASHH President