Pharmacist Ade Williams has been awarded an honorary doctorate for his “outstanding achievements”, the University of Portsmouth last month announced.
The 2002 Portsmouth graduate and Bristol pharmacist was among eight “extraordinary individuals” to receive the honour during the university’s 2025 graduation ceremonies that took place from July 22-31, it said.
These included “high-profile figures” such as business leader and original winner of the BBC’s The Apprentice Tim Campbell, leading sports broadcaster Sam Matterface, UN Goodwill Ambassador Sabrina Dhowre Elba and suicide prevention campaigner Alice Hendy, it added.
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The university said that independent prescriber Williams has become “a pioneering force in healthcare innovation”, highlighting his “leadership” during the COVID-19 pandemic that “earned him national recognition and an MBE in 2022”.
“As the multi-award-winning superintendent pharmacist at Bedminster Pharmacy, he has advanced pharmacy prescribing and the Healthy Living Pharmacy concept while serving on national healthcare boards,” it added.
And it pointed to his research and work spanning mental health, cancer diagnosis and health equity that have been recognised by the World Health Organization (WHO) and featured in The Lancet.
“Incredibly humbled”
“I am incredibly humbled to receive this honour from the University of Portsmouth,” Williams said.
“This city, university and the IFCS Community shaped my enduring understanding that serving to preserve and enhance our vulnerable collective humanity is the essence of the NHS,” he added.
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“This also defined for me what excellence looks like - ensuring that no one is left behind and investing your life in doing so,” Williams said.
He paid tribute to the “pharmacy profession and our generous communities who together with our pharmacy teams, make quality NHS care accessible”.
“Highest accolade”
The university stressed that honorary doctorates are the “highest accolade” it can give, with previous recipients including astronaut Tim Peake, adventurer and broadcaster Ben Fogle and sailing legend Sir Ben Ainslie.
“We are immensely proud to honour these exceptional individuals who embody the very best of human achievement and social impact,” vice-chancellor Professor Graham Galbraith said.
He added that it is “particularly meaningful to recognise Portsmouth graduates Craig Jones and Ade Williams”.
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In a speech presenting Williams for the honour, associate dean at the university’s faculty of science and health Dr Marisa Van Der Merwe urged graduates to let him be their “inspiration” and remind them that “leadership is not about titles but about impact”.
“Williams is not only a distinguished alumnus of this university, but a beacon of what it means to live a life of purpose,” she said, adding that he has “redefined the role of the community pharmacist”.
“He has led an award-winning pharmacy team in the UK, not through pursuit of accolades, but through a steadfast commitment to patient-centred care, innovation and community empowerment,” Van Der Merwe said.
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A “national voice for equity and excellence in healthcare”, Williams’ “journey from a young immigrant in Hove to one of the most recognised and respected figures in British pharmacy is a testament to the power of vision, compassion and relentless dedication”, she added.
He is a man “whose life and work exemplify the very essence of leadership, service and innovation in healthcare”, she told ceremony attendees.
In October, pharmacy minister Stephen Kinnock carried out his “first visit” to a community pharmacy at Williams’ pharmacy in Bristol, where he received a flu jab.
