The award recognises a lifetime of exceptional contribution to surgery, education, and patient care.
Daljit, who previously received the BAOMS Surgery Prize in 2010, has since taken on a series of influential national leadership roles, including serving as President of BAOMS and delivering the association’s largest scientific meeting, placing ‘the patient’s voice’ at the heart of the programme.
She is also a founding member of the Working Party on Sexual Misconduct in Surgery, playing a pioneering role in shaping nationally recognised work to improve professional culture and safety across the surgical profession. Her leadership and impact were further recognised in 2024 when she received the Royal College of Surgeons Colyer Gold Medal.
A consultant for more than 20 years, Daljit leads a busy facial deformity and minimally invasive salivary gland practice at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (OUH) and at NDS, she plays a central role in shaping undergraduate surgical education. Her contributions to education, innovation and research are widely recognised.
Daljit said: 'It is a great honour to receive the Down Surgical Prize from BAOMS. Surgery is a profession built on teamwork, reflection, and lifelong learning, and I have been fortunate to work with outstanding colleagues and trainees throughout my career.
'Ensuring that education, patient experience, and professional values remain central to surgical practice has always been deeply important to me. It is an immense privilege to receive this recognition.'
The recognition also reflects the wider strength of surgical education and leadership at Oxford. In the same year, OUH consultant oral and maxillofacial surgeon Montey Garg received the BAOMS Surgery Prize and Medal for his pioneering work in national digital surgical education, developed during the COVID-19 pandemic and now embedded across the UK.
Professor Andrew Brent, Chief Medical Officer at OUH, said: 'It is highly unusual for two surgeons from the same unit to receive BAOMS’ highest honours in the same year, marking a significant achievement for the Trust and reflecting the strength, leadership, and innovation within its Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery service. We and the team should be rightly proud of Daljit and Montey’s achievements.'