NEW EXTENDED DEADLINE: 7 pm on Monday, June 1, 2015.

Due to popular demand and pleas from parents struggling with half term, entries will now be accepted for the Medical Journalists’ Association Summer Awards for 2015 up to 7pm on June 1.

There are 11 categories, including a new one for Blogger of the year. Individual winners will receive £750 plus a certificate at the Summer Awards ceremony at BMA House, on July 9.

The categories are:

Blogger of the Year — please provide three posts (paid or unpaid), on personal or medical title blog platform, details of impact, engagement (including social media ‘likes’), hits and reader comment. Sponsored by Merck Serono.

Broadcast journalist of the year — judges will be looking for topicality, exclusivity, any follow-up, response, reaction. Sponsored by Galliard Healthcare.

Digital innovation — This could be a website, infographic or any other novel use of digital media. Please provide a detailed citation and up to three links to supportive evidence. This should include goals, plus how, when and with what success the innovation took place. Sponsored by our principal sponsor, Boehringer Ingelheim.

Editor of the year — Judges will be looking for goals, achievement, influence and impact, commercial data, innovation, brand extensions, partnership working with external organisations, conferences, events or campaigns, evidence of leadership and teamwork, increased personal profile (name checks, speaking engagements, social media profile). Sponsored by Roche.

Staff journalist of the year (general audience) — for a body of work so we ask for three pieces of work, no more, to support your entry. Judges will be looking for scoops, exclusivity, impact (online, social media, changes in health policy). Sponsored by Astellas.

Freelance journalist of the year (general audience) — for a body of work so we ask for three pieces of work, no more, to support your entry. Judges will be looking for scoops, exclusivity, impact (online, social media, changes in health policy). Sponsored by our principal sponsor, Boehringer Ingelheim.

Staff journalist of the year (specialist audience) — for a body of work so we ask for three pieces of work, no more, to support your entry. Judges will be looking same criteria as general audience, plus whether stories picked up in general/national media. Sponsored by Lilly.

Freelance journalist of the year (specialist audience) — for a body of work so we ask for three pieces of work, no more, to support your entry. Judges will be looking same criteria as general audience, plus whether stories picked up in general/national media. Sponsored by Novo Nordisk.

Young journalist of the year (those aged 29 or under on May 26, 2015) — for a body of work so we ask for three pieces of work, no more, to support your entry. Sponsored by MSD.

Regional journalist of the year — Open to journalists working for national or regional publications or broadcast outlets in the four UK countries but outside London. for a body of work so we ask for three pieces of work, no more, to support your entry.

Story of the year: the 2015 general election — for a single article or piece of content on the election which has a health or medical angle. Open to all media. Sponsored by Bayer.

Who or what is eligible?

• MJA Summer Awards are open to all.

• Non-members of the MJA are asked either to pay a one-off entry fee of £22 or, if eligible, to apply to join the MJA, paying an upfront annual subscription of £40, making them entitled to enter future MJA awards for free. One entry fee only per entrant is payable even when submitting to several award categories. Details of how to pay fee or subscription are on the entry form.

• All submitted material must have been published or broadcast between May 27, 2014 and May 26, 2015. It must not have been submitted in previous MJA awards, nor can the same material be submitted in two or more categories of the Summer Awards.

• Most MJA Summer Awards are for a body of work so we ask for three pieces of work, no more, to support each entry, apart from Story of the year, which is for a single article or piece of content. For Digital innovation and Editor of the year, it is essential to supply a detailed citation in the contextual text box. Up to three links to external supportive evidence may be included, either within the text or in the three boxes above. (See details below.)

• Editors, including MJA members, may enter the work of another journalist for an award, provided they are not also entering their own work, in any category. Contact details for the work’s author must be provided and, of course, his or her permission must be obtained.

What should you submit?

• If you are submitting online, please provide a PDF or URL link for each article or broadcast item, and one that is not behind a paywall or other access controls. Please do not submit files larger than 8MB.
• Please label each PDF clearly with your name and the category in which it is entered: e.g. robinsmith/staff general; geriatric medicine/editor.
• You may submit hard copy by post in the form of print or DVDs but you must fill in the online entry form. Please send three copies of each article/programme that constitutes the entry, to Philippa Pigache, Fairfield, Cross in Hand, Heathfield, TN21 0SH. Use the text box beneath the file upload boxes on the entry form to say you are sending hard copy.
• Evidence to support entries is useful for the judges. Here again are the guidelines on what to supply.

For Blogger: three posts (paid or unpaid), on personal or medical title blog platform, details of impact, engagement (including social media ‘likes’), hits and reader comment.

For Broadcast journalist: topicality, exclusivity, any follow-up, response, reaction.

For Digital innovation: goals, plus how, when and with what success the innovation took place.

For Editor: goals, achievement, influence and impact, commercial data, innovation, brand extensions, partnership working with external organisations, conferences, events or campaigns, evidence of leadership and teamwork, increased personal profile (name checks, speaking engagements, social media profile).

For general audience journalists: scoop, exclusivity, impact (online, social media, changes in health policy).

For specialist audience journalists: as for general audience entries, also whether stories picked up in general/national media.

IMPORTANT: you must include a separate entry form for each entry.

IMPORTANT: non-members’ entries will not be processed unless either an entry fee has been paid, or an application made and subscription paid to the MJA at the time of submission. Non-member entry fees should preferably be made by direct bank-to-bank transfer. Contact Philippa Pigache for details.

Closing date: 7pm on Tuesday May 26, 2015

With thanks to our sponsors

What happens after you have submitted your entries?

• Judges’ names will be announced on the MJA website.
• Shortlists will be posted on the MJA website by the middle of June, and in the summer issue of MJA News. Winners will be announced at the award ceremony at BMA House, London on July 9, to which all shortlisted entrants will be invited.
• Individual winners will receive a cheque for £750 plus an inscribed certificate. Commended entries will receive certificates.

Enter the MJA Summer Awards: winners receive £750

NEW EXTENDED DEADLINE: 7 pm on Monday, June 1, 2015.

Due to popular demand and pleas from parents struggling with half term, entries will now be accepted for the Medical Journalists’ Association Summer Awards for 2015 up to 7pm on June 1.