Celebrating Lothian’s health heroes

LOCAL healthcare workers have been honoured at a ceremony celebrating the best of the best of NHS Lothian staff. The annual ‘Celebrating Success Awards’ praised the hard-working NHS Lothian employees who give their heart and soul to deliver outstanding care to patients.

The SANDS team (above), which supports and improves the experiences of families when they have to face delivering a baby who has died or is going to die, picked up the only publically-nominated award after being described as ‘going above and beyond to deliver the best care they can at the saddest of times.’ The team was put forward for the ‘Health Hero’ accolade by Nicola Welsh, Chief Executive of SANDS Lothian.
The SANDS Team was one of ten NHS Lothian teams and staff members to collect awards at the special ceremony, which was hosted by Forth One’s Arlene Stuart at the Edinburgh Corn Exchange.
A new category introduced this year is the Lynn Jackson Nurse of the Year Award in memory of colleague and latterly chief nurse at the Edinburgh Cancer Centre, Western General Hospital. This annual award was created to recognise the individual contribution of a nurse to nursing and patient care.
Tim Davison, Chief Executive, NHS Lothian, said: “I am always amazed by our highly gifted, skilled and talented staff who put their heart and soul into the care they provide to their patients and go above and beyond their duties every day to deliver the very best patient care.
“The Celebrating Success Awards are a small, but important way of showing how much we appreciate our staff who work with dedication and commitment to provide the best possible patient care and support. I congratulate all of our finalists who deserve to be recognised for going the extra mile.  As always it is an uplifting and rewarding experience.”
The Award winners were:
Health Hero Award – sponsored by Edinburgh Evening News
Winner: SANDS Team, (Emma Campbell, acting charge midwife Lynn Rose, acting clinical midwifery manager and Gillian Thomson, senior medical photographer), St John’s Hospital was hailed for going above and beyond to deliver the best care they can at the saddest of times.
The only publicly nominated category – the Health Hero award gives members of the public the opportunity to honour a healthcare worker who has delivered exceptional service and gone above and beyond, offering the best patient care.
Improving Patient Access
Winner: South East Scotland Healthcare Services for People in Police Custody and Forensic Medical Services for their dedication and enthusiasm in initiating new treatments and projects.
In this category, the judges were looking for individuals or teams who have made a significant improvement to aspects of the patient journey, with criteria including offering patients a choice at the point of referral, improving patient access to diagnosis, treatment and care services and improved clinical access or outcomes.
Mentor of the Year
Winner: Yvonne Dickson, Deputy Manager, Domestic Services, Western General Hospital, who was praised for her contribution to the success of the Project SEARCH programme.
The Mentor of the Year Award aims to identify a member of staff who not only performs their job to the best of their ability, but shares their knowledge and expertise with colleagues, junior members of staff, students or placements. This award is for someone who really understands the importance of reassuring and supporting staff, takes responsibility for imparting knowledge and sharing advice and who encompasses our core values to act as a positive role model.
Best Example of Innovation, Quality and Productivity – sponsored by the University of Edinburgh
Winner: Enhanced Recovery After Caesarean Section Team, for their multi-disciplinary approach to improving the quality of care to patients.
This award recognises staff or teams who have taken steps to improve working practices and service within their department, in order to benefit fellow staff or patients through the implementation of a new system or programme.
Lynn Jackson Nurse of the Year
Winner:  Maureen Pearson, Nursery Nurse, Ward 211, Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh received this award for her exceptional caring and professional attitude to the mums and babies in her care.
This award is given to a nurse who has shown an exceptional level of care and compassion in his/her work  and displays a selfless way of working, putting others’ needs before their own.
The Voluntary Service Award
Winner: Frank Milloy and Colin Penman, ‘Lary Buddy’ volunteers Speech and Language Therapy (Head and Neck Cancer) Department, St John’s Hospital. Praised for giving their time and energy to help other patients.
This award recognises the outstanding individuals and teams who give up their time to help improve the health and wellbeing of patients, service users and their families and carers in Lothian.
Staff Member of the Year sponsored by Edinburgh Napier University
Winner: Jenny Jacob, Staff Nurse, Edinburgh Cancer Centre, Western General Hospital who is widely regarded as a member of staff who really puts her heart and soul into her job.
This award is for staff members who go above-and-beyond. The individual should be committed to person-centred care, have a positive influence on colleagues, patients and individuals, and be a constant and effective contributor to their team.
Team of the Year – sponsored by UNISON – Lothian Health Branch
Winner:  ELSIE, The Hub, Roodlands Hospital, Haddington for making a difference in helping to reduce unnecessary hospital admissions, reduce delayed discharges and helping patients remain in a community setting.
In this category, the judges were looking for a team that has demonstrated an excellent performance throughout the year, where there has been key engagement between managers and clinical staff, evidence of improved outcomes for patients and evidence of patient involvement influencing performance.
Respect for Others
Winner: Leading Across Difference Project, for their dedication in improving career opportunities for Black and Minority Ethnic nurses.
This award was looking for a staff member or team which actively tries to identify with a group of patients or staff who are perhaps hard to reach or difficult to identify and who strive to work with these groups to encourage inclusion and equality, be that in healthcare or the working environment.
Caring Champion of the Year
Winner: Joyce Ryan, Ward Clerkess, Orchard Clinic, Royal Edinburgh Hospital, for her caring attitude and willingness to help patients.
In this category, judges were looking to find a member of staff who shows an exceptional level of care and compassion in his or her work, are committed to creating a welcoming and happy environment and who display a selfless way of working putting other’s needs before their own.
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davepickering

Edinburgh reporter and photographer