Council commends nursing colleagues for winning national awards
Shropshire nurses were commended at a meeting of Shropshire Council today for receiving national awards in recognition of their work.
The Nursing Standard Nurse Awards, supported by the Department of Health, saw two Shropshire-based teams come away with well-deserved accolades.
Ward Sister Susan Lovett from the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital won the Patient’s Choice Award for her work to arrange a dying patient to go home and enjoy lunch with his family for the final time.
The School Nurse Awards category was won by the council’s commissioned school nurse team from Shropshire’s Community Health Trust, for greatly improving and introducing asthma management guidelines to all schools in the county.
Following an audit of asthma care in the county, the Shropshire school nursing team developed guidance for teachers to manage asthma attacks in their classroom.
A lead school nurse for asthma was appointed to train school nurses and staff, manage queries and undertake audits. A subsequent audit showed schools had asthma policies, written guidelines for managing acute attacks, access to emergency medication, a school asthma lead, and more knowledgeable staff.
Receiving the commendations were Shropshire’s school nursing team — Andrew Coleman, deputy director of nursing, Jo France, School nurse manager and professional lead, and school nurses Lita Collins-Singh, Sarah Harris, Kirsten Ellmore and Karen Kerr. Receiving the commendation on behalf of Ward Sister Susan Lovett was Paula Dabbs, Head of Organisational Development and Transformation from Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital Trust.
Keith Barrow, Leader of Shropshire Council, said:
“Shropshire Council strives towards being the best it can be in all areas, and it’s always greatly appreciated when that hard work gets rewarded.
“Nursing can be a challenging job at times, and so we’re very proud of the Shropshire teams that have been awarded these national awards in recognition of their commitment and dedication.”
Karen Calder, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for health, added:
“The Nursing Standard Nurse Awards have been running successfully for 25 years now, and it’s great to see those representing the county at such a prestigious event. This is the first time that a specific School Nursing Award has been made by the Department of Health so it is particularly commendable that Shropshire’s school nursing team are the first recipients.
“We hope to see more local faces at the awards in the coming years as testament to all the hard work our nurses do in the county.”
The awards, held at The Savoy in London, were presented by Jane Cummings the Department of Health’s Chief Nurse. The National Nursing Standards Awards are hosted by Nursing Standard, a professional journal owned by the Royal College of Nursing. For further information about the event visit http://www.nurseawards.co.uk/620.
