Care staff honoured for exceptional work at awards ceremony

The Hospice in Your Care Home Awards returned after having to be shelved last year due to Covid-19, although the coronavirus meant the 2021 edition was held virtually.

Wigan and Leigh Hospice (WLH), which provides education and support to 52 borough nursing and residential homes, supported living, extra care services and learning disability teams, handed out a total of 15 gongs in categories.

Elmridge Court received the Most Innovative Setting award for embracing the fundamental elements of good end-of-life care within an extra care setting and consistently demonstrating compassionate, person-centred care.

The judges found Elmridge Court had gone above and beyond what is expected to give their residents the best experience possible in their final months, weeks and

days.

Julie Hughes, who worked at St George’s Nursing Home as clinical lead, was posthumously given the Special Recognition Award in light of her dedication to end-of-life care and commitment to the hospice training.

She was remembered for her compassion, kindness and ability to support the individuals in her care and the staff she managed.

Care Setting of the Year went to Carrington Court for its ongoing dedication to enhancing the care of its residents and those important to them at the end of life.

Giving out the award John Almond, an inspector with the Care Quality Commission (CQC), said: “This home has shown great collaboration with the hospice, embracing all the training opportunities available to them, and demonstrating the impact of this education by implementing innovative ideas.

“All levels of staff have been consistently enthusiastic and have shown high levels of empathy and standards of care to everyone they look after.”

Debbie Jones, manager of Hospice in your Care Home and a member of the judging panel, said: “This year’s event was very different; it was the first time we have hosted such an occasion virtually, but as a team we felt it was important to acknowledge the tremendous work taking place across our borough, and celebrate the continued commitment to end of life care, despite it being an extremely challenging time for health and social care staff.”

The Hospice In Your Care Home team has been a regular presence in nursing homes since November 2015, and now support many other care settings, working closely with staff to provide training and equip them with the practical skills and knowledge they need to provide sensitive, timely and compassionate end of life care.

The education programme was reviewed in May 2020 to make it more relevant to the particular issues being faced during the pandemic, and training began to be delivered online to ensure staff still had access to learning opportunities at a time when on-site training wasn’t possible due to restrictions.

The full list of award winners is:

Nurse of the Year: Lizzy Hutton, Carrington Court.

Senior HCA of the Year: Deborah Sutton, Ancliffe House.

Nursing Assistant of the Year: Julie Guest, Westwood Lodge.

HCA/Support Worker of the Year: Sylvia Abozeid, The Acorns.

Dignity Champion of the Year: Premila Jingree, The Old Rectory.

Care Setting of the Year: Carrington Court.

Manager of the Year: joint winners Kim Jackson, Elmridge Court and Tina Blake, High Peak Lodge.

Deputy / Clinical Lead of the Year: joint winners Vibin Baby, St George’s and Roche Andre, Shawcross.

Most Innovative Setting: Elmridge Court extra care service.

Special Recognition Award: Julie Hughes, St George’s (winner of Deputy/Support Manager of the Year in 2019).

Non-clinical staff member of the Year: Vanessa Williams, Deanwood Manor.

Peer Award: Katie Shakeshaft, Shawcross.

Family and Residents Award: Andreea Sfrejea, Norfolk House.

If you value what we do and are able to support us, a digital subscription is just £1 for your first month. Try us today by clicking here and viewing our offers.