Team of the Month winners
At UHNM, we love to acknowledge and thank our teams when they go above and beyond their call of duty. A big part of how we do this is are our Employee and Team of the Month awards, which recognise many of the qualities that make our UHNM family what it is. Unfortunately, we had to put the awards on hold for a little while this year, due to the Coronavirus outbreak. Now they're back and we are thrilled to announce the winners for January - June 2020. Each one of these teams have demonstrated extraordinary dedication, compassion and commitment.
January
Hub Theatres, Royal Stoke
Earlier this year, the hub theatres team played a part in ensuring a very important organ donation was made. Following a tragic event, the team pulled together and were able to organise for a teenager to be brought into Theatres to become an organ donor. Without the help and support of the theatre team, the family of the patient would not have had the comfort of knowing that their son had helped save the lives of six people.
The Specialist Organ Donation Team nominated Hub Theatres for Team of the Month.
They said: “The team move lists around to accommodate us when necessary, and even provide us with dedicated anaesthetists and runners, which can sometimes be a challenge to organise. It means so much to us. Often at the end of 24 hours on call, we are tired, hungry and have had the emotional trauma of being with a family whilst coordinating a donation, so to have the support of the theatre staff is just amazing.”
February
NIV (Non-Invasive Ventilation) Unit, Royal Stoke
The team on the NIV unit provide one of the largest domiciliary services in the country and the unit has also recently become an MND (Motor Neurone Disease) Centre of Excellence. Staff on the unit care for MND patients from all over the country, providing NIV assessment and PEG (Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy) insertions.
Spencer Lovatt, who nominated staff for Team of the Month, said: “The team provide in-reach service which involves treating patients in respiratory failure on other ward areas including A+E and Resus. This has all been done to a high standard of care, putting patients’ individual needs first with complete holistic care.”
March
Ward 201, Royal Stoke
Members of the oncology team demonstrated outstandingly compassionate care to a young patient who passed away on ward 201. They also provided emotional support to her family, including the making of memory boxes.
Nicki Morgan, who nominated the team, said: “All of the palliative care team were impressed by the team’s willingness to go above and beyond. They ensured this lady’s spiritual needs were met, including facilitating a visit to the Mosque, and they also did a lot to support her husband and young children’s immediate needs. The team enabled this lady’s body to be transported abroad for burial in accordance with her wish by ensuring rapid completion of paperwork and guiding her husband through the process.”
April
PICU
During the Coronavirus outbreak, the PICU team swiftly and enthusiastically began to provide intensive care for adult COVID-19 patients. Their contribution required complex adaption as they are not usually accustomed to treating adult patients and contributed directly to the trust’s preparedness and responsiveness to the crisis.
Dr Melissa Hubbard, Consultant Paediatrician, said: “To watch the team work so selflessly, putting the patient first and exhibiting high motivation despite their worries, has impressed many across the trust. The entire team showed such resilience and team spirit and were really an encouragement and inspiration. They lifted us all up. Every single day they brought that special brand of family focus to a desperate situation - knitting crochet hearts and fostering family-centred care. This was a stellar contribution, achieved without complaint but with much self-sacrifice, dignity and capability.”
May
IM&T Software Development
The software development team created and developed a COVID-19 testing webpage with a fantastic turnaround time of less than four weeks. The application allows the patient tested to receive an email/ text message with their test results.
Heidi Poole, Deputy Director of IM&T, said: “The team’s initiative and creativity has been outstanding. The testing web page has supported pathology, improved data quality and helped the testing team, allowing quick and efficient data entry and the HR team and Team Prevent have also received dramatically less result queries.”
June
County Theatres
Staff on the County theatres team were asked to work at Royal Stoke during the Coronavirus pandemic. The care, compassion and professionalism the team have shown has been commendable, with staff required to work in unfamiliar surroundings and sometimes unfamiliar job roles.
Gaynor Hancock, Theatre Sister, said: “Most of the team have had to travel 30+ miles further per shift and working shift patterns were changed to cover a wide range of different times which staff were not used to working. The team pulled together and have shown that even in the face of adversity they are all incredibly amazing people.”