Committed to Excellence 2016 – The Winners!

Staff at The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust have been recognised for their dedication and commitment to patient care at the Trust’s annual staff awards.

More than 300 staff gathered at The Venue in Dudley, for the awards ceremony hosted by former ITN royal correspondent and BBC news presenter, Nicholas Owen.

Individuals and teams based both in the hospital and out in the community who go the extra mile for their patients were presented with awards by Trust directors and senior members of staff.

Opening the ceremony, Chief Executive Paula Clark gave thanks to the hard work of all those shortlisted.

She said: “This night is your night to celebrate your achievements and all of the hard work you do, whether you work in a clinical environment or provide support services behind the scenes.”

She added that the awards would not have been possible without the incredible generosity of the event sponsors, in particular main event sponsors Interserve and Cougar Monitoring.

The best of the best working in both clinical and non-clinical roles received awards in the categories of Excellence in Service Improvement, Unsung Hero – Non Clinical, Excellence in Patient Care, Unsung Hero – Clinical and Team Excellence.

Nicholas Owen, who also presents on Classic FM, was delighted to host the awards and thanked the NHS personally for the care and treatment he received when he was diagnosed with kidney cancer in 2002.

Praising staff for their contribution to the NHS, Nicholas said all of the staff do a fabulous job and that they should all be very proud of themselves.

The Trust’s specialist dementia unit, the Forget-me-not Unit, was crowned the winner of the Excellence in Service Improvement category. The unit, based on ward C3, won the award for their innovative ideas to provide the best care and support for patients with dementia and acute confusion.

Maintenance Operative Marc Weston was awarded with first place in the Unsung Hero – Non-Clinical category. Described by one colleague as “an asset to the Guest Outpatient Centre’ Marc won his award for consistently going above the call of duty to help patients and staff.

In a break from tradition, the Trust took time out from the main awards to honour Shift Lead Hugh Davies who tragically died in a motorbike accident last year. Staff joined new Chairman Jenni Ord in paying tribute to Hugh, ending with a standing ovation. In memory of Hugh, nominees who narrowly missed the award’s shortlist were recognised and commended.

Rounding off the evening, Jenni Ord said, “It has been my privilege to share the evening with you and to learn about some of the fantastic services and staff commitment here at The Dudley Group.

“I am sure we have all seen and felt the care, respect and responsibility shown by all the nominees. Long may it continue for all our patients and public.”

Thanks go to our gold main event sponsors Cougar Monitoring and Interserve, our silver category sponsors Monkton House Ltd, Healthcare Staff Benefits, Summit Healthcare and our bronze sponsors Abena, Wassenburg Medical, Arc Media Midlands, Whiteleys, Geoff Hill Ltd and Mills & Reeve.