STAFF who work at Furness General Hospital were among dedicated and caring University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust employees honoured in the first UHMBT Patient Safety Awards.

Winners received recognition and thanks for their hard work at The Villa in Levens near Kendal.

The awards ceremony was held in the same week as the Trust’s ‘Patient Safety Day’.

The first award of the night – the ‘Going Above and Beyond Patient Safety Award’ - was won by Danielle Sadler, a Bereavement Specialist Nurse for UHMBT.

The ‘Quality or Patient Safety Improvement Projects/Initiatives Patient Safety Award’, was won by Dental Nurse Stephanie Gillies.

And ‘Learning from Excellence Patient Safety Award’ was won by the Theatre 4 Team (Ortho Revision Hip and Knee Surgery Team) at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary (RLI).

The final award was the ‘Patient Partnership Patient Safety Award’ which was won by the Integrated Community Stroke Team (ICST) at FGH.

The FGH team were recognised for working with the Stroke Association and St Mary's Hospice to set up a monthly 'life after stroke' group as part of Cafe Neuro at the Living Well Centre in Barrow.

It provides an opportunity for patients with stroke to have peer support, education and activities on a monthly basis in an accessible space in the community.

Glenys Marriott, chair of Headway South Cumbria, the brain injury support group, said: “We are delighted that the Integrated Community Stroke Team has was won the Patient Partnership Award as we work so closely with the team and other partners. They are lovely people and a really great team. They’re very supportive to individuals and their carers. The service started during the COVID-19 pandemic and it’s only been running for around a year, but together we have already made a big difference to people recovering from various forms of brain injury.”

Jennifer Gardner, associate director for the North West at the Stroke Association, said: “A huge congratulations to the ICST at FGH for this award and recognition. This has been a truly collaborative piece of work. It shows what a difference we can make to stroke survivors and their carers when health, social care and third sector providers work collaboratively. Groups play a huge part in stroke recovery, offering a safe and supportive space to try things again, learn more about stroke and self-care and to build your confidence as you rebuild your life after stroke. Once again, congratulations from everyone at the Stroke Association to the teams involved in this award.”