Trust in the running for nine health awards

Northumbria has the most finalists of any entrant in the 2019 HSJ Patient Safety Awards and is the only NHS trust in the north to be shortlisted for patient safety organisation of the year for its work prioritising patient safety and quality in its hospitals and community services.

The eight other nominations reflect the breadth of work taking place across Northumberland and North Tyneside.

Leading the way with three award nominations is the trust’s project to spearhead an innovative national project to share best practice to reduce infections after joint surgery.

Another national project led by Northumbria to save more lives of patients who have suffered a hip fracture is in the running for two awards.

This work with five other trusts across the country has enabled 119 lives (and counting) to be saved so far and more than 100 extra patients returning to their own homes rather than a nursing or residential home.

There are also two nominations for work to enable women to reflect on their birth experience and to receive specialist psychological support where needed and one for reducing the number of falls in hospital for older people through the use of an observation tool.

Sir James Mackey, chief executive of Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, said: “I’m delighted that our trust-wide focus on quality which means we are always looking for ways we can further improve and deliver even better care for our patients has been rewarded with nine nominations.

“Keeping our patients safe while they are in our care is, and always will be, our number one priority and these nominations are testament to our hard-working staff on the frontline.

“At any one time our teams are going above and beyond to provide the highest standards to our patients and undertaking a number of innovative projects to make the care we provide even safer and of greater quality.”

The awards take place in Manchester on July 2.