Initiative that helps hard-pressed hospital workers wins Excellence in Orthopaedics Award 2023
A Royal Orthopaedic Hospital (ROH) NHS Foundation Trust scheme that helps staff facing financial pressures won a Workforce Retention Initiative award at a ceremony in Birmingham earlier this month (19 October).
The Birmingham-based trust's initiative won one of seven categories to be featured during the National Orthopaedic Alliance’s (NOA) ‘Excellence in Orthopaedics Awards 2023’ ceremony, which was held after the alliance’s annual conference had ended.
Amanda Gaston, the ROH’s deputy director of finance, said: ‘Overall, [the] wellbeing of our workforce is important to us, and financial strain has an effect on how our workforce feel when they come to work.
‘We have a passion for making a difference, which is reflected in our trust values. So, a multidisciplinary team, with varying experience and expertise, came together with the support of our Royal Orthopaedic Charity to develop a range of initiatives that would be meaningful for colleagues.'
Ms Gaston added: ‘It is incredible to have this hard work recognised by winning this award and to celebrate our achievements.’
Supporting patients
Meanwhile, the Supporting Patients On Their Pathway award went to a Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital for its work in developing a personalised follow-up initiative in the sarcoma pathway, which has three tracks: physiotherapy-led follow-up; nursing-led follow-up; and sugery-led follow-up.
Suzy Hudson, Macmillan personalised cancer care lead at the north London trust, said: ‘The award recognised the whole multidisciplinary team’s collaboration to enhance the patient pathway and provide more holistic support alongside required essential surveillance. Their hard work and determination is another example of the superb work RNOH does in supporting patients and delivering world-class care.’
After the success of this year's NOA Excellence in Orthopaedics Awards, we are already looking forward to next year. Seeing more submissions focused around physiotherapy would be fantastic [Ann Hoey, NOA]
Belfast rebuild
The Workforce Recruitment Campaign award went to Belfast Health and Social Care Trust for its elective orthopaedic rebuild campaign. Marion Mulholland, from the trust, praised colleagues who deliver elective orthopaedic services in Belfast’s Musgrave Park Hospital.
She added: ‘The profound and prolonged downturn in activity and the widespread redeployment of staff had a devastating impact on patients and staff. We hope that receiving this recognition … will have made their efforts feel worthwhile and will encourage future growth in orthopaedics.’
The NOA’s annual event – the second to include an award ceremony – attracted a record number of 130 delegates. The categories included
- equity, diversity, inclusion
- partnerships and integration initiative
- innovation in orthopaedics
- working towards net zero: greener NHS
Thumbs-up from Oliver Adebayo
Conference attendee Oliver Adebayo, a Getting It Right First Time fellow and past president of the British Orthopaedic Trainees’ Association, said: ‘One of the things I like about the NOA conference is that it is a multidisciplinary conference – I get to liaise with nursing and physiotherapy colleagues, and it is one of few opportunities, as a surgeon, that I am able to do that on a national level.’
More physiotherapy bids welcome in 2024
NOA programme director Ann Hoey said: 'The NOA recently joined the Community Rehabilitation Alliance, uniting efforts for universal access to rehabilitation. For secondary orthopaedic providers such as NOA member organisations, good rehabilitation services enable seamless patient recovery, optimise outcomes, and promote collaborative, holistic care.'
Ms Hoey added: 'After the success of this year's NOA Excellence in Orthopaedics Awards, we are already looking forward to next year. Seeing more submissions focused around physiotherapy would be fantastic.'
The National Orthopaedic Alliance is a multidisciplinary membership organisation that brings together orthopaedic providers across the country to put orthopaedics at the top of the agenda.
Author: Ian A McMillan
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