Despite one of the toughest years in the health and social care sector, pioneering work to support patients and children has resulted in Tameside and Glossop IC NHS FT being shortlisted for four national awards. 

Solutions to problems during the pandemic, including a drive- through clinic for schoolchildren to get their routine jabs during lockdown and a Covid-friendly daily swabbing service for endoscopy patients, have been recognised by judges.

Those judges include the head of the influential Patients’ Association and the lead for patient safety policy at NHS England. 

Teams from Urgent Care, Outpatients and Booking, Surgical Care and Children and Community services have all been recognised for the innovative solutions they have come up with during the Covid-19 pandemic to keep services open, safe and accessible. 

The first project to be singled out for praise is a collaboration between the Integrated Urgent Care Team, Tameside Council and the North West Ambulance Service, for a new model of care that allows people seen by a paramedic following an emergency call to be treated in their own home. 

This avoids an unnecessary ambulance transfer and Emergency Department attendance. 

An innovative daily swabbing service for endoscopy patients also made the shortlist for the Outpatients and Booking Team who, following the first three months of the pandemic, recognised they needed to develop a process that would reduce delays and allow services to continue whilst maintaining strict monitoring standards. 

The result was a clinic that allowed patients to shield and be tested five days prior to their surgery, which allowed them to have their procedure during lockdown restrictions in a Covid-safe environment.  

A drive-through immunisation clinic for children to get their jabs during the pandemic was the response of the Tameside School Immunisation Team, supported by the School Nursing Team. 

PRAISED: Urgent Care Team members.

Working together - and taking the Covid vaccination programme as their inspiration - they were able to provide an extremely high level of immunisations to school-age children while schools were closed.

This clever way of working meant the teams were able to catch up on missed immunisations from the first lockdown and immunise children before they returned to school when their focus would be education. 

Finally, the fourth team shortlisted is the Surgical and Orthopaedic Team who responded as the Emergency Department hit high levels of activity around January this year. 

The Trust needed to think differently to support surgical patients who arrived at the hospital. 

The solution was to change the way the team worked, and several innovative models were introduced to ensure patients were cared for in the right place, by the right person. 

Trust Chief Executive Karen James OBE says she’s not surprised the work has been recognised by the distinguished panel of judges brought in by the Health Service Journal to decide on the teams and services to make the shortlist. 

“Our staff and colleagues have been selected based on their ambition, visionary spirit and the demonstrable positive impact that their work has had on patient and staff experiences within the health and social care sector,” she said.

“Through their enterprise, hundreds of people have benefited and services have remained open during these challenging times. 

“I couldn’t be more proud of their achievements.” 

Winners will be selected ahead of the ceremony, which will take place as part of the Patient Safety Congress and Awards in Manchester, in September 2021.