A nursing professional has received a prestigious award for her work settling in new international nurses at Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust.

Chikku Benny has won a Royal College of Nursing award to mark her outstanding contribution to the equality, diversity and inclusion agenda and the experience of BAME service users and staff across the health and social care sector.

The awards form part of the RCN North West’s annual event to recognise and celebrate the outstanding contribution of nursing staff from BAME backgrounds who work in health and social care across the region.

This year’s theme is ‘Anti-Racism: A Time for Literacy and Transformation’ and took place virtually last week. 

Chikku cares for newly internationally recruited nurses from a professional, cultural and pastoral perspective. She ensures that the nurses feel safe, welcomed and cared for by spending significant time with these staff both pre arrival to the UK through virtual platforms and since arrival face to face.

Accepting the award, Chikku said: “I’m delighted and thankful to have been presented with this RCN Award. I’m very proud of my work, it has been rewarding to help with staffing during the COVID-19 pandemic. My role is a good opportunity for me to help and support because I came though the same route as our new recruits in 2013 and it has helped me understand my own potential.”

This year’s winners work across a range of settings including in hospitals and out in the community, and in clinical and non clinical areas such as governance, general nursing and mental health. They were recognised for a variety of reasons including their commitment to ensure the BAME agenda is heard nationally, raising awareness of mental health in the BAME community, supporting newly recruited nurses from the BAME workforce through the HR process.

Congratulating the winners, Estephanie Dunn, Regional Director of the Royal College of Nursing in the North-West, said: “Our Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic nursing community play a vital role in caring for people in our region who need it most. Chikku has demonstrated how important it is to care for those who provide care, and her commitment and professionalism has improved the lived experience of BAME staff.

"This award celebrates the unique contribution that our BAME nursing community makes across the North West.”

She added: “However, we must not forget that BAME staff continue to face an uphill battle for equal access to career opportunities and to be treated fairly in the workplace. Racial inequality in the workplace affects patient care at a time where the profession is crying out for nursing staff with more than 5,000 registered nurse vacancies across the region. Whilst there have been some improvements, we still have a very long way to go to achieve greater equality and stamping out corrosive attitudes and behaviours.

“However, hearing how valued our award winners are in their organisations gives me hope that one day trying to fight inequality within the health and social care sector will be a thing of the past.”

Peter Weller, Executive Director of Nursing and Integrated Governance at Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS FT, said: “We are very proud of our international nursing recruits and are committed to making them feel welcomed, supported and cared for. Chikku is integral to the process by offering pastoral support with integration to the Trust.

"Chikku is highly motivated and has introduced a number of initiatives in the last year, such as a buddying up scheme and developing an in-house training programme. I’m delighted for Chikku that her hard work has been recognised by the RCN.”