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Staff providing mobile 24/7 mental health support, a team fast-tracking cancer care and a vaccination outreach team, are among the winners of this year’s NHS Parliamentary Awards.

A dozen winners received awards yesterday at a ceremony in Westminster – a day after the NHS’s 74th birthday.

The winners include Jackie Thompson, who collected a lifetime achievement award for her service at the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle Upon Tyne, after her team was the first in the UK to manage housekeeping and infection control for COVID-19 patients.

The cancer services team at St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust were also recognised for their work establishing a new community diagnostic centre to improve patient care.

Staff from Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust were honoured for providing 24/7 mental health support across the city to people in crisis.

The awards, arranged by NHS England and MPs, are designed to recognise and celebrate some of the biggest achievements in health and social care.

The winners have been selected from more than 700 nominations and half of MPs representing constituencies in England made a nomination to recognise their local health and care staff.

Judged by a national panel made up of health leaders representing staff and patients, the awards recognise everything from COVID-19 response to innovation and health equalities.

Amanda Pritchard, Chief Executive of the NHS, yesterday said:

“The NHS is nothing without the people who work in and alongside it, and the NHS Parliamentary awards today were a brilliant opportunity to recognise the outstanding contribution they make across the country.

“It was fantastic to hear about the inspiring work, dedication and innovation of the health and care workers nominated across so many sectors.

“NHS staff have treated more than 770,000 patients with COVID in hospital and many more in the community, alongside looking after millions more patients receiving routine and urgent care, while also delivering the lifesaving NHS COVID-19 vaccination programme.

“This is an immense achievement, and as we continue to deliver the biggest and most ambitious catch-up plan in NHS history and address the COVID-19 backlogs, our staff will continue to be at the heart of what we do, each and every day.”

The 12 winners are:

• Excellence in Healthcare: St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust Cancer Services Team
• Excellence in Mental Healthcare: Mental Health Crisis Assessment Service at Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust; and HOPE
• Eating Disorder Provider Collaborative, Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust
• Excellence in Urgent and Emergency Care: The crisis triage car working in Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust, Liverpool, that provides emergency, rapid, 24/7 mental health support to patients at a crisis point within a community setting
• Excellence in Primary and Community Care: East London Foundation Trust – The Homeless and Vulnerable Person Outreach Service in Hackney.
• Health Equalities: SHELLS SOS Bus, North East Essex Clinical Commissioning Group; and Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Team, NHS Devon Clinical Commissioning Group
• Future NHS: Reaching the digitally excluded in their homes through the provision of digital technology, Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
• Nursing and Midwifery: Admiral Nurses – Tim Allen & Hannah Rogers, Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• COVID Response: Margaret Harris, Domestic Services Manager, Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust
• Rising Star: Alice Hendy, CEO and Founder, Ripple Suicide Prevention
• Lifetime Achievement: Miss Jackie Thompson, Hotel Services Manager Royal Victoria Infirmary

The national judging panel for the awards included Professor Sir Stephen Powis, National Medical Director of NHS England, with regional champions selected by panels of senior regional NHS representatives for their dedication to the health service and to people they care for in their communities.

Heather Smith, Managing Director for Retail at LV – General Insurance and sponsor of the NHS Rising Star Award yesterday said:

“I am thrilled that Alice has won this award and her work is truly incredible and inspirational. Losing a family member is devastating and Alice has used her own experience to help reach out to others who may be in a similar situation. This award is all about leading by experience, and Alice’s work with Ripple Suicide Prevention has done just that.

“We were so impressed by the high standard of entries from across the regions and I’d like to congratulate everyone. It’s fantastic to celebrate the remarkable skills and qualities of our NHS staff and LV – General Insurance are proud to be part of it today.”

Assura CEO Jonathan Murphy yesterday said:

“We’re inspired every day by the professionals and teams we support in primary care all over the country and these awards showcase some of the most incredible innovation and commitment to the experiences of patients.

“The record number of nominations this year is a reflection of the exceptional scope and scale of what primary care is working to deliver in communities across the country.”

Fiona Cannon, Lloyds Banking Group’s Sustainable Business Director, yesterday said:

“Congratulations to both the Mental Health Crisis Assessment Service, Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust and HOPE Adult Eating Disorder Provider Collaborative.

“It’s fantastic to have not one, but two winners in the ‘Excellence in Mental Health Care’ category of the NHS Parliamentary Awards.

“This demonstrates the importance and high-quality work being done in this field. These organisations, along with all of those shortlisted, deserve to be recognised for the contribution they make to our well-being.”