HSJ Patient Safety Awards success for Cheshire and Merseyside Trusts

NHS organisations across Cheshire and Merseyside have gained national recognition after winning at the HSJ Patient Safety Awards 2024.

Eight trusts across the region were shortlisted for awards with three winners being announced at the event held in Manchester on 16 September.

The awards showcase key initiatives and innovations in patient safety from the past year, while recognising the hard-working teams within the NHS who strive to deliver the best patient care.

Today (17 September) also marks World Patient Safety Day - an annual awareness event led by the World Health Organization, aiming to improve patient safety.

Details of those recognised are below:

• Community Care Initiative of the Year – awarded to Cheshire and Merseyside Cancer Alliance for their work around community ownership of cancer information to increase timely presentation.

Together with their Council for Voluntary Services partners, organisers developed an innovative community delivery model to empower communities to own information to reduce their risk of cancer mortality. This has been achieved by working with grassroot organisations across multiple communities of interest. During the first 18 months of this initiative, over 12,000 interactions have taken place with members of the public.

• Early-Stage Patient Safety Innovation of the Year - awarded to Cheshire and Wirral Partnership NHS Foundation Trust for optimising safety and innovating through the digitisation of Mental Health Act (MHA) administration.

An initial 12-month pilot project to provide a digitised system was launched, followed by the widespread adoption across the trust. Outcomes include significant reductions in staff time undertaking administration, flexibility allowing for remote completion of documentation from any location and improved patient access to “real time” information about how the MHA is being applied to them, their rights and ensuring lawful treatment.

• Seni Lewis Award – awarded to Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust and their Mental Health Triage and Response Team.

The Mental Health Triage and Response team was Mersey Care’s response to changes to contracts around observational support for patients on a section 136, part of the Mental Health Act that gives police emergency powers, and the pending rollout of the National Right Care Right Person.

The team has:

• Supported 205 patients under a section 136
• Consulted with 20,261 professionals through the professionals’ line
• Supported the move of more than 20 patients from AED to MCFT POS
• Provided 205 patients with therapeutic observational support during their 136
• Received 15 positive Family and Carer Feedback responses in comparison to zero in the 6 months before go-live.

Meanwhile, Mersey Care also received High Commendation in the Learning Disabilities Initiative of the Year Category for their development of the HOPE(S) model in collaboration with NHS England.

The HOPE(S) model is a human rights-based approach to working with individuals in segregation developed from research and clinical practice.

For details of all the winners and a full list of finalists, please visit: awards.patientsafetycongress.co.uk.