Two St Andrew’s wards share prestigious ‘Ward of the Year’ award

Two wards within St Andrew’s Healthcare have jointly scooped the Ward of the Year prize at an awards ceremony for inspiring hope in one young man.

Both teams were praised at the IMPACT Provider Collaborative 3rd Birthday Conference, which featured the awards at the Trent Conference Centre in Nottingham on Monday, October 16.

Staff from Prichard, a ward within the charity's Medium Secure Service and Spencer South, which is a Low Secure ward, were recognised for their commitment to their roles and specifically the work they have done with one male patient since he was admitted in March 2021.

Quality Matron Simon Jackson, who was Ward Manager of Prichard at the time, remembers planning his admission.

He said: “Before he came to us, he was very anxious. Very often when patients transition to a new service they can destabilise, so in order to ease his anxiety we arranged bespoke calls between us and his care co-ordinator team before he was admitted."

The patient had a good understanding of his complex mental health diagnoses and engaged fully with staff, therapy and extracurricular activities.

Simon added: “You could see from the start of his care that he wanted to move forward through the system and our staff were on hand to encourage him. He managed his frustrations well when he had them and started regularly going to the gym."

While the patient was on the ward, staff got to know him and found out more about likes and dislikes are. The patient felt safe and well supported and he started showing significant signs of improvement. This meant that by January 2023 he was well enough to step down to Low Secure ward Spencer South.

Spencer South Ward Manager Jodie Johnson said: “It’s been an absolute pleasure having him on the ward, but to be honest we don’t see much of him now as he’s so busy. We’re really thrilled at how quickly he’s progressed, I don’t think we’ve ever had anyone move on so quickly from us before. As a team we’re quite proud at how well he’s responded to our therapeutic approaches.”

Now settled on the ward, the patient attends mindfulness sessions and engages in all offered Occupational Therapy sessions. He self-caters for himself, often cooking breakfast for his peers.

In addition, he shops for other patients when out in the community and has become a regular speaker at inductions and internal awards where he talks openly about his recovery journey.

His confidence has grown and he was encouraged to volunteer on site at one of the Charity’s cafes. There he has learnt some valuable life skills, such as dealing with customers, handling money and working with food.

The patient said: “I’m really proud of how far I’ve come. I’d really like to thank St Andrew’s for all they’ve done for me. All the staff here have believed in me and on the days when I might have been struggling a bit, they reminded me why it was important to keep on going.”

Sports and Exercise Therapist Tom Bodkin, from St Andrew's Healthcare, was also named the winner of the Collaborative Working Award, alongside Amie Melvin from Berrywood Hospital, Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust.

They received their accolade for establishing a positive collaborative relationship that has consistently benefited the emotional and physical wellbeing of patients at both hospitals.