Morale boost for nurses as Northampton General Hospital named 'positive workplace'

The hospital has become the UK's first to achieve an international mark of excellence for having a positive work environment for nursing and midwifery staff.

England’s Chief Nurse Ruth May, addressing NGH employees on Wednesday, said: "I’m thrilled for each and every one of you.

"I have seen, felt and heard the difference that this makes and it is a just reward for all your efforts. Our challenge is how it roll it out nationally; let’s have nurses whooping right across England.”

The recognition is called the Pathway to Excellence Accreditation and comes from the American Nurses Credentialing Centre (ANCC), which runs the international programme.

Hospitals achieving the mark are deemed to be among the best places for nurses and midwives to work, with high job satisfaction and retention.

Research shows that healthy work environments not only improve staff satisfaction and morale, they also improve patient satisfaction and the quality of patient care.

Sheran Oke, director of nursing, midwifery and patient services at NGH, said: “I am extremely proud of the team at NGH and all the great things they have achieved, and continue to achieve, every day.”

Chief executive Dr Sonia Swart said the achievement is testament to the dedication, professionalism and ambition of all of TeamNGH.

She added: “Nursing is the bedrock of outstanding care and this achievement is testament to our nursing and midwifery teams but also to the wider organisation who support them.

"This accreditation shows that we create the right environment for that to flourish.

"We hope it will bring more people to work here and that people who already work here will want to stay."

Sandra Adcock from Northamptonshire Healthcare Charitable Trust, the hospital’s charity, cuts the celebration cake