Staff from the Oliver Zangwill Centre (OZC) have received awards for the difference they’ve made to those affected by encephalitis.

Professor Barbara Wilson, OBE, and founder of the OZC, will receive the Outstanding Achievement Award for Excellence in Encephalitis Healthcare within the Lifetime Achievement category.  She said: “I was thrilled, honoured and delighted to learn of this award. It means a great deal to me as I have been involved in the Encephalitis Society since its inception in 1994.”

Barbara also nominated Sue Bretnall, James Pamment and Jessica Fish for a piece of work they completed with Eddie, a 69-year old man who had rehabilitation after encephalitis left him with severe memory loss. This nomination resulted in the team being awarded the Outstanding Achievement Award for Excellence in Encephalitis Healthcare within the Rehabilitation Team.

Through the rehabilitation programme Eddie was able to learn to use strategies to compensate for his memory difficulties, but only with support, so the team recommended ongoing support was necessary. However, no funds were available, so, the team recruited and trained a group of volunteer psychology students to support Eddie’s continued strategy use, one or two mornings per week each, so that all weekdays were covered.

This arrangement has been in place for more than a year and feedback from is very positive. The trio said: “Eddie is participating in more community activities and the volunteers enjoy their work and are learning a lot from it. Eddie’s wife can relax knowing that he is in good hands, and not only is she able to retain her role as a wife rather than becoming a carer but she can also pursue voluntary work herself.

“The team is delighted to receive the award and massive thanks go to the student volunteers for their hard work and commitment, without which the intervention could not have been a success. We’d also like to commend Eddie and his family for their resilience in overcoming the challenges they’ve experienced and making the most of life after encephalitis.”

The team also expressed their appreciation for working within the OZC and the Trust, for the support of both intensive neuropsychological rehabilitation and innovative solutions to challenges in clinical practice.

The Outstanding Achievement Awards for Excellence in Encephalitis Healthcare were presented on 5 December by the Encephalitis Society at an event in London.