This award is an opportunity for patients, families, visitors, and Trust colleagues to say ‘thank you – you made a difference’ to a member of staff or a team for anything (however small!) that helped make their experience of our services better.

We are delighted to announce that we have joint winners for our March ‘Shine a Light’ award:

Rebecca Keates, Receptionist/Admin Support, Children’s Specialist Services, Reception, Oak Tree Centre

Rebecca was nominated by Jo Smith for covering the SPA single point of access phone lines during the pandemic which at the time covered over eight services.

Jo said: “This role was a band higher than the role Rebecca was currently doing and without hesitation Rebecca came in every day for 15 months and covered the SPA, as reception was not open at this time.

"This was a tough time for all within our teams but for the reception staff this was an entirely different role with lots to learn, minimal training, mostly on the job, due to the pandemic. During those 15 months Rebecca has shown that she has resilience, empathy, and has worked above and beyond during this time.

“Rebecca is now back where she is happiest at the front desk of Children's Services Reception and is doing an amazing job. Here's to many more years of her being the face of the children's reception at Oak Tree Centre.”

Well done, Rebecca, lovely nomination!

Our second winner this month is:

Oyebimpe Dirisu, Falls Support Worker, Luton Falls team

Claire McIntyre nominated Oyebimpe after they received an email of thanks from a patient’s relative:

“I am writing to express my sincere thanks to your excellent employee Bimpe Dirisu for her kind, caring and professional approach with my mum whom she assessed following her hospital discharge and further falls.

“Bimpe brought essential equipment to aid mum’s mobility and toileting and efficiently ordered additional items. Bimpe also delivered a second walking frame as promised so that mum has one upstairs and downstairs.

“I was so impressed with the sensitive and gentle way Bimpe dealt with my Mum, who has dementia and didn't really understand what was going on. Bimpe also helpfully gave advice on suitable slippers I could purchase to avoid further falls. Bimpe's efficiency and the amount of ground she covered during her visit was quite amazing, assessing mums needs and giving her some of the aids there and then to immediately address her needs and protect her from further falls.

"I am sure that you already know Bimpe is a valuable asset to the NHS, but I wanted to put this feedback on the record and to express my personal thanks for making a positive difference to the safety and quality of life for my Mum and stepdad. Thank you!”

Lovely feedback Bimpe, well done!

Other nominations this month:

Nancy Packham and Penny Monument, ESR & OLM Coordinator and LSV Training Administrator, Training & Education/Workforce/The Meadows, St Ives

Nancy and Penny were nominated by Niamh Robinson for having worked extremely hard over the last few weeks to increase mandatory training compliance, specifically within the large-scale vaccination programme. Niamh said: “LSV are due to start vaccinating 5–11-year old’s imminently however, when this was announced, the compliance in the child specific subjects were extremely low.

“Nancy and Penny have worked relentlessly, putting in extra hours to support staff in completing training and manually updating ESR, this is in addition to the business-as-usual workload. Within a week, we have seen an increase of 41% in the child-specific training competencies being completed. This is outstanding and thank you so much for your continued support and effort in ensuring a safe workforce with sometimes very little notice!”

Jo Smith, 0-19 Team Manager, Healthy Child Programme 0-19, Cambridgeshire

Jo was nominated by Cynthia Yates for being amazing throughout the Covid pandemic. Cynthia said: “Jo has been extremely supportive of the team and all individuals within it. She is always available if anyone needs to talk to her, she responds to messages as soon as possible and will make time available.

"Jo is a great listener and has buckets of empathy. She can unpick what is causing stress in an individual and helps them to find a solution. Jo offers positive feedback and praise frequently and this motivates us as individuals and as a team, to continue to deliver a high-quality service in times of stress, staff shortages and change.

"I have worked in the health service for over 40 years and have had many different managers, Jo stands out for her professionalism, support, care, communication, and people management skills. Thank you for all your support, Jo, it has made a huge difference to me as a practitioner and therefore for the families in Fenland.”

Callum Limer, Dental Officer, Dental Health Care Suffolk

Amanda Wallis nominated Callum after a patient with ongoing mental health issues had a crisis in the surgery, whilst at his appointment. Amanda said: “Due to the repour and respect that Callum has built up with this patient over the years, the patient agreed to stay on site until we could get him help. Callum was amazing in getting him to stay calm and eventually going with the ambulance service so he would be in the right place for the support they needed. Callum is a true professional and is very much respected by all the patients he sees, and this shines through on occasions like this.”

Ellie Mansfield, Speech and Language Therapy Assistant, Children's Speech and Language Therapy, Cambridgeshire

Ellie was nominated by Sara Campbell for being the rock in their team! Sara said: “Ellie is 100% dedicated to ensuring all her work, both clinical and administrative, is completed to the absolute highest standard. She is incredibly well organised, methodical, and motivated. I know she is always reliable when carrying out any assigned task. Ellie sees everything through to its conclusion. She is thorough and clear with all case work. She knows if she needs support and who to approach for this.

“She is a strong team worker, liaising successfully with everyone in Chesterton locality. She often goes beyond what is asked of her, noticing what needs to be done and taking actions to improve the experiences for staff, children, and families both online and in person.

“Recently Ellie has had to cover for several gaps in service. She has stepped up to the new challenges this has brought without any hesitation or complaint. I want Ellie to know how amazing she is as a team member. I value her as a totally dependable, reliable, and professional colleague. Ellie - it is wonderful to have you in our team and thank you for all your hard work.”

Wendy Simpson, Team Leader, Norfolk HCP 0-19 Service- Breckland

Lynsey Davey nominated Wendy for constantly going over and above for her staff and making sure every single member of the team feels valued.  Lynsey said: “For me personally Wendy truly went over and above when due to "payroll glitches”, I was either not paid at all or paid incorrectly for 6 months.

“I was beyond stressed and the situation caused a great deal of anxiety, but Wendy was my constant calming influence. She negotiated, emailed, and escalated my issues on my behalf and was constantly "fighting my corner." Wendy made me feel valued and made sure that the errors were investigated so nobody else would have to experience these problems.

“She is beyond worthy of a Shine a Light award. I am certain I speak for my entire team when I say what a fantastic team leader she is. Thank you, Wendy, for all you did for me and continue to do for not only me but the Breckland Health Child team.”

Jess Squires, Admin Lead, iCaSH Cambridgeshire

Rachael Bridgman nominated Jess for going above and beyond in supporting her colleagues with their new Centralised Call Centre. Rachael said: “Jess has supported the changes and played a pivotal role in making the project a success, whilst remaining positive throughout! Thank you Jess.”

Gemma Anderson, Recruitment Team Supervisor, Recruitment team

Angela Bradshaw-Clifford said: “I would like to put Gemma forward for a recognition award. Gemma has done a tremendous job over the last few months and even more so since we have gone live on Trac. All while Gemma has been working part time and balancing her home life.

“Despite having a huge work load herself, Gemma is always prepared to help us as a team and support us through the implementation of Trac and always has a smile on her face.”

Outstanding nominations again this month, well done to everyone who was nominated, well deserved!