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 have joint winners for April 2024.

Our first winner is Kira Richardson - Procurement Officer Corporate

Kira was nominated by Deborah Cheshire and Beth Mclean following an order that was blocked and leading to non-delivery discovering.

Kira kept her head and tried several options to get the order completed. Unexpectedly every option tried, had a set back from an external source. Kira remained calm, responsive, and communicative at every step. Phoning Deborah on occasion to check in and ask how she was.

Deborah said: “Kira had a bright and easy manner, was effective and knowledgeable. It was really refreshing that someone could show so much attention to detail and not give in - even when external factors were the issue. She was brilliant to be honest and should be acknowledged for doing her job so well. Great problem solver and networker.”

Beth McLean said: “My service would not have been working if Kira hadn't been excellent at her job. She helped me manage the process, was very patient, focused, and reliable. Her communication was constant and, in a time, when others around me were not around was able to throw a bit of guidance my way. She was great!”

Great nomination Kira, well done!

Our second winner for April is Sheryl Walsh - Clinical Nurse Specialist - Bedfordshire

Sheryl was nominated by a family whose son had joined their family through adoption, battling challenges of ADHD and developmental trauma. Initially diagnosed privately due to lengthy NHS wait times, they were introduced to Sheryl when they transitioned to the NHS service in November 2023. Right from their initial appointment, Sheryl has demonstrated unwavering professionalism and thoroughness, consistently making time to address their concerns.

The family said: “Despite the demanding nature of the service and the strain on staffing resources, Sheryl consistently goes the extra mile. A prime example of this dedication is the ongoing phone consultations she arranged with us, carefully tailoring medication types and dosages to enhance our son’s daily performance at school.

Recognising the frustrations that can arise from challenges in accessing timely discussions or appointments, we acknowledge that limitations often stem from factors beyond the control of frontline staff, such as funding or staffing constraints. Rather than dwell on these issues, let's laud the exceptional individuals who illuminate the service despite such obstacles. With her devoted approach, Sheryl epitomises the essence of the "Shine A Light" award scheme, enriching the quality of care provided and profoundly impacting the lives of families like ours.”

Outstanding nomination, congratulations Sheryl.


Other nominations this month included:

Karen Loft - Catheter Nurse - Luton Treatment Centre

Karen was nominated by Maura McShane for making a difference and for always being so kind and helpful and nothing is ever too much trouble for patients and staff.

Cynthia Yates - Health Visitor - 0-19 Healthy Child Programme - Cambridgeshire

Jo Smith nominated Cynthia for working tirelessly with a young woman with a young infant over a period of a year to establish a trusted professional relationship to help her and her child flee an abusive relationship. Jo said: “The work that Cynthia undertook to allow this situation to be disclosed and then liaised with multiple professionals to keep them safe was nothing short of immense. As a result, this woman and her child are now out of the area and are now safe from the abusive relationship.”

Joanne Oakey - Estates Area Manager - Princess of Wales Hospital, Ely

Jonathan Lamb said: “Jo Oakey has worked tirelessly over the past year to help get the Community Diagnostic Centre Project at Princess of Wales Hospital, Ely over the line. With only a limited on-site project management presence, Jo has stepped in and provided a focal point for the contractors on site to bring their many problems and issues and has ensured that throughout all the chaos and crisis that have occurred, CCS and Tenant services on the site have been able to continue to deliver their services with minimal disruption.

An amazing performance Jo, you truly are a credit to both the Trust and to the estates team.”

Louise Hall - Children & Young People’s Admin Assistant, North locality, Norfolk Healthy Child Service

Nancy Hopper nominated Louise for becoming a valued member of the team over a short period of time. Nancy said: “Louise has created a bespoke recording system to allocate staff to various venues and duty rotas in one easy to navigate spreadsheet which has increased efficiency and decreased double booking of staff. This has supported the leadership team in day-to-day allocation and has ensured clinical staff's working days are not changed at short notice, reducing inconvenience for them.”

Sarah Mugford - Practice Lead - Shefford and Biggleswade locality

Sarah was nominated by Sarah Shanley for being so supportive to the team members since their manager has been on long term sick leave. Sarah said: “Sarah always goes above and beyond her job role, fitting in the responsibilities of management alongside her own role. She always makes time for everyone even when her own time is sparse. Most importantly Sarah always checks in with our emotional wellbeing and I would like to nominate her so that she knows how much we all really appreciate her support and to give her own mental health a boost. She is a true star who deserves some light!”

Emma Fowler McKintosh - Clinical Systems Analyst/Trainer - Clinical Systems Team

Dr Sara Katsukunya nominated Emma for working incredibly hard on updating their Emotional Health and Wellbeing Service's S1 dashboard, to something much more fit for purpose.

Sara said: “Emma has worked tirelessly for months on this project, translating what we need into a tangible and useful product. Emma keeps on track, works hard, and can hold a lot of actions together, kindly chasing us when we need nudging and making sure the project maintains its momentum. Emma is quick and efficient and very good at her job, making her a pleasure to work with (and indeed the rest of the clinical systems team is too). She always follows through and is a key asset to us. Anything that can make recording easier for our workforce translates into more time for clinicians to do clinical work and see children, young people, and their families. Thank you, Emma, and the rest of the team!”

iCaSH – Milton Keynes

Jeanette Gowing nominated the iCaSH Milton Kynes team, for consistently showing that all members of the team from receptionists to managers go above and beyond to protect and safeguard their patients. Jeanette said: “All staff actively promote that 'safeguarding is everyone's responsibility' and always seek advice and additional training to support their role. I have had the pleasure of several inter agency meetings where this service has gone above and beyond to advocate for their patients and their service. From their documentation to their caring and empathic manner they show everyday outstanding and exemplary care and uphold the values of the trust of honesty, empathy, ambition, and trust.

Their team has worked hard to form working relationships within the local authority and participated in aiding the setup of an inter-agency risk management group which has already significantly improved patients’ outcomes and will continue to do so and indeed they have requested to shadow iCaSH to improve this understanding. There is nothing this team cannot do, and they do it in times of complexity with a smile on their faces and passion in their hearts. We should be proud to have such a service within CCS.”

Amazing examples of our wonderful staff going above and beyond - well done to everyone nominated this month!