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RCNi Nurse Awards 2019: ‘I learnt a lot about how awesome emergency nurses are – we just don’t say it often enough’

We hope our roll-call of amazing nurses will inspire you to enter, or nominate a colleague  
‘I learnt a lot about how awesome emergency nurses are – we just don’t say it often enough’

We hope our roll-call of amazing nurses will inspire you to enter, or nominate a colleague  

The search for the best of the best in nursing has begun with the launch of the RCNi Nurse Awards 2019.

Nurses, students and healthcare assistants are invited to share their innovations and expertise and celebrate their contribution to making patient care better and improving outcomes.

Entries are open to individuals and teams and as well as the Emergency Nursing Award, there are new categories for 2019,  including Team of the Year, Infection Prevention and Control, Respiratory Nursing and Skin and Wound Care.


RCN Nurse of the Year 2018 Angela Hall. Picture: Mark Hakansson


Chair of judges, Yvonne Coghill
Picture: Barney Newman

The Patient’s Choice category, which gives patients an opportunity to nominate a nurse or healthcare assistant who has made a difference to their lives, will be decided by a public vote.

The judging panel will be chaired by Yvonne Coghill, NHS England’s director of The Workforce Race Equality Standard. The RCN fellow was made CBE this year for her services to racial equality in the NHS.

Showcase for hard work and innovation

Ms Coghill says: ‘I am delighted to have been invited to be chair of the judging panel for the RCNi Nurse Awards 2019.

‘Overseeing these prestigious awards is a privilege and honour and I very much look forward to reading the many wonderful nominations I know we will receive showcasing the hardworking and innovated nurses we have in the UK.’

'Being named RCN Nurse of the Year 2018 has been massively rewarding, resulting in further achievements in my field’

Angela Hall, RCN Nurse of the Year 2018

The RCN Nurse of the Year 2019 will be chosen from the category winners and announced at the awards ceremony in London on July 3.

The current holder of the title is arrhythmia nurse specialist Angela Hall, who impressed the judges by leading the introduction of a new drug to treat rapid onset atrial fibrillation at Jersey General Hospital. ‘Being named RCN Nurse of the Year 2018 has been massively rewarding in so many ways,' she says. ‘It has raised my profile and resulted in further achievements in my specialist field.’

Ms Hall was nominated by her colleague Kellyanne Kinsella who hoped ‘it would help her realise how amazing she is’.


The award has raised the profile of Angela Hall's service developments and
arrhythmia nursing generally. Picture: Gary Grimshaw

But for Ms Hall raising the profile of arrhythmia and cardiology nursing is more important. She adds: ‘It has been exciting for Jersey.

‘I have just this week been named States of Jersey employee of the year following on from the publicity and acknowledgement of my work and service developments. I have also won an ‘AF Pioneers’ award for the second time.

‘I am attending an event at the Palace of Westminster and I am going to Public Health England to meet its deputy chief nurse and professor in cardiovascular disease.’

Huge difference personally and professionally

All our winners and finalists testify to the huge difference the awards have made to them personally and professionally, and their projects.

The winner of the Emergency Nursing Award 2018 was Heather Jarman. The emergency department’s clinical research team at St George’s Hospital NHS Trust in London nominated her for the award in recognition of her work in integrating research in to emergency practice, an area where research is seen as difficult to do.  


Emergency Nursing Award winner Heather Jarman: ‘I’ve had a lot of contact from
other emergency nurses about my work.’ Picture: Neil O’Connor

‘It has been good to raise the profile of the emergency department as a research active area through the awards,’ she says.

‘Research is becoming increasingly important to NHS trusts as a way to improve clinical care and outcomes for patients so winning the award has meant that a lot more people are aware that research in such a complex clinical setting can be done.

‘I’ve had a lot of contact from other emergency nurses about my work, and asking for advice on how they can get started in their departments. Supporting up-and-coming research nurses is key to getting research integral to practice in every emergency department so that has been a good experience.’

‘Being able to reflect on achievements is something we don’t do enough of in emergency nursing’

Heather Jarman, Emergency Nursing Award winner

She would definitely recommend emergency department colleagues enter the awards. 

‘I enjoyed the whole process – even the judging panel.

‘Being able to reflect on achievements is something we don’t do enough of in emergency nursing as being busy often gets in the way. Having met all the other finalists at the awards I learnt a lot about how awesome emergency nurses are – we just don’t say it often enough’

Shining a light on achievement

In 2018, for the first time, the judges announced a Special Recognition award. Mental health nurse and former boxer Mark Field impressed the judges with his decades of voluntary work helping thousands of adults and children with mental illness and behaviour problems to improve their physical health through his boxing club. 


Mark Field's voluntary work won him the special recognition. Picture: John Houlihan

Mr Field, who himself has a bipolar diagnosis, says: ‘I entered the awards to shine a light on the importance of helping people with mental illness to improve their physical health and giving them a place to go in the community without any stigma.

‘My award has absolutely raised my work’s profile and I have had lots of emails about the work we do here – and an increase in referrals.

‘But I know there are many other nurses out there who are, like me, doing what they can for their community and patients in their own time. I would recommend they enter the awards as they deserve the recognition too.’

For nurse consultant Yvonne Manson, winning the Leadership Award for her dementia programme was a valuable opportunity to shine a light on the care home sector.  

‘After winning, people contacted me on social media to say how it had inspired them to pursue a career in care homes. That meant a lot to me, having fought the stigma for most of my career’

Yvonne Manson, dementia nurse consultant

‘I entered the RCNi Nurse Awards to highlight the innovation in the sector and the career you can enjoy from working in care homes. I am incredibly proud of the Balhousie dementia programme I have led in the past two and a half years and the work that has gone into it. I wanted to share that with others.


Leadership Award winner Yvonne Manson recommends the awards to other nurses working in care homes. Picture: Mike Wilkinson

‘After winning, people contacted me on social media to say how it had inspired them to pursue a career in care homes and to be proud to do so. That meant a lot to me, having fought the stigma for most of my career.’

She ‘highly recommends’ colleagues nominate themselves or others for the 2019 awards, adding: ‘Not only can it support the development of your work but there is something very special about being recognised by your peers.’

The deadline for entries is 1 February.

The awards categories

  • Cancer Nursing
  • Child Health
  • Commitment to Carers
  • Community Nursing
  • Emergency Nursing
  • Excellence in Cancer Research
  • Excellence in Diabetes Care 
  • Healthcare Assistant 
  • Infection Prevention and Control 
  • Innovations in your Specialty
  • Leadership
  • Learning Disability Practice
  • Mental Health Practice
  • Nursing Older People
  • Patient’s Choice
  • Promoting Continence 
  • Respiratory Nursing 
  • Skin and Wound Care
  • Student Nurse 
  • Team of the Year 

 

Click here for more on the RCNi Nurse Awards


Elaine Cole is editor, RCNi projects

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