Trust staff recognised for outstanding achievements at Chairman's Stars of the Year awards

In his keynote speech, Minister Nesbitt praised the commitment and resilience of healthcare professionals, particularly in light of the ongoing challenges within Health and Social Care. He acknowledged the crucial role that staff play in ensuring high standards of care for patients across Northern Ireland.

The awards recognise and celebrate the exceptional dedication, innovation and achievements of staff, both as individuals and as teams.

This year there were ten categories, Hospital Team of the Year, Community Team of the Year, Corporate or Support Services Team of the Year, Digital Innovation of the Year, Improvement of the Year, Team Leader of the Year, Rising Star, Student of the Year, Hidden Hero of the Year and Life Time Achievement Award.

The overall winner on the night was the South Eastern Trust Stars of the Year 2024 and in the Digital Innovation of the Year category was the SET encompass Implementation Team who delivered the world's first fully integrated Health and Social Care digital patient record system on the 9 November 2023.

Both awards recognised staff who have contributed to digital advancements which have significantly improved the effectiveness, efficiency and quality of health and social care for everyone in the South Eastern Trust.

The judges chose this team for delivering encompass to over 12,500 staff and for continuing to support the encompass journey across the Trust.

Winners of the Hospital Team of the Year were the Maternity Clinical Facilitators for their RESET project which provides peer and group support for newly qualified midwives. The judges commented that the RESET project was a focused initiative that improved the attraction and retention of Midwives to the benefit of our patients within the Trust.

The Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children Team picked up the Community Team of the Year award for their support to children in addressing their unique challenges and recognising the trauma they face. The judges commented on the positive impact, dedication, hard work and unwavering commitment of the team to the well-being of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children.

The Corporate of Support Services Team of the Year was awarded to William Street Children's Home Support Services for going above and beyond to make sure there is a homely atmosphere for their short-term residents and always providing a listening ear. The judges remarked on the incredible care and attention in supporting children in a kind and compassionate manner.

Winners of the Improvement of the Year was awarded to the Speech & Language Therapy Voice and Throat Team for the introduction of Advanced Speech and Language Therapist clinics for patients with a voice or upper airway condition, reducing the waiting time by several years. The judges commented that the team demonstrated determination, vision and collaborative working to improve the service for our patients.

Team Leader of the Year was presented to Endoscopy Manager, Imelda Pascual for visibly supporting, rewarding and encouraging her team to be the very best. Imelda listens to the needs of her staff and acts accordingly to ensure they are happy, content and confident in all they do for Endoscopy patients. The judges believed that Imelda deserved this award for continually supporting her staff and empowering them to deliver excellent patient care.

The winner of the Rising Star award was presented to Social Worker, Eva Lundy. Eva's positivity, humour and engaging manner are such a joy to all those with who she works alongside. Eva has a natural passion and a flair for adult protection work. The judges commented that Eva embraced the challenge of working within adult protection and displayed a commitment to engaging with service users.

Student Nurse, Sophie McMillan was awarded Student of the Year. Sophie combines her part-time job working as an Emergency Department Receptionist in the Ulster Hospital with banking as a Senior Nursing Assistant on the wards, as well as completing her nursing degree and providing peer mentor for other nursing students. The judges said that Sophie was given this award for being kind, hardworking, caring and compassionate, dedicated to delivering excellent high-quality care.

The most popular category, Hidden Hero of the Year presented by Health Minister, Mike Nesbitt, was awarded to the Healthcare in Prison Pharmacy Team. The team works tirelessly and compassionately to ensure optimum patient care and service user engagement. They continue to have a positive impact on service provision reducing workforce frustrations, and ensuring patients receive their medication without undue delay. The judges remarked that the team was presented with the award for seeking to improve the service and in supporting the people they work with.

The final award, Lifetime Achievement Award, was presented to Emergency Department, Advanced Nurse Practitioner, Anne Snoddy. Anne is passionate about providing high-quality care to patients and has been an inspiration to the Emergency Department staff using her extensive knowledge and experience to support her colleagues and patients alike. The judges said that Anne had been presented with the award for her incredible work within the Trust for over 40 years, working within Cardiology and the Emergency Department Team, clearly making a difference in so many lives.

Presenting the Hidden Hero award, Health Minister, Mike Nesbitt said, "This was a very important occasion to recognise and celebrate not only the commitment, leadership, innovation and achievements of staff across the South Eastern Trust, but also the huge contribution made by all staff to serving and improving the lives of the local community.

"The nominations for these awards truly demonstrate the professionalism, dedication and compassion shown by the people working in Health and Social Care services. In a fast-paced and highly pressured environment, it's important that staff encourage and support one another, and take time to recognise achievements."

encompass Programme Manager, Sean Dooher who accepted the award on behalf of the encompass Implementation Team was thrilled to be the SET Stars of the Year overall winner and Digital Innovation of the Year category commented: "We are so honoured to be awarded the SET Stars of the Year award and the Digital Innovation of the Year.

"The work that everyone in the Implementation Team was involved in across the Trust, from staff that provided the catering to those that travelled across the world to help support and roll out encompass has been incredible.” Chairman of the Trust, Jonathan Patton was thrilled to host the awards and added: "What a fabulous star-studded evening with so much talent, passion and innovation coming forward from our staff.

"From Hidden Heroes to Student of the Year to a Lifetime Achievement, it was both uplifting and inspiring to see the energy and drive put into change that will enhance patient care. It was a truly outstanding evening!"

Chief Executive, Roisin Coulter congratulated all the winners, runners up and finalists and stated: "I am absolutely overwhelmed by our staff, it is an honour and a privilege to recognise the contribution that everybody makes every day across the South Eastern Trust. The atmosphere, delight and happiness on everybody's faces were just wonderful to see."