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West Herts nursing teams nominated for six national awards for outstanding compassion and innovation

Posted: 5 July 2024

Sam Behagg

The ‘extraordinary’ compassion and innovation of teams at West Herts Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust have been recognised with nominations in six national nursing awards – making it one of the most nominated Trusts in the country.

Bereavement midwife Sam Behagg and Suraj Kumar, a respiratory nurse, were both shortlisted for the 2024 Nursing Times Awards.

And the Trust’s acclaimed surgical virtual hospital team are finalists in three categories: Theatre and Surgical Nursing, Patient Safety Improvement, and Technology and Data in Nursing.

The success of a new self-rostering system, which has given colleagues greater control over their working pattern, was also recognised in the Technology and Data shortlist.

Winners of the prestigious awards, which recognise innovation in the nursing profession, will be announced at an awards dinner in October.

Sam’s nomination for Midwife of the Year will come as no surprise to those familiar with her exceptional and compassionate care for bereaved families. Over the past nine years, she has developed a specialist bereavement service to help families going through the devastating heartbreak of losing their baby.

Suraj Kumar has been shortlisted in the Rising Star category for his outstanding patient care and passion for learning.

The virtual hospital teams continue to act as national examples of best practice, helping patients recover from operations from the comfort of their own homes using the latest specialist tech and the expert support.

Between April 2023 and February 2024, in collaboration with West Herts delivery partner Central London Community Healthcare Trust, 5,000 patients were treated via the virtual hospital, saving an estimated 4,500 bed days and scoring on average 9/10 on patient experience questionnaires.

Chief nurse, Kelly McGovern, said: “This is a wonderful achievement and we’re so pleased that the professionalism, dedication and compassion of our brilliant nurses and midwives have been recognised in this way.

“We’re so proud of the extraordinary work our nurses do every day, and the life-changing difference they make to local people.”

Ends

  1. For media enquiries, please contact the communications team on: 01923 436280 or email: westherts.communications@nhs.net. For out of hours media enquiries please call the Watford General Hospital switchboard on 01923 244366 and ask for the on call communications manager.
  2. West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust serves people from across Hertfordshire, north London and further afield. It operates from three hospitals: Watford General, St Albans City and Hemel Hempstead. The trust has a catchment area of over 500,000 people and is one of the largest employers locally, with around 5,000 staff and volunteers.
  3. For more information about our hospitals, visit the West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust's website. You can also join our followers on Twitter (twitter.com/westhertsNHS) and find us on Facebook (facebook.com/westhertsNHS).