An initiative at Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospitals to support career development and break down barriers to progression has been shortlisted for a prestigious national award.
Warrington and Halton Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust’s nomination for ‘Your Future Your Way – breaking down barriers for diverse talent’ has been shortlisted in the Patient Experience Network National Awards (PENNA).
The initiative has helped colleagues from an ethnic minority background working as nurses, midwives and in the allied health professions (AHPs) such as physiotherapy, radiology, and occupational therapy to develop skills to reach equity and career progression.
PENNA celebrates the delivery of outstanding patient experience by those in the health and social care industry and the implementation of the ‘Your Future Your Way’ programme has been shortlisted in the Strengthening the Foundation category. It was created to support colleagues to take the next steps into leadership and management at the Trust after it was identified that the diversity of the workforce was not reflected in the senior management teams across the hospitals.
Patients at Warrington and Halton’s hospitals have also benefited as staff participating in the programme have undertaken projects to improve patient safety and care. Examples include strategies for preventing falls in elderly inpatients, reducing pressure ulcers, improving fluid intake among inpatients, and understanding barriers that prevent attendances at paediatric ophthalmology appointments.
Kimberley Salmon-Jamieson, Chief Nurse and Deputy Chief Executive, who has overseen the delivery of this bespoke leadership programme said: “It is the start of our journey as a Trust to reach equity whilst providing opportunities to further enhance the experience of our patients. “Our ‘Your Future Your Way’ programme aimed to build an understanding of the barriers that nurses, midwives and AHP colleagues from ethnic minority backgrounds may face during their career and to help them in developing skills that enhance their own careers and promote wider equity across the workforce. Providing our senior leaders with the resources to be more culturally aware and accountable in supporting our diverse workforce to progress.”
The Trust has also had a second shortlisted initiative in the awards; the Family Integrated Care (FICare) model on the Neonatal Unit at Warrington Hospital in the Communicating Effectively category.
The Patient Experience Network National Awards will take place at the University of Birmingham on 28 September 2023. This is the second national award in which the ‘Your Future Your Way’ programme has been recognised, having already been shortlisted the Excellence in Organisational Development category in the Healthcare People Management Association Awards which will be held in Leeds on Tuesday 19 September 2023.