NHS staff in Glasgow celebrated for work during Covid-19 pandemic

For the first time in two years, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC) brought staff together virtually to celebrate the success of its teams in delivering outstanding patient centred care, some of the fantastic projects that have been delivered and to thank its staff who have gone above and beyond, despite the Covid-19 pandemic.

The ‘Celebrating Success’ awards, were for the first time ever, held online rather than in person, to ensure that all members of the NHSGGC team could tune in to celebrate together virtually.

The awards were hosted by the National Clinical Director Jason Leitch, and the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care Humza Yousaf also joined in.

‘The world has changed’

NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde chairman, John Brown, said: “The last time we held a ‘Celebrating Success’ success event, it was November 2019. We hadn’t even heard of Covid–19.

“The world has changed beyond all recognition since then and our staff have been at the forefront of that change and that challenge. I could not be prouder of each and every one of them.

“Tonight was about recognising the efforts a few ‘shining stars’; teams and individuals who have gone the extra mile in the most challenging of circumstances. People were scared, people were tired, they were hot from wearing PPE and they worried about their families as well as their patients.

“But they turned up, did their very best and did it all over again, day in, day out. Our annual celebration event has never had more meaning and even though we were not together in person, it was the most special by far.”

Who won awards?

There were seven main awards in total – reflecting the key aims of the organisation - Better Care, Better Health, Better Value, Better Workplace, the popular Nursing and Volunteer categories and finally the Global Citizenship award.

The Better Health award went to NHSGGC’s Vaccination Programme and was presented by the Board’s Director of Public Health, Dr Linda de Caestecker.

As well as the vast numbers of health professionals who carried out the vaccinations with great support, the eHealth team worked with the wider vaccination team to put together the infrastructure which went into making it the success it was.

This included the technology, telephony, reporting and contact centre staffing required to support our programme. They also set up a contact centre at very short notice. The collaboration, flexibility and expertise shown by all staff involved in the vaccination programme cannot be understated and was central to the board’s response to the pandemic.

The ‘Global Citizenship’ award went to Stuart Watson, the Clinical Director for Plastic Surgery at Glasgow Royal Infirmary where he is a highly valued member of the leadership team.

But this award recognised how he has also dedicated his time and energy to work oversees to improve the provision of plastic surgery training and services in other countries. This has not only involved travelling abroad but also fund raising to support his work. Stuart also introduced educational webinars from the Canniesburn Unit at the Royal Infirmary.

These began as teaching for his own trainees, but he quickly made them available to an international audience of over 200 colleagues, from 40 different countries. This included countries such as Yemen and Syria, where medical educational opportunities are scarce and outside contact is highly valued.

There was one final award towards the end of the evening. The award for Excellence in Leadership Award recognised the exceptional demands made on leaders across the organisation who have had to respond to the Coronavirus pandemic, support their teams, make fleet of foot changes to how the organisation operates and embed new technology, while continuing to manage the day to day business of NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.

Proud

Chairman John Brown added: “I would like to once again thank everyone who was nominated for an award. Your commitment to NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde is truly outstanding and awe inspiring. I am immensely proud to work alongside each and every one of you.”

For details on all the winners, click HERE.