Acorn Award winners
The nine winners of the NHS Alliance Acorn Awards 2009 received their certificates at The NHS Alliance Annual Conference held in Manchester. Commenting on the awards Michael Sobanja, chief executive of the NHS Alliance, said: “The NHS is an incredible organisation that achieves much more than it is given credit for; it is also a hard taskmaster. That’s why the Acorn Awards are so important.
They recognise excellence in health improvement and health care as judged by the toughest audience of all – colleagues who work at the front line themselves. This year’s entries were of the highest standard to date and we would like to express our admiration and congratulations to all of the entrants, in particular, the winners and runners up. There is no greater accolade than that given by peers to worthy entrants across the country.”
Presenting the awards, Professor Chris Drinkwater, president of the NHS Alliance, said: “The Acorn Award celebrates excellence in primary care and the efforts made by health professionals to improve the services they provide to their patients. This year’s award has nine categories – Clinical Engagement; Clinical Governance; Integrated and Complementary Healthcare; Pharmaceutical Services Commissioning; Public Health; Public/Patient Involvement; Practice Based Commissioning; Responsiveness in General Practice, and Service Redesign/Improvement.”
Category: Clinical Engagement
Winner: Nottingham West Community Pain Management Service
The service developed relationships between primary and secondary care clinicians. It has involved a broad spectrum of clinicians and has a multi-disciplinary team who have delivered an excellent local service for patients that is conveniently accessible, uses local specialist clinicians and represents value for money to the PBC cluster as commissioners.
Category: Clinical
Governance
Winner: Oxfordshire PCT
Oxfordshire PCT’s clinical governance system has been developed using the support of the clinical staff, quality and clinical standards team, public health, data analysis and contracting colleagues operating within the commissioning function of the organisation. Among the positive results is the increased percentage, up from 45 per cent to over 75 per cent of patients admitted to hospital being operated on within 48 hours of admission.
Category: Integrated
and Complementary Healthcare
Winner: NHS North East Essex Manual Therapies Service
The service was set up to give patients a choice of manual therapists in the community as part of the back and neck pathway. In order to reduce the demand on local services, to maximise patient and GP choice and access, and to secure short waiting times, the PCT commissioned 16 local independent sector chiropractor, osteopath and physiotherapy providers.
Category: Pharmaceutical Services Commissioning
Winner: NHS Sheffield
The Sheffield Community Pharmacy Development Unit is linked across the NHS Sheffield directorates and various stakeholders. This ensures the commissioning of pharmaceutical services is integrated into the wider PCT planning and commissioning process.
Category: Practice
Based Commissioning
Winner: NHS Northamptonshire and Nene Commissioning
In 2007, NHS Northamptonshire provided the original funding and support, which enabled Northamptonshire GPs to set up a company to deliver PBC. This eventually became the Nene Commissioning Community Interest Company, a social enterprise that covers 94 per cent of the county’s population. The introduction of PBC has created the ideal opportunity to build on a number of fledgling clinical networks, which already existed within the county.
Category: Public
Health
Winner: Knowsley Council and NHS Knowsley
The partnership between Knowsley Council and NHS Knowsley facilitates joint working, data sharing and unified leadership. An emphasis on social marketing and community engagement ensures interventions are evidence based and targeted at those with the greatest need.
Category:
Public/Patient Involvement
Winner: Gypsy Health Care, South Yorkshire
Askern Medical Practice went to the gypsy campsite for the first time in 2004, giving gypsy elders and their communities the opportunity to voice their views. An in-house gypsy liaison GP and two gypsy liaison administrators took the lead and further meetings have taken place over the years. As a result, the practice has continued to provide a range of health services to the gypsy community.
Category:
Responsiveness in General Practice
Winner: Tiptree Medical Centre, Colchester
The centre, a primary care practice looking after the needs of 11,000 patients, undertook a systematic review of how it delivered patients’ care and produced a series of recommendations, which have been implemented. These have produced a significant improvement to patients, including better access figures.
Category: Service
Redesign/Improvement
Winner: Colchester PBC Group, North East Essex PCT
Since 2006 the group has worked closely with the PCT to develop a unified Commissioning Strategy. They now have a seamless commissioning cycle from Needs Assessment to Contract Monitoring, which is shared between PBC and PCT commissioners.
