12/09/2018 | Press releases

ESNEFT projects shortlisted for Health Service Journal Awards

A trio of East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust (ESNEFT) projects have been shortlisted for Health Service Journal (HSJ) Awards.

Caring4Carers at Ipswich Hospital, the STARR (Short Term Assessment Reablement and Rehabilitation) Centre, based at Blue Bird Lodge Community Hospital, and OPAT Service Development at Ipswich Hospital have all been recognised by the judges and colleagues will now present to the panel ahead of the winners being revealed.

Caring4Carers, shortlisted in the System Led Support for Carers category, offers vital support and holistic care for carers who are often under immense stress, but don’t want to ask for help.

The scheme has helped thousands of people in Suffolk since it launched in 2011 and work is under way to mirror and build on what is offered at Ipswich to extend it across ESNEFT.

Sarah Higson, the Trust’s head of patient experience who leads on carers initiatives, said: “It’s recognition of all the hard work of everyone involved in creating a carer friendly culture within a hospital, which could not have been done without excellent partnership with Suffolk Family Carers, the volunteers and the East of England Co-op.

“It’s been a real coming together of ambition and commitment to a group of people who give so much of themselves every day to support their loved ones, and we as an NHS rely on their help and support to get people home more quickly and keep them out of hospital.”

The STARR project, shortlisted in the Community or Primary Care Services Redesign category, has transformed the way some patients are cared for, in partnership with Ipswich Hospital, community hospitals and adults and community services to get people home quicker.

The maximum length of stay at the 28-bed community hospital is 14 days. People can be discharged from hospital sooner, care is given closer to home, transfer delays are reduced and patients have a sense of what’s happening and are fully involved in their care.

The OPAT (Outpatient Parenteral Antimicrobial Therapy) service at Ipswich Hospital, which is about to be rolled out across Colchester, aims to support patients to self-administer intravenous drugs so they can go home early or avoid hospital admission altogether.

It has been shortlisted in the Acute of Specialist Redesign category and in its first year, helped more than 250 patients receive IV antibiotics at home and avoid hospital stays. It’s not down to one department – it involves acute medicine, microbiology, pharmacy, the Rushmere medical day unit team and community admission prevention. It has saved more than 2,000 bed days and given patients the freedom to be at home while benefiting from the best hospital care.

The winners will be announced on 21 November in London.

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