Far West LHD Celebrates Excellence in Nursing Award Winners for 2021
The Far West Local Health District has acknowledged exceptional performance amongst its nursing and midwifery staff by today presenting six individual and one team Excellence in Nursing and Midwifery awards for 2021.
The Award recipients for 2021 are:
- Nurse of the Year (AIN/EN/RN) - Samuel Bryant.
- Midwife of the Year (RM/AIM) - Adriana Talotta.
- Aboriginal Nurse/Midwife of the Year (AIN/EN/RN/RM) - Dawn Evans.
- New to Practice Nurse/Midwife of the Year - Victoria Crook.
- Team of the Year Award (Nursing and/or Midwifery Team) - Mental Health Inpatient Unit (Broken Hill Health Service).
- Judith Meppem Leadership Award - Timothy O'Neill.
- Healing Heart Award - Rebecca Hatch.
The awards were presented by Ms Dale Sutton, Executive Director Nursing and Midwifery and Chief Executive, Mr Umit Agis, as part of International Nurses' Day and International Midwives' Day celebrations in which the District recognises and pays tribute to its nursing and midwifery staff.
The recipients of the 2021 International Nurses' Day and International Midwives' Day Excellence Awards were selected from nominations submitted by their peers, colleagues and consumers across the Far West LHD.
Each award winner will be nominated in the NSW Health Excellence in Nursing and Midwifery Awards 2021 which will be announced in Sydney later this year.
At the awards presentation today, Ms Dale Sutton read out the following for each of the award recipients:
NEW TO PRACTICE NURSE/MIDWIFE - Victoria Crook
Victoria completed the New Graduate Program 2020. She demonstrates a genuine passion and commitment to the profession of nursing. She always adopts a positive, caring and empathetic attitude to patients. Victoria is always professional, respectful and kind. She role models the CORE values and demonstrates genuine leadership skills; her ability to assess a situation and make sound judgement calls instils a sense of confidence with both the team she works with and patients and their families. Victoria is committed to patient advocacy and is not afraid to speak up to ensure the care being provided is what the patient requests and is in their best interest. She takes every opportunity to learn, develop further skills and knowledge. Victoria demonstrates behaviours, personality and positive attitude of a very good nurse and one of our future nurse leader.
ABORIGINAL & TORRES STRAIT ISLANDER NURSE/MIDWIFE (AIN, EN, RN, RM) -
Dawn Evans
Dawn provides an amazing service for the community of Wilcannia, being a long serving community member as well as AHP / EN. Dawn provides an incredible amount of support to staff caring for distressed patients, particularly those patients that identify as Aboriginal. She provides a reassuring, calming presence to both staff and patients. Dawn demonstrates excellence in Aboriginal Healthcare due to her intimate and detailed understanding of local and personal issues and her connection with community. She supports, protects and enhances Aboriginal healthcare, works collaboratively, is a strong advocate for Aboriginal people and educates the staff on cultural safety. A well-deserved award.
TEAM OF THE YEAR - Mental Health Inpatient Unit (Broken Hill Health Service)
The MHIPU provides consistent excellence in patient care and have an unflagging commitment to person centred care in sometimes difficult circumstances. The reflective practice and the willingness to embrace change to improve their practice shown by the team is a hallmark of this very dynamic and proactive group of clinicians. In the latest 'Your Experience of Service' (YES) annual report 80% of consumers of the service rated their experience very good or excellent, 88% of consumers felt respected during their care. The team should feel very honoured and humbled by this response, well done.
JUDITH MEPPEM LEADERSHIP - Timothy O'Neill
Tim has demonstrated exceptional leadership and an extraordinary commitment to both the LHD nursing workforce, his colleagues and the general public. The last 12 months has been challenging with COVID-19, Fit Testing and vaccinating our staff. Tim has gone above and beyond delivering time and time again with support of the nursing directorate. Tim has committed a lot of time after hours and on weekends so the staff and the community are safe and protected from the COVID pandemic. He has been invaluable in his leadership in COVID preparedness and response. As a leader Tim is kind, compassionate, enthusiastic and forever hopeful. He will always be the first to offer his assistance, nothing is ever too much trouble for Tim. What an achievement, well done Tim. His impact can also be seen in the success of our New Graduate Nursing Program and his mentorship with staff across the LHD.
NURSE OF THE YEAR - Samuel Bryant
Sam has consistently gone above and beyond to ensure patient focussed care is imperative, as well as ensuring there are safe discharges to the community from acute care. He demonstrated an amazing amount of resilience when he was physically assaulted and returned to the Unit requesting clinical reflective supervision to move on from this incident. This demonstrated strength and depth of character and his passion to work in a challenging environment. He has been granted a place in the Bob Fenwick Mentoring Grants Program. Sam ensures there is always person-centred holistic care provided inclusive of carers and families. Sam is passionate about and active in clinical supervision and debriefing post significant evets to not only improve his practice but he also supports his team.
Sam goes out of his way to advocates for patients, carers and families. Well-deserved award.
HEALING HEART AWARD - Rebecca Hatch
Rebecca has been nominated for the Healing Heart Award by six of her peers and a consumer, which is amazing recognition for a nurse. The consumer wrote: 'I am nominating Rebecca Hatch for this award because I consider her to be a typical bush nurse with many years of experience in an outback hospital and a sound knowledge of the requirements needed to successfully handle all the many and widely varied accidents, incidents and emergency situations that regularly present themselves at such outback hospitals.'
Rebecca is supportive of all her staff, has exceptional emergency department skills and is an excellent clinician. She is an advocate for the community of Wilcannia. Families seek her out to review their children. Rebecca always appears calm, compassionate and professional. She is an exceptional nurse and this is a well-deserved acknowledgement, well done.
MIDWIFE OF THE YEAR AWARD - Adriana Talotta
Local midwives celebrated International Day of the Midwife (IDM) on Wednesday, 5 May 2021 where a special ceremony in the Maternity Unit included the presentation of the District's Midwife of the Year Award to Adriana Talotta.
Ms Sutton congratulated Adriana on her achievement and said the Far West LHD is especially proud of the District's midwives and the exceptional care they provide to their patients.
Alison Isaacs, Maternity Unit Manager said Adriana is an experienced and passionate midwife.
'She has made a great contribution to improving the environment within the maternity unit and is becoming a great midwifery leader,' said Ms Isaacs.