Published at 13:07, Sunday, 30 September 2012

HOSPITAL staff at the heart of making sure services run smoothly have been nominated for a health industry accolade.

The clinical site managers from Furness General Hospital, as well as their equivalents at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary, have been recognised in the Supporting the Organisation category in the University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust’s Health Heroes Awards.

Supporting the Organisation, sponsored by Vanguard Healthcare, marks the achievements of an individual or team whose work has been vital in moving the trust forward and enhancing its reputation. The CSMs were nominated by Mark Hulme, UHMBT assistant chief nurse for acute and emergency medicine.

He said: “Being first point of contact for both internal and external queries, they work tirelessly in dealing with a wide variety of issues to ensure that both acute hospital sites function safely and efficiently.”

Responsible for making sure their hospital has enough patient beds at all points of the day, clinical site managers are senior nurses with various different backgrounds. They use their range of expertise to work out how patients’ discharge can be speeded up where appropriate and make sure staff are making space for new patients.

Mr Hulme said: “Out of hours and weekend support is particularly challenging and the CSMs work both professionally and consistently in ensuring that our hospitals function to the highest level.

“They are a dedicated, committed team and I feel that they are our unsung heroes.”

Members of the public are still being invited to make Health Heroes nominations.

The other categories are Innovation, Doctor of the Year, Nurse of the Year, Midwife of the Year, Team of the Year, Special Achievement, Patient Safety, Behind the Scenes, Fundraiser of the Year, Volunteer of the Year, Registered Professional of the Year and Student/Trainee of the Year.

To make a nomination, visit www.uhmb.nhs.uk. Nominations close on Monday.

Published by http://www.nwemail.co.uk