'Incredible' Christine at MAU surprised with Excellent Employee award
An Enhanced Care Team (ECT) Assistant was surprised with an Excellent Employee Making a Difference Award for her outstanding work at the at the Medical Assessment Unit (MAU) at Royal Derby Hospital.
Christine McLaughlin was nominated by a colleague within MAU - Craig Meager, a Senior Clinical Educator on MAU - for her "unfaltering devotion" to patients, especially following her care of a recent patient who was extremely anxious, fearful, and had difficulty communicating in English.
Making an "enormous difference to the patient's experience", Christine helped to make the patient feel comfortable, allowing colleagues on MAU to deliver their care effectively.
Craig added: "She is the embodiment of UHDB values. Her compassion knows no bounds, she thinks outside the box consistently for our patients - and does so purely for their benefit, with no wish for recognition for what she does.
"It takes a special person to do this role. Despite this particular patient having extreme anxiety around their treatment, and not sharing a word of the same language - by the time Christine had helped them, we had the pleasure to witness her share moments of laughter with them and I don't know what we would do without her."
Christine was delighted upon receiving the award, saying: "I'm quite emotional about this - and surprised. It feels amazing.
"Going above and beyond for our patients is something that we always aim for as a team, and it's nice for that to be recognised.
Christine explained the role of the ECT at MAU, saying that they come under the "umbrella of vulnerable services" - predominantly supporting patients with dementia or cognitive impairments and are finding it difficult being on the ward.
She continued: "This can be anything to help put them at ease - whether a conversation, getting them a private space, or taking them on a short walk outside of the ward. Keeping the patients safe is the ultimate goal.
"We're a small team and it has been amazing to be so supported by our MAU colleagues, working together for the best possible experience for patients in our care."
"However, I am just one person doing my job alongside this incredible team. We all try and support each other to deliver, and I hope that the benefit of what we do is felt not only in the MAU who we directly support, but across UHDB. We are here to make a difference."
Amanda Rawlings, Executive Chief People Officer at UHDB, surprised Christine with the Excellent Employee Award, and was full of praise for her and her team, saying: "Day in, day out, the ECT and MAU deliver second-to-none care for our patients, often under immense pressure.
"It is just fabulous to be part of just one small way to recognise the incredible work our colleagues do across the Trust. It really is the highlight of my week to be able to surprise Christine with the award surrounded with her incredible colleagues.
"The whole team go the extra mile, but to read how Christine cared for this one particular patient was incredible. She entirely deserves this recognition - and I hope she enjoys her moment!"
Nominate a UHDB colleague for a Monthly Making a Difference Award
If you would like to nominate a colleague or team for a Monthly Making a Difference Award, please let us know.
There are four monthly Making a Difference Awards categories:
- Chief Executive Award – chosen by our CEO
- Patient Hero Award – nominated by patients
- Team UHDB Award – you can nominate your team or another team
- Excellent Employee Award – you can nominate your colleagues
You can send a 300 word nomination, along with the name of the team or individual, their job title and where they work, to: uhdb.employeeawards@nhs.net.