A NURSE from Rugby who has been educating nursing and medical staff at University Hospital in Coventry for almost 20 years has been shortlisted for a prestigious national award.
Catherine Baldock, Head of Resuscitation, Clinical Skills and Simulation at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire (UHCW) NHS Trust, was shortlisted as Individual of the Year at NHS England’s Kate Granger Compassionate Care Awards.
Catherine was the first person in the UK to embrace and implement ReSPECT – a new compassionate approach to ensuring that patients’ priorities for care, and clinical recommendations about treatment, including their wishes about resuscitation, are discussed and recorded – in case they are brought in for an emergency, when they may be unable to make or express choices.
Compared to previous systems, ReSPECT provides a single national standard, making it easier for staff to see what patients’ wishes are, and act accordingly.
After leading the implementation of ReSPECT at St Cross Hospital in Rugby and University Hospital in Coventry two years ago, Catherine is now clinical lead for implementing the approach across the NHS.
She was put forward for the award by the Chief Executive at the Resuscitation Council, who she has been working with on the national implementation of the ReSPECT approach.
Catherine said: “I was so shocked to hear that I had been shortlisted for the Kate Granger awards. It was such an honour.
“I feel it’s so important to make sure that patients’ views are considered. This nomination is really for all of my colleagues at UHCW for working tirelessly to provide patients with the best care possible, and put them at the heart of these important decisions.”
Professor Meghana Pandit, Chief Medical Officer and Deputy CEO, said: “We had the privilege of welcoming Dr Kate Granger to UHCW in 2015, and Catherine fully deserves to be shortlisted for these awards in her honour.
“Catherine has done wonderful work at UHCW, both in training the healthcare professionals of the future, and also in ensuring that our staff deliver patient-centred care.”
Now in their fourth year, the Kate Granger Compassionate Care Awards awards were set up by and named after the terminally ill doctor who worked tirelessly to raise awareness around compassion in the NHS through her #hellomynameis social media campaign.
This year’s awards will be presented at the Health and Innovation Expo 2018 at Manchester Central on September 5 and 6.
