Trudy Harrison has welcomed national recognition for Cumbria Health on Call in a special, one-off competition to mark the NHS’s 70th birthday.
MPs in England were asked to nominate individuals and teams serving their constituents across ten categories. Regional champions were selected in May, with the national winners chosen by a panel of senior leaders representing staff and patients.
Cumbria Health on Call (CHoC) scooped the national prize in the Excellence in Primary Care category at the NHS70 Parliamentary Awards, held in Parliament on Wednesday 4th July, after being put forward by Mrs Harrison earlier in the year.
Mrs Harrison said: “I am absolutely delighted that Cumbria Health on Call (CHoC) has won the Excellence in Primary Care Award in Parliament today for their work providing in-and-out of hours primary care services to the predominantly rural population of Cumbria and I commend the team for being recognised as the first out-of-hours service in the country to be rated as ‘Outstanding’ by the CQC.
“CHoC continually develop new and effective ways of providing care which have received national recognition, these include telehealth, hospital avoidance schemes and joint working with other providers. All with the aim of ensuring that patients consistently receive the right response, from the right clinician, at the right time. Very well deserved and appreciated by us all in Cumbria.”
The NHS70 Parliamentary Awards, sponsored by IBM and Teva, were launched in February to recognise the massive contribution made by the individuals who work in and alongside the NHS.
Susan Blakemore, Chief Executive and Hannah Mason, Executive Director of Operations, collected the Award on Wednesday 4th July on behalf of the organisation.
Susan Blakemore said: “We are delighted to receive Parliamentary Award for Excellence in Primary Care, it is an amazing achievement which recognises the hard work and dedication of the whole CHoC team who provide outstanding and responsive care to the population of Cumbria.
“This is a fantastic accolade to the NHS here in Cumbria, both within CHoC and all of our partner organisations. We recognise that everyone matters, both those who use our services and those who are part of delivering them.”
CHoC were among the ten winners – selected from more than 750 nominations submitted by over 250 MPs – to receive their awards at a ceremony on the Palace of Westminster’s Terrace Pavilion, hosted by Dr Sara Kayat, NHS GP & TV Doctor.
Health Select Committee Chair Dr Sarah Wollaston MP, Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt MP, and the panel of judges collectively representing millions of NHS staff and patients were also on hand to pay tribute to the winners and all those shortlisted.
