Substance misuse nurse wins RCN in Wales Nurse of the Year 2012
Published: 29 November 2012
Substance misuse nurse wins RCN in Wales Nurse of the Year 2012
Louise Poley became the inaugural RCN in Wales Nurse of the Year Award 2012 at a ceremony last night in City Hall, Cardiff. Louise Poley, a consultant nurse for substance misuse with Cardiff & Vale University Health Board, emerged as the overall winner of the night above competition from nine other category winners. The Deputy Lord Mayor of Cardiff, Councillor Keith Jones presented the award to Louise, alongside the Minister for Health Lesley Griffiths AM.
Louise Poley has changed lives. There is a strong evidence base that homeless individuals have high mortality and morbidity, particularly mental illnesses and physical injuries. Excessive alcohol consumption and inadequate food intake are major aggravating factors and combined have the potential for complex neuropsychiatric conditions, brain injury and fatality.
Louise has undertaken some significant work with the homeless, working with colleagues from district nursing and dietetics but also with partners in the Local Authority and third sector. She led a multi-agency project to offer services to this population within their own environment and ensure that they receive professional, evidenced-based and timely care within the health system. The project’s aims were to work across traditional boundaries to improve the nutritional status of the homeless population, reduce the risk of cognitive impairment whilst minimizing the impact upon local hospitals both in terms of resources and finances. She has identified a range of creative approaches to both securing resources and engaging stakeholders. The RCN Nurse of the Year judging panel praised Louise saying: "she is a champion in a difficult area and the panel were very impressed. Louise goes over and above her role to help "the forgotten population".
After receiving her award Louise said: "I am absolutely thrilled, delighted and proud to be named as the RCN Nurse of the Year Wales Winner. It is such a fantastic achievement; however I could not have done this without the help and support from the team I work with and all our clients. I want to thank them all."
Runner-up on the evening was Lisa Franklin, Professional and Practice Development Nurse, General Surgery, Urology and Head & Neck, Cardiff and Vale University Health Board.
Lisa is passionate about ensuring that quality patient care is delivered through staff education and support. This year she noticed a problem with AES fitting due to a recent change in manufacturer. Lisa demonstrated her leadership skills and abilities by co-ordinating a working group of influential senior staff in the organisation, Welsh Health Supplies, scientists from the Surgical Materials Testing Laboratory, and the company concerned. Lisa carried out independent reviews of patients’ records to inform the discussion and debate and over several months personally drove the agenda in order to manage the risk and resolve the issues. This involved re-training staff and more significantly influenced the manufacturers to pilot a new stocking design and rethink their product information. Lisa has led the stocking pilot study in the UHB and will be advising Welsh Health Supplies on the procurement of the stockings and providing feedback to the company on behalf of the whole of the UK. The judging panel said: "Lisa is an exceptional nurse, bridging theory and practice, delivering the art and science of nursing in tandem, taking nursing forward."
Commenting on the Awards, RCN Wales Director Tina Donnelly said: "Drug and alcohol addiction remains a very serious problem in Wales despite the reduction in the number of drug misuse related deaths in Wales last year. Through her vision and ambition to drive forward change, Louise is committed to making a direct difference for this marginalised group. Despite continuing challenges such as financial restraints and increased demand for services, I am especially proud of the nursing family for continuing to deliver excellent services and making innovations to improve patient care for the residents of Wales.
She added: "From the RCN’s perspective, I am delighted to have had an inaugural Nurse of the Year Award in Wales. These awards demonstrate that turning to nurses is indeed the solution to many challenges. Nursing is about leadership and it is about caring. The two should be inseparable. If we do not care then we are not nursing and we must as nurses lead the way in ensuring caring is at the heart of what we do."
The Deputy Lord Mayor of Cardiff, Councillor Keith Jones said: "I was delighted to take part in the Wales Nurse of the Year Awards, an event that seeks to both identify and reward nursing staff and their organisations that have delivered tangible innovations and improvements in health care to the citizens of Wales. The proven success of nursing staff in maintaining the highest quality of patient care in this challenging environment is testimony to their dedication and professionalism. Many congratulations to Louise, all the award winners and shortlisted nominees."
RCN Wales Overall Nurse of the Year Award
Winner
Louise Poley
Nurse Consultant for Substance Misuse
Cardiff & Vale University Health Board
Runner-up
Lisa Franklin
Professional and Practice Development Nurse
Cardiff & Vale University Health Board
Community Nursing Award
Winner
Jane Brunsdon
Team Manager
Aneurin Bevan Health Board
Runner-up
Elizabeth Howlett
Respiratory Nurse Facilitator – Primary Care, Community Resource Team, Primary Care and Localities Directorate, Cwm Taf Local Health Board
Registered Nurse (Adult) Award
Winner
Lisa Franklin
Health visiting team co-ordinator
Cardiff & Vale University Health Board
Runner-up
Jenny Anne Buckley
Ward Sister, University Hospital Llandough
Cardiff & Vale University Health Board
Nursing Student Award
Winner
Georgina Hobson
Learning Disabilities Student
Bangor University
Runner-up
Anthony Green
Learning Disabilities Student
Bangor University
Health Care Support Worker Award
Winner
Tracey Davies
Tissue Viability Health Care Support Worker
Hywel Dda Health Board
Runner-up
Claire Smith
Child and Family Health Care Support Worker
Aneurin Bevan Health Board
Clinical Nurse Specialist Award
Winner
Nicola West
Nurse Consultant Breast Cancer
Cardiff & Vale University Health Board
Runner-up
Vicki Myson
Lead Clinical Nurse Specialist for Epilepsy
Cardiff & Vale University Health Board
Mental Health and Learning Disabilities Award
Winner
Louise Poley
Consultant Nurse for Substance Misuse
Cardiff & Vale University Health Board
Runner-up
Sali Burns
Mental Health Nurse/Group Therapist
Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board
Children and Midwifery Award
Winner
Maureen Jones
Hywel Dda Health Board
Winner
Irfon Williams
Child and Adolescent Service Manager
Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board
Chief Nursing Officer for Wales
Winner
Tanya Strange
Senior Nurse, Care Home Governance & Contracting, Continuing NHS Care
Aneurin Bevan Health Board
Runner-up
Jill Galvani
Director of Nursing
Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board
Nursing Innovation and Research Award
Winner
Phedra Dodds
Gastrointestinal Nurse Practitioner
Abertawe BroMorgannwg University Health Board
Runner-up
Liz Waters
Lead Nurse for Infection Prevention and Control Team
Aneurin Bevan Health Board