Children's Nursing & Midwifery Award

Nursing and midwifery play a key role in ensuring children receive the best start in life, those working in this field must consider the care and support needs of the wider family as well as the child.

Open to registered nurses and registered midwives working in services for children and young people and maternity services. This award aims to recognise those who have made an outstanding contribution to the care of children or young people or the care of mothers-to-be and new parents.

A registered children’s nurse, health visitor, school nurse, midwife, and all others working in a clinical role or managing a clinical service in children's healthcare.

NHS Fife

Described by colleagues as a team which goes above and beyond, the central Fife based Children and Young People’s Community Nursing Service support and care for children, and their families, who are diagnosed with complex and severe health conditions. The team also provide palliative support for patients who are unable to access the specialist services of an urban setting. The team prides itself on being a strong voice for the children and families they serve, advocating to ensure they get the same level of care that a child in a big city would receive. One of their innovations included setting up a multi-disciplinary team approach to supporting enteral feeding at home with a one stop clinic to ensure care is joined up and seamless across the specialities. They also developed a ‘near me’ virtual clinic during the pandemic to support their vulnerable patients who could not attend appointments. The team’s goal is to demonstrate the value of good community children’s nursing and to encourage the nurses of the future to join the service and continue the legacy they have created.

Children's Community Nursing Team, NHS Dumfries & Galloway

Described by their colleagues as a team that makes a positive difference during the worst time of a child and parent’s life. The Capella Team ensures that children and their families living within a remote and rural area receive the most appropriate and peaceful end of life care in the absence of a specialist palliative care team. With access to more urban hospices limited, the team seek to ensure a family centred approach to care, listening to all individual’s needs and adapting to ensure that they can support a good death, supporting the family throughout the process. The team run the service outwith their day job at the Crichton Royal Hospital, and with management support, they are able to backfill roles to release them to run the Capella service when it is needed. The team thrive on being able to make one small difference that can have such a positive impact and hope to share this learning across Scotland’s rural community teams.

Clinical Nurse Specialist Team Lead Paediatric Disability, Renfrewshire HSCP (Now working as Child Health Manager for West Argyll)

Described by her colleagues as a shining example of community children’s nursing, Brenda has dedicated her nursing career to caring for children with a disability. With care and compassion, she champions the children and their families in her care to enable improvements in health outcomes and their quality of life. A team leader for a small yet dynamic team, Brenda leads with a can-do attitude, motivating her team and empowering them to advocate for the patients they care for. Brenda’s commitment to future proofing the disability service has led to newly qualified nurses joining the team ensuring the care needs are met now and into the future. Working within the national neurodiversity pathway, Brenda set up two streams for pre-school and school age children, ensuring the nurse is the first point of contact with the ability to prioritise urgent need. Brenda empowers parents and carers to be part of the care journey, playing an active part in decisions around care needs. Her ultimate goal is to ensure that children with disabilities are not invisible and to continue to promote the requirement for services such as hers, to enable children with a disability to live full lives.

If you have any questions or queries regarding the awards, please get in touch by emailing scotlandnurseawards@rcn.org.uk

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