Mid West team wins HSE Excellence Award for collaborative innovation in healthcare
An innovative HSE Mid West self-care project devised in collaboration with service-users in the region has won the ‘Right Care, Right Place, Right Time: Sláintecare’ at the HSE Excellence Awards in Farmleigh House, Dublin’s Phoenix Park.
The winning project is ‘My Perinatal Self Care – Taking Care of Me’, which was devised by personnel and service-users at the Specialist Perinatal Mental Health Service at University Maternity Hospital Limerick, Mid West ARIES and Mental Health Services in the region.
This was just one of a number of awards presented at the recent national HSE Excellence Awards, a showcase and celebration of the great work that happens every day across our health service. The awards aim to encourage and inspire health service staff to develop and improve care and services for patients.
‘My Perinatal Self Care – Taking Care of Me’ is the brainchild of Mid West ARIES, Mental Health Services and the Specialist Perinatal Mental Health team at University Maternity Hospital Limerick (UMHL), co-produced with SPMH service-users.
The project, encompassing a workbook, companion course, audiobook and animations. In its audiobook form—freely available at https://tinyurl.com/Perinatal-Self-Care-Audiobook—it provides an accessible ‘any place, any time’ option for those who wish to make use of the resource while on the go or at home. The project emerged from the feedback of participants in a workshop on perinatal self-care, which included requests for resources and practical support on implementing a daily self-care routine.
WATCH: learn more about ‘My Perinatal Self Care – Taking Care of Me’ here: https://youtu.be/dVxqe4JiW9k
Welcoming the news, project lead, Michael O’Neill, Manager, Mid West ARIES, said: “We are delighted that our co-produced recovery education initiative has been recognised at the HSE Excellence Awards – the first project of its kind to achieve this distinction. We are particularly proud to have won in the Sláintecare category, reflecting the principles of “right care, right place, right time.” I would like to take this opportunity to thank our team for their dedication to delivering excellence in education and the women who helped to co-produce the resources included in the programme. We could not have done this without your support.”
The HSE Mid West team shares the ‘Right Care, Right Place, Right Time’ award with joint winners, the Meath Specialist Lymphoedema Clinic in the HSE Dublin and North East healthcare region.
A diverse range of other innovative projects were entered into this year’s awards, including:
Standardising practice for public health nurses visits for postnatal care
New ways of working to support hospital avoidance for COPD patients
Reduction in wound infection in patients undergoing invasive vessel harvesting
New localised supports for climate action change
Bernard Gloster, HSE CEO, commending all the winners, said, “These awards create the opportunity to show innovation and creativity, which ultimately improves the services that we provide. Well done and thank you to all those short-listed as well as the winners. It is your work that helps pave the way to a brighter future for Ireland’s health service.”
Anne Marie Hoey, HSE Chief People Officer, highlighting the positive outcomes achieved, said, “As well as providing an opportunity to recognise the great work of staff and teams across our wide range of services, the Excellence Awards is an important channel to share learnings with our colleagues across the health service.
“Through this pooling of knowledge and expertise, the projects inspire a sense of staff pride, teamwork and collaboration. This will positively impact the overall environment for our staff whilst improving outcomes for the people who rely on our care and support.”