Christina Riley, a staff nurse from Milton Keynes University Hospital, was recently announced as the deserving winner of the Emergency and Critical Care Award at the Nursing Times Awards 2017.
In a glittering ceremony held at the prestigious Grosvenor House, Park Lane on Thursday 2 November, nurses and organisations from across the profession were honoured across 23 categories in a night of recognition dedicated to celebrating exceptional achievement.
Following a rigorous judging process, Christina emerged as the winner of the Emergency and Critical Care Award for her work on the Hug in a Bag project. This aims to support women who have attended the Milton Keynes University Hospital emergency department after unfortunately suffering from a miscarriage.
The judges praised the initiative for being a simple, adaptable, transferrable and patient-centred project. They further described the idea as being thoughtful which took into consideration the privacy, dignity and human aspect of patient care.
Christina, now a Palliative Care Discharge Nurse at Milton Keynes University Hospital said, “I would like to say a huge thank you to everyone that has been involved in bringing this project to life. What started off as a nursing preceptorship concept to support patients at MKUH has been elevated into something that could be used to help women right across the country. The whole of the team working in the Emergency Department is delighted to be crowned the winner of this award and am thankful that the bag is able to offer some comfort to patients during their time of need.”
Chief Nurse and Director of Patient Care Lisa Knight commended Christina for her fantastic achievement. “To be presented with a Nursing Times Award, the most prestigious awards for nursing staff working in healthcare, is a brilliant achievement and we are all incredibly proud of Christina and the team who have helped her develop the Hug in a Bag project. Already this is making a real difference to our patients and I look forward to seeing how the initiative progresses over the coming weeks and months.”
Following their 27th year, the Nursing Times Awards are the most respected and relevant awards in the nursing and healthcare sector, representing true excellence in nursing and patient care.
