Lakes DHB house officer Dr Shawn Gielen-Relph won the staff award for a resident medical officer.
Dr Gielen has shown a commitment to service improvement by identifying opportunities to improve patient care. This has been demonstrated in his support for the junior doctors' improvement group and his commitment to audit, with his involvement in a range of audits including over the year in a range of areas.
Other contenders in this category were Alice Hawkins, Miriam van den Boom a Anthony Hall.
There was a strong line-up of nine nominations for the administration staff award with the entire clinical records team named the winner. The team members are hard working, with limited visibility across the DHB about what goes on in the clinical records department. The team members work well together, ensuring that a seamless service is provided to hospital staff and to outside agencies requesting information.
Other contenders in this category were Jo Scott; Karen Wrigley; Anne Kiel; Irene Rangiwhetu; Lynda Cantel; Johanna Marsden; Payroll Team; Outpatient referral centre: Debbie Waretini, Debbie Devereaux and Charlotte Harman; Lyndsay Paterson; Rachael Morrison; Beryl Harris.
The award for an allied health practitioner who has consistently gone beyond the call of duty went to Jenni McGowan, charge hospital play specialist. During the 10 years in her role McGowan has shown total dedication to all the children and their whanau during their hospital journeys. She works alongside children providing procedural play, distraction techniques and general play activities, helping to ease fear and anxiety for youngsters having a procedure done, or just having to be in the hospital environment.
Other contenders in this category were: Jason Sayers; Caroline Williams; Kim Setters.
The non-clinical support award was won by purchasing officer Gilly Hewson. Her line manager is often contacted by staff commenting on Hewson's conscientious and professional role. This year saw her covering extended sick leave of the other purchasing staff member, Donna Rolleston who died in October. Hewson picked up the additional workload without complaint, unfazed by areas of work she was unfamiliar with.
Her dedication to her work, her concern for her customers and ultimately patients, showcases her complete professionalism and dedication to her role makes her most deserving of this award.
Other contenders in this category were: Sally Hurihanganui; Jono Matthews; Tanya Taylor.
There were four categories in the quality section of the awards ceremony, Patient Safety and Clinical Effectiveness, Quality and Clinical Innovation, Patient Experience and Integrated Health. All the initiatives submitted into the Lakes DHB Quality Account 2016/17 were forwarded to the judging team to review and select their choice of winner for each of the four categories.
Midwife Kay Towers won the patient safety and clinical effectiveness award for her initiative the Inverted Uterus - Emergency Treatment Box. The initiative aimed to improve the response time to clinical emergency situations, by making the treatment box more user-friendly and kept up to date. Towers was not present at the ceremony.
Diabetes educator Lewese Hicks won the quality and clinical innovation award for her work on the DAFNE Project. This initiative has provided a validated, structured and reproducible diabetes education programme to empower people with type 1 diabetes.
The programme educates them on their condition and enables them to live as normally as possible, in terms of changes of diet, being able to exercise and helping them cope with variability in insulin requirements caused by daily living. Taupo facility manager Angela Guy accepted the award on Hicks' behalf.
Midwife Lisa Kennedy won the patient experience award for her Cleft Lip and Palate Guideline Project. Kennedy created a guideline and a resource box that helps to familiarise midwives and nurses on what a cleft palate is, how to diagnose and where to refer to.
Esthe Davis and the Mental Health Services for Older People won the integrated healthcare award for their initiative of streamlining management for a client presenting with complex needs. The initiative can reduce unnecessary client contacts and duplication of services and ensure safe consistent care is provided to the client.
The Quality Awards were established in 2008 to raise awareness of health initiatives in the Lakes district, and showcase continuous quality. The awards have since evolved to include staff awards for excellence and post-graduate scholarships. Money invested from a substantial bequest received from the estate of Mr G. Stolwyk is used to fund awards and clinical scholarships recognising excellence amongst the groups providing health services to the Lakes district.
Chaplaincy Administrator Alison Lamberton was awarded a 'good sorts' award in recognition of her role in supporting Chaplain Ray Bloomfield and the Chaplaincy Team.
