A HAMPSHIRE Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust staff member has been celebrated at a national award ceremony.

Marc Berry, a programme manager for the transformation team at Hampshire Hospitals has been recognised for his work with the therapy teams at Basingstoke hospital reducing the number of avoidable admissions in the emergency department (ED).

The Chief Allied Health Professions Officers Awards highlight and celebrate the contribution made by allied health professionals (AHPs) to improving health, care and wellbeing for patients and communities and Mr Berry picked up the award for AHP Quality Improvement,

The project looked at reducing avoidable admissions in patients over 65-years-old in the ED and Basingstoke hospital through an effective use of therapy staff to identify patients who may not need to be admitted into hospital.

Elderly patients who remain as inpatients in hospital for prolonged periods of time are at risk of losing up to five per cent of their muscle strength per day.

Making these admission decisions at the front door in ED with the help of medical and therapy services mean patients should be in the best place for them, which often may be at home.

The reduction in admissions also ensures that beds remain available for those with a greater need to receive hospital care.

Marc said: “It’s a huge honour to have won and to represent Hampshire Hospitals nationally. Even though I won, this award is for the acute therapy team at Basingstoke who have worked so hard and passionately to test and try new ways of working and make positive changes.

“This initiative has really brought the whole team together and empowered staff to have a say in how their services work, which is fantastic. I am looking forward to supporting more projects like this so that as a trust we are continuing to provide outstanding patient care that works as well for our staff as it does for our patients.”

Donna Green, chief nurse of Hampshire Hospitals, which runs hospitals in Andover, Basingstoke and Winchester, said: “Huge congratulations to Marc and the whole team behind the award for their win. I am so proud of all of the work our staff do to continually ensure they are providing the best possible patient care and am excited to see what other fantastic initiatives will result from our QI programme.”