Hospital Heroes: Patients praise Oxford University Hospitals Trust staff for transforming their lives

Hospital staff and their loved ones gathered at Oxford Town Hall on Wednesday to celebrate those at the Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (OUHT) who have gone the extra mile for those in need.

Cheers, roars and booming rounds of applause echoed across the glistening St Aldate’s hall when the winners of the Oxford Mail’s Hospital Heroes awards were revealed.

OUHT non-executive director Geoff Salt told guests the awards were a great way to praise medical staff who go above and beyond their call of duty.

He added: “The awards provide the opportunity for our patients, their carers, and the communities we serve to say a public thank you to those individuals and teams who have been truly special, often heroic, at times of greatest need and distress.

“We are delighted as a trust to join with the Oxford Mail to showcase our hospital heroes.”

It was the third time the Oxford Mail has teamed up with the trust to mark the extraordinary work of staff at Oxford’s John Radcliffe and Churchill hospitals, as well as the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre and Banbury’s Horton Hospital.

Readers had the chance to nominate people working across the trust’s sites – from nurses, midwives, porters, consultants, healthcare assistants, volunteers and all those behind-the-scenes, who made a real difference in their lives. Nominations were open in two categories – the Hospital Heroes Individual Award and the Hospital Heroes Team Award.

OUHT chief executive Bruno Holthof then joined the Oxford Mail to take part in the difficult task of whittling down a shortlist of 10 and selecting the winners.

The Churchill Hospital’s upper gastrointestinal team was crowned winners of the team award after being nominated by Zoe Patrick for helping her fight oesophageal cancer.

But in a unique turn-of-events, two people were jointly crowned winners of the individual award, with John Radcliffe Hospital nursing assistant Tracey Roberts and consultant orthopaedic surgeon Bob Sharp named champions.

Speaking at the ceremony, the Oxford Mail’s managing editor Sara Taylor said: “It was incredibly difficult this year to choose an overall winner, so I did not choose one, I chose two.”

Regional editor for Newsquest Oxfordshire and Wiltshire Gary Lawrence told guests of the huge admiration he had for the trust’s medics after having two children born at the John Radcliffe Hospital.

He added: “I’m really really pleased to be doing these awards. I think all the staff I have ever encountered are fantastic. I think what you do is wonderful.

“My mother’s been in hospital recently and I have been there with her and I have seen it first hand. Thank you so much for being so wonderful.”

TEAM WINNERS
Nurse sister Gill Dyer said the upper gastrointestinal team felt “humbled” after being named as the county’s Hospital Heroes.

The medics, who are based at the Churchill Hospital, were nominated by county councillor for Grove and Wantage, Zoe Patrick.

Grandmother-of-one Mrs Patrick said she feared for her life when she was diagnosed with oesophageal cancer earlier this year but was given the all-clear in time for her 63rd birthday in May.

• Team prize: Newsquest Oxfordshire and Wiltshire regional editor Gary Lawrence, centre, with upper gastrointestinal team members Gill Dyer, left, and Sasha Causton, second right. The teams was nominated by Zoe Patrick, right 

Speaking after being named the winners of the Hospital Heroes Team Award, Mrs Dyer said: “It’s brilliant. It’s nice to know our work is appreciated because the whole team work really hard.We value our patients’ care, and to us that’s so important.

“For Zoe Patrick to recognise that and our team’s work, is incredible. We do this day in day out so having somebody nominate us is very humbling.”

Mrs Patrick said she nominated the team for their round-the-clock care which helped get her back on her feet, and said their “personal touch” was key to her swift recovery.

An endoscopy in January revealed she had a tumour in the middle of her oesophagus and she was diagnosed with oesophageal cancer the following month.

She had an eight-and-a-half-hour operation at the Churchill Hospital to remove the tumour before spending one night in the intensive care unit and three weeks on the hospital’s upper gastrointestinal centre ward before returning home cancer-free.

ALSO ON THE SHORTLIST
Hospital Heroes Team Award
* Andrew Brent and the microbiology team at the Horton Hospital, nominated by Sadie Reynolds after helping her through a “mystery” illness.
* Consultant Jane Collier and the hepatology team at the John Radcliffe, nominated by Nicola Lunnon after supporting her through her battle with hepatitis C.
* Churchill Hospital’s Ward 15 urology team, nominated by Gita Konschak after they helped care for her father who had prostate cancer.
* The Jane Ashley Colorectal Centre at the Churchill was nominated by Claire Palmer after they supported her while on the ward for two weeks.

Hospital Heroes Individual Award
* Orthopaedic technician Jacqui Halliday, of the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre, was nominated by Sandra Jones, who she cared for over 10 months.
* Paediatric consultant Kokila Lakhoo, of the Children’s Hospital, was nominated by Lynn Bailey after her daughter developed a facial birthmark.
* Professor of colorectal surgery Neil Mortensen, who works across all the sites, was nominated by Beryl Wright, who was diagnosed with colon disease.

• Individual heroes: Oxford Mail managing editor Sara Taylor, centre, presents awards to joint winners Tracey Roberts, second left, who was nominated by Fraser Proudfoot, left, and Bob Sharp, who was nominated by Jamie Williams, right

INDIVIDUAL WINNER ONE
Nursing assistant Tracey Roberts said she was “blown away” after being awarded the Hospital Heroes Individual Award.

The 38-year-old Marston resident was nominated by Fraser Proudfoot for the care and compassion she showed his grandfather Tony, who suffers with dementia.

Miss Roberts said: “I was absolutely blown away. It’s not about me getting the award, it’s about the patients I look after. It’s to share with them. I love my job.”

Mr Proudfoot said his grandfather was taken to the John Radcliffe Hospital’s emergency assessment unit in June when he became very confused and dehydrated due to an infection.

But he said Miss Roberts, who has worked at the Headington hospital for almost 11 years, treated his grandfather with “real compassion” and helped him regain some of his independence.

INDIVIDUAL WINNER TWO
A medic who helped his patient continue living life to the full was named as one of our Hospital Heroes.

Consultant orthopaedic surgeon Bob Sharp was nominated by Jamie Williams, 23, who said she felt “eternally grateful” he helped saved her legs from amputation.

She feared she would be left wheelchair-bound as a teenager after a bone deformity condition began to worsen.

But she said Mr Sharp’s continued care enabled her to live a “normal life”.

He said: “I feel humbled. It’s really fantastic to work at the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre. It should be Jamie getting the award for her attitude to life in the face of adversity.” 

Miss Williams was diagnosed with spina bifida at the age of two and developed Charcot Foot, which weakens bone and causes deformities in the feet and ankles.