Kettering General Hospital’s Ophthalmology team wins national award for Covid-19 response

The Ophthalmology team at Kettering General Hospital has won a prestigious national Cavell Star Award for its flexibility and unstinting dedication to patients during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Cavell Nurses Trust supports nurses in times of difficulty and awards its Cavell Star Awards to individuals and teams who shine bright and show exceptional care to patients, families and colleagues.

The 54-strong team was nominated by Arnold Aguila, Matron for Surgical Services at the hospital for how the team readily agreed to be redeployed to front line services like intensive care, infection control and other wards to support the hospital’s response against coronavirus.

Mr Aguilar said: “I nominated the team during the start of Covid-19 when most of them were redeployed to various wards or departments across the Trust without any hesitation or complaints. I was so impressed with their compassion and cooperation in supporting other wards – such as the intensive care unit – who needed additional staff. I am delighted they have won a Cavell Star Award for going above and beyond for their patients and colleagues.”

Leanne Hackshall, Director of Nursing and Quality at Kettering General Hospital said: “I am delighted the Ophthalmology Team has won this award. I congratulate them all for the way they have supported the Trust’s coronavirus response through redeployment and by keeping our emergency ophthalmology service running.

“I would also like to thank all of our hospital’s amazing nursing teams for the tremendous way they have responded to the challenge of the pandemic. Many have been redeployed to support other wards or faced considerable challenges and new ways of working during the Covid-19 pandemic. I am proud of them all.”

Kettering General Hospital covers a large part of the Northamptonshire area, with outpatient clinics in Corby, Wellingborough and Rushden, as well as Kettering General itself. The hospital has 600 beds and 17 theatres, employs around 4,000 staff and is one of the largest employers in Northampton.

The Trust’s ophthalmology service – which treats thousands of patients with all kinds of eye problems each year – has continued to provide an emergency service during the pandemic but much of its routine work has needed to be paused, enabling staff to be redeployed to other areas.

Kettering General Hospital recently launched a new campaign to recruit city-based registered nurses, across different specialities that are looking for better work-life balance in a more affordable area, but with excellent career progression in a smaller, community hospital. To search and apply for nursing vacancies at Kettering General Hospital, please click here.

The hospital is also one of the key partners in the ‘Best of Both Worlds’ recruitment campaign. The campaign brings together the University of Northampton, Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, Northampton General Hospital, Kettering General Hospital (KGH), St Andrew’s Healthcare and Northants GP and aims to recruit nurses, doctors and healthcare professionals to live and work in Northamptonshire.

To find out about vacancies across Northamptonshire, including Kettering visit http://bestofbothworlds.uk.net/