Two Cheshire and Merseyside winners at NHS Parliamentary Awards

NHS staff in Cheshire and Merseyside have been recognised for their “outstanding contribution” at a national awards ceremony.

The 2024 NHS Parliamentary Awards were held in Westminster to celebrate the NHS heroes who go above and beyond in pursuit of making our National Health Service better, with two winners leading the way for Cheshire and Merseyside.

Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust’s Stroke Emergency Assessment Centre (SEAC) at Aintree Hospital and Consultant Neurosurgeon at The Walton Centre NHS Foundation Trust, Mr Nick Carlton-Bland, both took home the national prize.

The Stroke Emergency Assessment Centre was joint winner in the Excellence in Urgent and Emergency Care Award.

The pioneering service allows the area’s stroke patients to bypass busy emergency departments and be taken straight to a dedicated space to access specialist stroke care as quickly as possible.

Mr Nick Carleton-Bland, Consultant Neurosurgeon at The Walton Centre and his team were joint winners in the Excellence in Education and Training Award.

Nick Carleton-Bland is a lead in medical education and is also the NHS England Director for Online Training Programmes in Neurosurgery, taking a national role in developing neurosurgical training.

At The Walton Centre, he and his team are leading the way in the use of virtual reality in neurosurgery with the Neuro VR simulator – the UK’s only such piece of equipment, and one 30 in the world.

Meanwhile, the Addictions Service at Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust was highly commended in the Health Equalities Award category. The service is the first in the NHS to achieve Hepatitis C micro-elimination amongst service users.  

The annual awards, now in their sixth year, recognise the hard work and commitment of individuals and teams working across the health and care sector.

Find out more about the awards at www.nhsparliamentaryawards.co.uk