Health chief rewards nurses during visit

Topics ranged from from the emphasis on looking after people in their own homes to recruiting more people into the profession.

The recently-issued NHS Forward Plan places new emphasis on nursing and caring for patients in their own homes because research proves people recover, or manage their illnesses better, when they feel safe and comfortable at home.

A Leeds Community Healthcare NHS spokesman said: “In Leeds, a new plan to integrate community and general practice nursing will help support this approach.

“Bringing the two together will reduce duplication of work, encourage innovation, expand career opportunities and help make sure that there are enough staff to continue to provide high quality care in the community.

Dr May - who was appointed to the post of Chief Nursing Officer for England in January - spent last night with Leeds Community Healthcare NHS Trust nurses to see some of the work they do at night.

She spent more than an hour with the Neighbourhood Team in Middleton and accompanied team members on a visit to a care home.

Then she went to Elland Road Police Custody Suite to learn about the role of the nursing team which works alongside Police colleagues.

Dr May also made special presentations to nurses at LCH - June Wilson for Lifetime Achievement, following a long career in nursing and a team award, which went to the Police Custody Nursing team at LCH, for delivering high standards of care in a challenging environment.

Steph Lawrence, LCH’s newly appointed Executive Director of Nursing and Allied Health Professionals, said: “Ruth May was quick to accept our invitation to visit.

“We’ve been proudly showing her the high standards of care we give to patients in the community.

“And we’ve been telling her about our exciting plans for developing integrated, community-based nursing in the city.

“We’re really grateful to her for making the special presentations to two of our hard-working nurses.

“I’m sure they’ll remember Ruth’s visit for quite some time!” she added.

Chief Nursing Officer Ruth May said: “It was wonderful to see great community nursing in action across Leeds.

“I was delighted to present awards to staff at LCH for their impressive leadership and contributions to nursing in their communities.”