A number of healthcare organisations and private medical device companies were singled out for praise in the annual awards, including Yorkshire-based Inditherm, a specialist in heating and warming applications, which picked up the Suppliers Delivering Sustainability award.

 

Judged by senior Department of Health and NHS managers, the award acknowledged the improvements delivered by Inditherm’s innovative patient warming systems, which are helping the health service to address the problem of hypothermia during surgery.

 

Inditherm chief executive, Nick Bettles, receives an award from John Warrington, deputy director of policy and research at the Department of Health, and ceremony celebrity host, comedian Rufus Hound

 Effective warming during anaesthesia is widely recognised as helping to reduce blood loss, cut infection rates and recovery times and even prevent death. In fact, figures published recently by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) suggest that if the Inditherm system was introduced to all UK hospitals, savings of £10m could be achieved by the NHS every year.

 

The award also acknowledges the environmental advantages of the company’s patented carbon polymer technology over traditional forced air warming, which could save the NHS more than 3,000MWh of energy and reduce clinical waste by more than 200 tonnes a year.

 

Speaking after the awards ceremony, Inditherm’s chief executive, Nick Bettles, told HES: “The award clearly recognises the contribution our patient warming systems can offer to hospitals. It shows that Inditherm technology offers the perfect solution to reduce costs while helping meet NICE guidelines and save the environment. This must be attractive to the NHS in the current economic climate.”

 

The Community Partnerships Awards are held annually to recognise efforts by both the public and private sectors to regenerate struggling communities and tackle key health issues.

 

Other health-related winners were Cardiff and Vale University Local Health Board, which won Best Social Care Partnership and the award for Tackling Health Inequalities; Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust, which won the Community Cohesion gong; and North East Lincolnshire Care Trust Plus, which got the award for Healthy Communities.

 

In addition, Cornwall Healthcare Estates and Support Services (CHESS) picked up the Best Procurement Partnership prize for the Cornwall Food Programme, an initiative which aims to meet the food supply needs of the Cornish health service by encouraging local producers, suppliers and distributors to tender for NHS contracts. As a result, a significant percentage of Cornish produce is used in patient, visitor and staff meals at buildings run by the Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust.

 

Accepting the award, Roy Heath, sustainable food development manager for CHESS, said: “This is wonderful news for the Cornwall Food Programme and I hope it offers encouragement to other NHS trusts who are considering similar projects, with Cornwall showing that it is achievable.” 

Lezli Boswell, chief executive of Cornwall Partnership NHS Trust, added: “I am delighted this initiative, which is hosted by the trust, has won this prestigious award. Ensuring patients receive the best nutrition is a significant factor in their recovery and the food programme also helps to ensure the sustainability of local businesses, which is particularly important in the current financial climate.”

As well as the winners, a number of commendations were also handed out. Health-related organisations to receive a nod included NHS Peterborough’s community services HIV/AIDS service in the Best Social Care Partnership category and Heart of Birmingham PCT, which was highly commended in the Healthy Communities category.

For more on the winners and the event, click on the link

Community Partnerships Awards