Congratulations to our Children’s Hospital@Home team, who was honoured with the LaingBuisson Award for Excellence in Nursing Practice last week.
The Service was also a finalist for Best in Healthcare Outcomes in the LaingBuisson Awards, and in the HSJ Awards for Primary and Community Innovation. This recognition is a cause for celebration and a reflection of the team’s dedication to innovative, community-centred care.
The Children’s Hospital at Home service is a One Bromley partnership initiative led by Bromley Healthcare, in collaboration with paediatrics team at the Princess Royal University Hospital (PRUH), and the South East London Integrated Care Board (SEL ICB).
We would like to share our huge congratulations to the nursing team for their prestigious win: to Cait Lewis (Service Lead) and Gemma Robinson (Clinical Lead), for exceptional leadership and eagerness to drive healthcare innovation. And to Jess Sellar (Senior Staff Nurse), Zoe Beyerman (Senior Staff Nurse), Kelly Frogbrook (Senior Staff Nurse), and Racheal Goodwin (Senior Staff Nurse) for the exceptional care, expertise and compassion they bring to children and young people at home, and for the difference they are making to the lives of families in Bromley.
The team were commended by the panel judges: “This is an excellent example of innovation and adaptation as a result of Covid challenges but also of a vision of how care can be delivered differently. The quantitative and qualitative outcomes were well-articulated and impressive.”
The team’s expertise and compassion have significantly improved the lives of many young patients and their families in Bromley. Since its start in 2021, the service has avoided 956 unnecessary hospital admissions, saved nearly £1 million, which can be invested into other patient services, and spared families 2,100 days in hospital.
It’s the personal stories that truly measure the impact. From providing comfort to families during challenging times to enabling children to manage their treatments from home, the difference we make is profound and lasting. Hear our families’ stories:
Cait Lewis, Service Lead, says:
“We are so thrilled to have won the LaingBuisson Award for Excellence in Community Nursing. The service is such an innovative way of working collaboratively to care for families, and it’s incredible to see the benefits from treating children and families in the comfort of their own home. Children recuperate better in their own environment, where there is less risk of infection. They tend to eat and sleep better at home, which reduces the stress on the family and has a positive financial impact.
For the Community Nursing team at Bromley Healthcare, who provide the care to families in their home, this has given the opportunity to complete advanced assessment skills training for the Advanced Clinical Practitioner course. This extra knowledge and training is not only facilitating the development of more Advanced Clinical Practitioners, but also the level of excellent care our nurses are providing.
Looking ahead, the service is set to expand, including the introduction of home treatments for jaundice in neonatal babies, which will further reduce the need for hospital stays. As we move into winter, the team also preparing to integrate the service with primary care, allowing GPs to refer directly to the service.”
This initiative represents a step forward in our commitment to innovative, integrated care, and we are excited about the positive changes it promises for our community.