Nimbuscare’s running of the York vaccination programme has been recognized today with a host of hidden hero awards for its staff for ‘Outstanding Performance during the Pandemic’.

The Hidden Heroes initiative was established to identify some of the excellent individuals and teams who would otherwise go without recognition, as well as try to highlight this incredible work that too often goes unnoticed.

The awards were established by four companies who are playing a key role in Supporting General Practice with the pandemic: Dene Healthcare, Gama Healthcare, Interface Clinical Services and Practice Index.  Tom Jones of Dene Healthcare, who presented the awards, explained: “2020 was a hard year for most and sadly the amazing work being done in General Practice is too often overlooked. Nimbuscare is exactly the type of organisation we were hoping to identify and, in some small way, thank the team for their contribution during the most difficult period in modern times.”

Three members of the Nimbuscare team were chosen to receive the award, with a fourth award going to the whole Nimbuscare Vaccination Team.

The first to pick up his award was local GP partner Dr David Hammond. David has given a huge amount of time to the work – he has taken leave from his practice York Medical Group to work as part of the Nimbuscare team. He has led the on-site service, ensured the governance is at a high standard and helped the rest of the team feel safe. Prof Mike Holmes, Chair of Nimbuscare, said: “He has steadied the ship and gripped the governance early on, helping us set up emergency treatment rooms and making sure this site is safe. He has gone over and above the call of duty, even coming in on his days off with such an impressive level of commitment. Our service brings 11 practices together to work as a system and David’s contribution has made the collaboration work really well.”

Local York GP Dr Nick Bennett’s whose work at the York Local vaccination service and National Vaccination Centre has been exceptional, also received an award. Prof Holmes said: “Sometimes we see people emerge through simple dedication and commitment to a cause. Nick has almost been ever present here at the vaccination centre– he has helped develop the governance and processes – most of all, he has supported the people – from volunteers to admin staff, to trained nurses and doctors, to fit into the team and to vaccinate the population in their hundreds of thousands. He has now put himself forward for a full-time role at the vaccine service to lead it through the next 6 months as we vaccinate and protect the population. People like Nick really are the hidden heroes, as without them the service simply cannot function.”

The third award went to Lead Nurse and Director Michelle Phillips. Michelle was someone who engaged with everyone at the Askham Bar site from the very beginning, when Nimbuscare was doing flu vaccination at the site, said Prof Holmes. “Michelle has really shone in leading the vaccination team since then and ensured that everyone works together. Her attention to detail has been second to none. The vaccine programme has empowered her to aim high and during this period she has applied for, and been appointed to, a role on the board as Director of Quality and Patient Experience at Nimbuscare. This phenomenal performance and rise to director level really does merit recognition,” he said. “Just as important, Michelle kept our stomachs full throughout by baking and bringing in treats of all kinds for the teams!”

The final award was presented to the whole Nimbuscare Vaccination Team who have worked long hours putting in the response to Covid-19, developing and running both the national and local vaccination services at Askham Bar. The nomination included a huge number of healthcare professionals (many who work in addition to their regular employment), admin staff and those that work actively on the site and behind the scenes. 

Prof Mike Holmes said: “Receiving these awards we wanted to reflect on everything we have done here in York and thank everyone involved for their efforts in making it happen. We’ve now delivered over 200,000 vaccines – one in every 250 vaccines delivered in the UK has been delivered at this site. We’re incredibly grateful to everyone. Every single person in the team has contributed to this great achievement and has done so with a smile.”

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