Australian Nursing Awards Finalists Announced

[caption id="attachment_7632" align="alignright" width="200"] Anne-Marie Corboy[/caption]
Fifteen finalists have been announced in the 2014 Hesta Australian Nursing Awards.
Now in their eighth year, the annual nursing awards recognise nurses, midwives, personal care attendants and assistants in nursing who excel in service provision, innovation and leadership in the categories of Nurse of the Year, Outstanding Graduate and Team Innovation.
HESTA CEO, Anne-Marie Corboy, said this year’s finalists were handpicked from hundreds of applications.
“All these finalists have shown extraordinary dedication and commitment to improving the quality of patient care in a variety of health care settings. We’re proud to give these professionals the acknowledgement they deserve.”
Nurse of the Year finalists for 2014 are:
• Sandy Schutte (Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital, Melbourne, Vic) for leading improvements in the quality of care for elderly patients and reducing patient transfers to the nearby acute hospital.
• Deborah Lee Tunbridge (Princess Margaret Hospital for Children, Subiaco, WA) for her high level of observant care and commitment to children with lupus and juvenile arthritis and their families.
• Lara Tramacco (BlueScope, Port Kembla, NSW) for tailoring and delivering a mental health awareness campaign to the company’s 3,500 employees.
• Stephen Brown (Melbourne Health’s NorthWestern Mental Health, Epping, Vic) for his role developing an enhanced crisis care system that allows people living with mental illness to be seen by nurses and police at home.
• Cindy Stoupas (St George Hospital, Kogarah, NSW) for demonstrating better ways to manage critical-needs clients with mental illness and cognitive impairment, through team engagement, driving culture-shift, and improving quality of service.
Outstanding Graduate finalists for 2014 are:
• Michelle Buchanan (Peel Health Campus, Mandurah, WA) for initiating a project to examine and improve the management of intravenous cannulas by staff in the emergency department.
• Duncan Maughan (Alfred Health, Melbourne, Vic) for his intelligent approach to clinical research and implementation, and demonstrated impact on quality outcomes and service.
• Tanya De La Cruz (St John of God Murdoch Hospital, Perth, WA) a motivated graduate who excels in clinical care of complex patients and advocates on their behalf.
• Jen McHarg (The Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne, Vic) for activating a project to provide children with a more normal routine despite long periods of hospitalisation improving service and delivery.
• Zoe Sabri (Royal District Nursing Service, Springvale, Vic) for high levels of patient engagement and providing outstanding primary care to a culturally diverse community.
Team Innovation finalists for 2014 are:
• Blue Care South Coast Cluster Team (Qld) for introducing and analysing the benefits of the therapeutic Play Up™ Program for clients with dementia across seven residential aged care facilities in Queensland and northern New South Wales.
• Behaviour Assessment Management Service (BAMS) Team (Northern Sydney Local Health District, NSW) for improving the acute hospital care of people with behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia.
• Apunipima P?pi-pod® Program Team (Apunipima Cape York Health Council, Qld) for assisting Indigenous families at higher risk of sudden unexpected deaths in infants (SUDI) and using local networks to spread broader health promotion messages.
• eSimulation Program Team (Prince of Wales Hospital, NSW) for providing an interactive multimedia learning environment for non-mental health specialists.
• Western Desert Dialysis Service Team (Alice Springs, NT) for extending a life-saving dialysis service to remote Indigenous communities to reach seven sites across the Northern Territory and Western Australia.
HESTA Australian Nursing Awards winners will be announced on Thursday, 8 May 2014