A DONEGAL woman was part of a team that has won a prestigious national healthcare award.
Nicola Perry from Lough Eske in Donegal Town and her colleagues in the diabetes antenatal team at Altnagelvin Hospital won the Quality Improvement and Innovation Award at the British Medical Journal Awards (BMJ), which were held virtually this week.
Nicola is pictured centre, right with other members of the team. Picture taken pre-Covid
The team won the award for their innovation in caring for women with gestational diabetes.
The Team, led by Dr Athinyaa Thiraviaraj, claimed the award in a highly-contested category with hundreds of applicants across the UK. They overcame competition from five other finalists from across the UK.
The Team offers joint antenatal and diabetes care for women with diabetes in pregnancy.
Gestational Diabetes increases the risk of complications in pregnancy for mother and baby. It is a growing public health concern that affects 8 to 14 percent of pregnancies annually in the Derry/Londonderry area.
The team is multi-disciplinary in nature and is made up of consultants in Obstetrics and Diabetes, midwives, diabetes specialist nurses, diabetes specialist dietitians, administrative staff, health care assistants and service managers.
The team was mobilised through the ‘Big Room’ concept, facilitated by the Flow Coaching methodology. A Big Room meeting provided a space and platform for everyone involved in providing this service to meet regularly, including users of the service.
The team met weekly to continuously evaluate and improve the care experience of ladies with GDM, whilst removing inefficiencies in the process.
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