NHS Ayrshire & Arran unveils 18 heroes who have gone above and beyond
NHS Ayrshire & Arran's Ayrshire Achieves award finalists have been announced. A judging panel, consisting of staff, senior managers, sponsors, and trade union representatives, selected 18 finalists and overall winners in each category. Ayrshire Achieves award scheme provides an important opportunity for local people and NHS staff to recognise the exceptional contributions of health workers and volunteers who have gone above and beyond. There are six award categories, including behind the scenes, care and compassion, collaboration and working together, making a difference with digital, shining stars and thinking out of the box. Behind the scenes award, sponsored by NHS Credit Union, is for staff who make a real difference without most people knowing about it. This years finalists are clinical operations managers at University Hospitals Ayr and Crosshouse; GPs Dr Rachel Fraser and Dr Chris Black; Zoe Fance and the Procurement Team. Care and compassion award, sponsored by Unite, is for an individual or team who has demonstrated care and compassion towards colleagues or patients and their families with exceptional care, compassion, dignity and respect. This years finalists are Marita Higgins, care at home assistant at North Ayrshire Health and Social Care Partnership; Margaret McLean, suicide prevention lead at East Ayrshire Health and Social Care Partnership; and Audrey Christie, business manager at Public Health. Collaboration and working together award, sponsored by NHS Credit Union, is for a team who has demonstrated exceptional teamworking and collaboration. This year finalists are Urology Team at University Hospital Ayr – Prostate Cancer Care; Focus on Frailty Team; and Day Surgery Unit Team at University Hospital Crosshouse. Making a difference with digital award, sponsored by NHS Credit Union, is for an individual or team who is doing things differently using digital approaches. This year finalists are Dr Carol Overend, senior principal clinical psychologist – Clinical Lead Digital Therapies Team, North Ayrshire Community Mental Health Team; Kimberley Mills, team leader – Rapid Access Drug and Alcohol Recovery (RADAR) Service, East Ayrshire Health and Social Care Partnership; and Urology Oncology Team. Shining stars award, sponsored by Unite, is for an individual, team or volunteer who goes above and beyond what is expected of them. This year finalists are Lynn Forbes, addiction case worker; Gaynor Campbell, senior advanced nurse practitioner cardiology – Acute Care Unit / Cardiac Day Unit; and Lauren Mitchell, radiographer. Thinking outside the box award, sponsored by NHS Credit Union, is for an individual or team who has done something new or different; delivered innovation, reform, or found solutions against all the odds. This years finalists are Scottish Centre for Personal Safety; staying ahead of the curve Occupational Therapy Team; and East Ayrshire Children and Young People's Speech and Language Therapy Team. Claire Burden, Chief Executive of NHS Ayrshire & Arran said: "On behalf of the organisation, I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to everyone who took the time to nominate their health hero for an award. "I want to congratulate all the individuals and teams who were nominated. Every day, we hear stories of our dedicated staff going above and beyond. They do this not for recognition, but out of a commitment to providing safe, high-quality care. "Ayrshire Achieves is our opportunity to celebrate the excellence in health and social care across Ayrshire and Arran. So, congratulations to all our finalists, and I wish you the very best of luck." The winners of Ayrshire Achieves 2025 will be announced at an awards ceremony on Thursday, May 29, 2025 at University Hospital Ayr. Lesley Bowie, Chairperson of Ayrshire and Arran NHS Board will also present the Chairperson's award to the Clinical Development Fellow Programme, a programme she feels deserves special recognition for the work that they do. Claire Burden added: "Once again, we will be live-streaming the event on our YouTube channel, and will be sharing live updates on Facebook. So, make sure you tune in and support your health hero." Ayrshire Achieves is supported by NHS Ayrshire & Arran's Area Partnership Forum, and sponsored by NHS Credit Union, Unite, NHS Staff Benefits and the Royal College of Nursing. Don't miss the latest Ayrshire headlines – sign up to our free daily newsletter
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