HOME INSTEAD SENIOR CARE ICHN AWARDS

PUBLIC HEALTH NURSES ROOTED DEEPLY IN THE COMMUNITY, REWARDED FOR OUTSTANDING SERVICES
23rd May 2018 – under embargo

Today, the Institute of Community Health Nursing (ICHN) hosted its 2018 community nurse awardsin associationwith Home Instead Senior Care, at its annual nursing conference, rewarding public health nurses for their dedication to community care across the country. 
 
This year the conference moved out of Dublin tothe Strand Hotel, Limerick, the theme of the conference was ‘New Horizons: Enhancing Clinical Practice in Community Nursing’ and aimed to provide a day of education, knowledge sharing and networking for public health nurses and an opportunity to take the time to reflect upon industry best practice and new innovations.
 
Six awards were presented to nominees who delivered exceptional care in their communities in 2016, across a range of services, enhancing the lives of many, and the community at large.
 
The overall winner was Anne Marie Kelly, CNS Continence Promotion Unit from Dr. Stephen’s Hospital in Dublin. Anne Marie has created a continence model based on national and international evidence. Her advocacy for her clients is unquestioned and her resolve in developing individualised care plans is excellent.
  
A lifetime achievement award was presented to Mary McDermott, the Director of Public Health Nursing in North Dublin, who has had a distinguished nursing career spanning decades, both within the community setting and abroad. From her early stages as an RGN, a midwife, and a young nurse who travelled abroad to work in Africa she has been dedicated to learning and honing her craft, helping patients through life changing moments from giving birth and recovery from illness
  
The other awards winners were Emer Casey Registered General Nurse Maynooth Co Kildare, Joint award winner Teresa O Dowd Registered General Nurse Lucan Health Centre Dublin and joint winners Aoife McEvoy Public Health Nurse Lucan Health Centre and Sandra Flaherty Public Health Nurse Lucan Health Centre.

ICHN President Ms Anne Lynott praised the winners for their inspiration and attitude towards nursing and care.
 
“Once again, the committee received an abundance of quality nominations of nurses implementing best practice, and often going beyond the line of duty. Your efforts have been acknowledged by your colleagues and peers who nominated you, and now, it is acknowledged publicly by the Institute. We are grateful to all our nurses, and especially those of you who lead by example, and we hope that others will continue to aspire to walk in the footsteps of such exemplary practice,” she commented.
 
Now in their fouth year, the awards are gratefully sponsored by Home Instead Senior Care, who, through their community offices, help to enhance the lives of the elderly by giving them the help, confidence and independence they need to live in their own homes for longer.
 
“We have worked with many of the nurses recognised and in attendance today, who truly go above and beyond to ensure accountability, safety, dignity, and peace of mind, in delivering care to their community clients. They have all helped to make their community a better place to grow old,” said Ed Murphy, CEO of Home Instead Senior Care.
 
For media enquiries please contact Ann-Marie Sheehan, Aspire PR, Telephone: 087 298 5569 / 01 8275181 or email annmarie@aspire-pr.com
 
Editor’s Notes
 
About Institute of Community Health Nursing
The Institute of Community Health Nursing is committed to raising the profile of the public health nursing service through research and international collaboration. The ICHN is a professional and educational body representing community nursing in the Republic of Ireland.
http://ichn.ie
 
About Home Instead Senior Care
Home Instead Senior Care is a network of 20 locally owned franchise offices, employing over 4,500 professional caregivers. Each office is managed by people living in the community, who together, have delivered over 1 million hours of care to more than 4,000 people nationwide. The purpose of Home Instead Senior Care is to help the elderly live in their own home for as long as possible. Their dedication to providing professional, high-quality care, as well as their companionship, enhances the lives of many elderly and allows them to continue to live at home in safety, and with dignity and independence.
www.homeinstead.ie
 
About Lifetime Achievement Winner Mary McDermott DPHN CHO 9
Director of Public Health Nursing in North Dublin, Mary has had a distinguished nursing career within the community setting and abroad. From her early stages as an RGN, midwifeand young nurse who worked in Africa, she has been dedicated to learning and helping patients through life changing moments from giving birth and recovery from illness. 

Mary started her career in Galwayin general nursing and then midwifery.She then travelledto Kenya, working with some of the world’s most vulnerable families.  
Her Community Nursing career saw her spend time working in Killbarrack Health Centre and within the District Care Unit (DCU). 

Mary was always on the forefront of change and innovation. DCU was the first incarnation of its kind, not unlike the Integrated care teams and Virtual Ward model of today, services that Mary played a key role in developing in North Dublin. 
Throughout her career Mary has been a huge support and advocate for the ICHN and has been actively involved over the years. 

Always pushing boundaries, Mary was instrumental in developing new services for Nursing within the community, offering nurses a chance to expand their scope of practice, become leaders and change advocates within the Community healthcare system. Mary has pioneered Nurse led developmental clinics for Child Health, Nurse led hospital avoidance initiatives such as Diabetic foot clinics, Integrated Catheter care programmes, Specialist Nursing services in wound care and Gerontological Nursing, to name but a few. Her passion for education extends to her unmitigated support of Nurses within her area, of which she has several, who have completed Masters level education and a few currently undertaking PHD/Doc levels studies. 

She has worked through challenging times of great change within the Health Service. Her passion for Health and Well-being extends beyond just clinical practice. She understands the importance of ‘taking care of the carers’ which sets her apart as Director of Public Health Nursing and has helped her face the challenges of her role as director withgrace and ease. 

Mary has been the driving force of education and research and has been a valued advocate for professional, personal and practice development - values synonymous with those of the ICHN. 
 
ICHN Nurse Award Winner 2018
Emer Casey Registered General Nurse Maynooth Co Kildare 
Emer demonstrates her ability to work in partnership with the patient, families, healthcare disciplines and voluntary agencies by advocating tirelessly on behalf of the patient. She has achieved excellent outcomesin a complex case as she worked alongside thevulnerable adult service, home care package and home help service over along period of time. It was Emer’s persistence in requesting and coordinating the services that allowed the patient to successfully stay in his own home with supports. Emer demonstrates a continuing commitment to the principles of excellent nursing care. Emer has completed a post graduate diploma in wound management and tissue viability from the Royal College of Surgeons Ireland. On completion of this, Emer runs a specialist wound management clinic in which she acts in a capacity to review and advise on wound care and accepts referrals from the PHNs and RGNs in Kildare. Emer is a role model for the patient, her junior colleagues and her peers. She mentors and teaches the BSc student placements in Maynooth Health Centre, assists the health care assistant and is a reliable support to her nursing colleagues.

Joint award winner Teresa O Dowd Registered General Nurse Lucan Health Centre Dublin

Teresa has been involved in establishing a nurse led continence clinic in Lucan. She has worked collaboratively with her PHN colleagues and the CNS CPU Dr Stevens. She is the lead clinician in the PHN dept in this practice area. Working closely with the DPHN Teresa has developed a continence care model with supporting guidelines to ensure that the service is quality assured. She believes that a patient centred approach leads to quality. Early evidence emerging from the continence clinic minimum data set is showing that patients are being treating successfully with many now continent. She has a wonderful ability and her cheerful attitude is a tonic both for managers, patients and staff. Most importantly she places the patient at the centre and works diligently to support them.

And 
Anne Marie Kelly CNS Continence Promotion Unit Dr Stevens Hospital (Also Overall Winner) 

Anne Marie works as a CNS in the CPU in Dr Stevens. Using her expertise as a CNS has been a wonderful support to Teresa and this is demonstrated by her attention to detail particularly in the care planning process. She and Teresa have created a continence model based on national and international evidence. Her advocacy for her clients is unquestioned and her resolve in developing individualised care plans is excellent. Anne Marie constantly strives to provide evidence based care. This is clearly demonstrated through the development of a Continence Care Model Paper to support the development of the nurse led clinic in Lucan PCT. Anne Marie was instrumental in finalising this document which she and her colleague Teresa are using in practice. Utilising HIQA and NMBI standards provides an overarching CQI and QA approach. This is now particularly relevant as the clinic is now being audited and evaluated. She has developed a number of day courses in continence care. 

Joint Award winner Aoife McEvoy Public Health Nurse Lucan Health Centre

Aoife  has worked across Primary Care Teams providing outstanding care to clients and families in the area of child and maternal health. She has embraced the principles of partnership both with families and patients. Since qualifying in 2015 she has led out on developing an infant massage programme working in partnership with her PHN colleague Sandra Flaherty PHN Lucan. She did this by undertaking post graduate training supported through the development of a departmental policy to support her in her practice. She now co delivers an infant massage programme in Lucan PCT. Aoife’s attitude is to “Make Every Contact Count” Aoife constantly strides to provide evidence based care. She is now commencing a sleep training programme to further support her in practice. She applies the learning from her various nursing programmes in the role and through the development of the infant massage programme with her colleague Sandra is now developing excellent facilitation skills. 

And
Sandra Flaherty Public Health Nurse Lucan Health Centre

Since qualifying in 2007 Sandra has participated in a number of initiatives developed in the PHN department, these include the development of the Incredible Years Programme, Infant Massage, PHN led ante natal Programme delivered by PHNs in DW in collaboration with the Coombe Womens Hospital.  Sandra  co delivers an infant massage programme in Lucan PCT with her colleague Aoife Mc Evoy. She is an Incredible Years Facilitator of the Parent and Infant Incredible Years Programme and is currently working towards accreditation.  Sandra has worked across Primary Care Teams providing outstanding care to clients and families in the area of child and maternal health, child protection and adult health. She has undertaken training in Suprapubic Catheter Care and provides SPC care to patients in DW. Her approach to care is exemplarily and is always delivered with the patient and family at the centre. She is always willing to share her knowledge with her colleagues and is a resource in Dublin West for PHN’s and RGN’s. She regularly preceptors Std PHNs and testimony from std PHNs is always very positive with the central message being one of going the extra mile for her patients. 

Overall winner:
Anne Marie Kelly CNS Continence Promotion Unit Dr Stevens