HEALTHCARE teams treating stroke and eye disease patients in Worcestershire have been shortlisted for a pair of national awards.

Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust’s stoke and ophthalmology teams were chosen from a record amount of entries to be shortlisted for the Health Service Journal Value in Healthcare Awards.

The ophthalmology team has been named as a finalist in the Workforce Efficiency category for its efforts to improve knowledge and skills among staff.

Over the past 18 months five nurse practitioners have been trained to take on some of the work usually carried out by doctors, increasing efficiency and reducing the amount of money the trust – which runs Worcestershire Royal Hospital, Kidderminster Hospital and Redditch’s Alexandra Hospital – spends on locum staff.

The service has also been applauded for work to improve patient’s knowledge of the causes of eye conditions and how they can be treated through a glaucoma support group, which boasts 70 regular members.

The trust’s clinical director for ophthalmology Tarun Sharma said he was “very pleased” by the nomination.

“This is a reflection of all the hard work our doctors, nurses and admin staff do every day to provide the best quality services for our patients,” he said.

The trust’s stroke team has been shortlisted in the Value and Improvement in Acute Service Redesign category following the centralisation of services at Worcestershire Royal Hospital last year.

Deputy chief operating officer Jane Schofield said: “This is an exciting opportunity to showcase what we have achieved.

“We are still continuing to improve our stroke services to benefit our patients.

“They make us strive harder to deliver excellent services from a centralised unit.”

Both teams will have to complete presentations and interviews to a specialist judging panel made up of senior health figures.

The awards, which replaces the Health Service Journal Efficiency Awards, recognises health organisations working to make more efficient use of resources to improve care for patients.

Winners will be announced at an awards ceremony at the Grosvenor Hotel in London on Tuesday, September 23

For more information visit www.hsjvalueawards.co.uk.