Essentia teams recognised at top awards

Two very different aspects of the services delivered by Essentia – Guy’s and St Thomas’ estates, facilities, capital development and IT directorate – achieved national recognition in the 2016 Health Service Journal (HSJ) Value in Healthcare Awards.

Against strong competition, Essentia won in one category and was highly commended in another at the awards ceremony on Tuesday 24 May.

Sterile Services won the Value and Improvement in Non-clinical Support Services category for redesigning and redeveloping Sterile Services which sterilises 10 million instruments a year for the Trust and other organisations. New, state-of-the-art equipment has improved turnaround times and quality and the service is now the largest NHS supplier in the UK.

The judges commented: “This organisation has strong visions based on quality for future sustainability” and that they were “impressed with their ability to take everybody through complex change whilst retaining a strong patient focus.”

Steve McGuire, Director of Essentia, says: “This is a tribute to the hard work of Anne Marie Watts, Head of Sterile Services and her team of over 150 highly skilled and committed people who are making a significant contribution to improving patient safety.

“Sterile Services are a vital lynchpin for effective healthcare – operations and procedures simply can’t go ahead without the right instruments in the right place at the right time. The Sterile Services team deliver to high standards 24/7 and often to very tight deadlines.

“I am proud that we have won a series of contracts to provide sterilising services to other organisations, including Great Ormond Street and the North Middlesex hospitals. This means we are generating even more income to support the Trust.”

Essentia was also highly commended in the Value and Improvement in Estate Management category for the St Thomas’ East Wing recladding project. This innovative and sustainable solution encased the 13-storey tower in a glazed façade, weatherproofing it and improving energy efficiency. The complex project was completed while East Wing continued to function as normal and without cancelling any patient appointments or treatment.