Thirty award-winning health workers from Havering’s local hospital trust, BHRUT, were invited to parliament on 18 April to thank them for going the extra mile during the pandemic. The group were welcomed to the House of Commons by Hornchurch & Upminster MP, Julia Lopez, for a tour and reception as a gesture of the constituency’s gratitude for their work ahead. The reception came as Mrs Lopez supported bids by two local primary care groups for recognition at the forthcoming NHS Parliamentary Awards.

All attendees were recipients of BHRUT’s monthly ‘You Made a Difference’ Award, given to individual employees or teams in recognition of going above and beyond in their roles. Each award winner had received the commendation during the two years between the initial coronavirus lockdown in March 2020 and the beginning of the UK’s roadmap out of lockdown in March 2022. Recipients included the Clinical Lead for Critical Care, recognised for increasing capacity five-fold during the initial months of covid, alongside staff from the estates team who rapidly set up vaccination sites and employees from across the whole breadth of the Trust’s operations – all of whom responded to exceptional pressures during an exceptional time.

Speaking after the reception, Mrs Lopez said: “I meet the Chief Executive of Queen’s Hospital, Matthew Trainer, regularly to talk about patient care and I know from my discussions with him and Hospital Chaplain, Phil Wright, what pressure local NHS teams were under during the pandemic. I wanted to find some way of recognising the tremendous efforts that were made by individuals and teams during those difficult days, and Matthew highlighted the award-winners as people who had shown exceptional dedication to the community. 

It was a pleasure to meet local staff and to take a moment to offer them, on behalf of Hornchurch & Upminster, a small token of our gratitude for what they did. I hope that they enjoyed their visit to Parliament.”

In addition to recognising the success of those who have already received awards, Mrs Lopez is also supporting the nominations of two local NHS Teams for recognition in the annual NHS Parliamentary Awards.

Launched in 2018 to celebrate the NHS’s 70th Birthday, the NHS Parliamentary Awards provide an opportunity for MPs to acknowledge the contribution of NHS teams within their community. This year, Mrs Lopez is supporting the nominations of two local teams - the Havering South Primary Care Network (PCN) and St. George’s Health Hub Team - in the Health Equalities and Excellence in Primary Care and Community Care award categories.

Mrs Lopez nominated the Havering South PCN for proactive outreach, working with volunteers to ensure that both the social and health needs of patients over 75 years of age are met. Within follow-up medical assessments, all patients are provided medication reviews alongside screening for depression, anxiety and dementia. 

The St. George’s Health Hub Team have been nominated for their approach in developing a critical new NHS site in Hornchurch & Upminster which looks set to be a national exemplar in integrated care. Construction for the site began in December 2022 and once completed next year, will provide a shared base for primary care, community and mental health services, acute outpatient care, renal dialysis, diagnostics services for cancer, a new frailty hub, social care and local voluntary and community groups. Primary care provision within the hub will support 5,000 extra patients, while the frailty hub is expected to prevent 3,000 hospital admissions each year and diagnostics facilities will provide a further 13,000 MRI and CT scans a year.

Commenting on the nominations, Mrs Lopez said: “Havering has a very high number of elderly residents and I welcome the proactive approach employed by the Havering South PCN to make sure that both the social and health needs of the oldest patients are met. This cohort of patients can become isolated and the PCN’s approach is vital in ensuring that this is not the case.

While the St. George’s Health Hub is not yet operational it is already clear that the project team have developed an innovative approach that will deliver integrated health and social care that is reflective of the needs of the local community. The project is set to have a truly profound impact upon the provision of health services within Havering and I shall continue working with the team to ensure that it is delivered on time because it is so important to reducing pressure on Queen's Hospital and delivering better GP services to my constituents. 

I wish both the Havering South PCN and the St. George’s Health Hub Team the very best in the awards.”