Trust wins HSJ Award

Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust got some healthy results at the annual Health Service Journal Awards for 2003 this week.

The Trust won the category of 'Improving Care with E-Technology' and was named in the top three for 'Patient Safety' and 'Partnership with Industry'.

A record 700 attendees at the London Hilton saw the Trust's director of facilities Keith Lilley and supplies information manager Graham Medwell receive the award on Monday 13 October 2003 from the Today presenter John Humphrys.

The Trust picked up the e-technology award for a project called 'E-commerce in Action'. Launched four years ago, it was designed to revitalise the Trust's procurement process to give it greater control, cut paperwork and improve its bargaining position with suppliers by putting the process online.

Keith Lilley said: "Congratulations are in order for all those who have worked on our 'E-commerce in Action' project and made it such a success.

Keith said: "We started 'E-commerce in Action' in 1999 and became the first healthcare provider in Europe to deliver an integrated e-commerce solution, saving 5,000 working hours per year and nearly half a million pounds to date. When you look at it like this, I would say that this award is well deserved."

The HSJ awards consisted of 14 categories overall, including Primary Care, Mental Health and Reducing Health Inequalities. Finalists were whittled down from a total of 824 entries across the country.

The entries were judged by 48 industry professionals including Sir Nigel Crisp (chief executive of the NHS), Simon Stevens (prime minister's senior policy advisor on health) and Professor Sir Liam Donaldson (Department of Health's chief medical officer).

The judges praised the Trust's winning entry, saying:

"This project is about increasing efficiency and satisfaction, while reducing costs. It also fits with the wider modernisation agenda. It was shortlisted over other projects because of the benefits it can demonstrate, its scale and inclusiveness. The rest of the NHS . . . should also learn from the thoroughness with which this project was implemented."

The Trust finished in the top three in two other HSJ Award categories. The 'E-commerce in Action' project also came runner-up in the 'Partnership with Industry' award, while practice development senior nurse Cath Miller (pictured) and infection control lead nurse Gillian Hodgson collected a runner-up prize in 'Patient Safety' for their work in urinary catheter care.