HESTA Awards spotlight shines on 12 finalists

A Mount Isa midwife, a community health nurse from Grisborne and the team behind a dementia eHealth program have been named finalists in the 2017 HESTA Australian Nursing & Midwifery Awards.

The awards recognise graduates, individuals and teams for their professionalism, innovation and care.

The pool of finalists include professionals and teams from diverse fields, and working in a range of health settings. Finalist Andrea Mirielle Mitchell, from Queensland Health North West Hospital and Health Service in Mount Isa, Queensland, traveled great distances to provide Aboriginal women in remote communities with antenatal, intrapartum and postnatal care; while Louise Beer, from Macedon Ranges Health in Gisborne, Victoria, contributed to the improvement and establishment of adolescent mental, sexual and physical health services provided in the region.

HESTA chief executive Debby Blakey said the judges had a tough time shortlisting finalists from "an exceptional field of nominations".

“This year’s finalists demonstrate the profound impact individuals and teams have on the communities they operate in and the patients they care for,” Blakey said. “Their dedication to providing outstanding patient care and implementing innovative initiatives that result in improvements in clinical practice and patient care is inspiring.”

The winners of the three categories up for grabs – Nurse or Midwife of the Year, Outstanding Graduate and Team Excellence – will share in a $30,000 prize pool, provided by ME Bank.

Winners will be announced at the 2017 HESTA Australian Nursing & Midwifery Awards dinner in Brisbane on 10 May 2017.

2017 Finalists

Nurse or Midwife of the Year

Louise Beer (Macedon Ranges Health, Gisborne, VIC)
HESTA said: "Working as a Community Health Nurse, Louise significantly contributed to the improvement and establishment of adolescent mental, sexual and physical health services provided in the Macedon Ranges region."

Sarah Brown (Western Desert Nganampa Walytja Palyantjaku Tjutaku Aboriginal Corporation, Western Desert Dialysis, Gillen, NT)
For establishing the Alice Springs-based Western Desert Dialysis to provide social support services, allied health and on-country dialysis services for Aboriginal people experiencing kidney disease that live in remote communities in central Australia.

Angela Langdon (St John of God Ballarat Hospital, Ballarat, VIC)
For her innovative direction and leadership as a Nurse Unit Manager, which significantly improved staff satisfaction and patient care outcomes within the medical cardiology ward.

Bernie Maynard (The Lake Munmorah Doctors’ Surgery, Lake Munmorah, NSW)
For her dedication to improving the health outcomes of patients with diabetes at her clinic through training to become a Credentialled Diabetes Educator and establishing education clinics to support patients.

Andrea Mirielle Mitchell (Queensland Health North West Hospital and Health Service, Maternity Services, Mount Isa, QLD)
For her commitment and care as an Outreach Caseload Midwife, which involved travelling great distances to provide Aboriginal women in the remote Indigenous Doomadgee and Mornington Island communities with antenatal, intrapartum and postnatal care.

Outstanding Graduate

Kerry Georgiou (Monash Health, Clayton, VIC)
For her outstanding leadership when completing her nursing graduate year nursing placement and for her instrumental role in improving the quality of the Monash Health graduate program.

Rebecca Rich (Perth Clinic, West Perth, WA)
For her commitment to achieving patient-centred care in mental health nursing that has achieved improved health outcomes for patients and proactively taking part in formal and informal education to improve her skills.

Angela Smith-Carroll (Peninsula Private Hospital, Frankston, VIC)
For using her initiative to develop and research an Oncology Handbook that has become a learning resource and educational tool for Graduate Nurses at the Peninsula Private Hospital.

Team Excellence

Gladstone Palliative Care Team (Gladstone Hospital Gladstone, QLD)
HESTA said the team was recognised for enabling the early transition of patients to home palliative care by providing necessary equipment that’s given families and their loved ones greater flexibility and choice around the types of care options available in the final stages of life.

Memory Wellness (integratedliving Australia, Muswellbrook, NSW)
For developing the innovative Memory Wellness eHealth program, which promotes the early intervention and management of dementia.

The Mater (Sydney) Pre-admission Midwife Appointment Program (The Mater Hospital North Sydney, NSW)
For implementing and developing the Pre-admission Midwife Appointment Program, which supports women in the third trimester of their pregnancies.

2 West Nursing Unit (St John of God, Ballarat Hospital, Ballarat, VIC)
For establishing evidence-based initiatives that led to the significant improvement in employee satisfaction and patient-care outcomes within the ward.

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