Little Holland Hall nurse named Care UK’s Nurse of the Year

Company news

Dec 02, 2011

A nurse at Little Holland Hall, has been named as Care UK’s Nurse of the Year for his dedication to high standards of nursing care and his devotion to residents.

Care UK provides residential care for more than 5,000 people in 88 homes across England and Scotland and clinical lead nurse Mike Parris beat off tough competition to be named Care UK Nurse of the Year 2011.

Pauline Goh, manager of the 41-bed home in Frinton Road, said: “Mike is an ideal nurse. We work with elderly residents some with complex needs and requiring end-of-life care. This is a sensitive time that requires expert nursing, pain management and empathy.

“Everything Mike does is for the residents. He has time and patience for all; one resident said “he makes me feel I am the only one and gives me the time I need to talk.”

But Mike’s dedication doesn’t end at caring for residents and their relatives - he is also committed to helping and training colleagues. Mike is keen to assist staff at Little Holland Hall to develop new skills and improve on current practices.

Mike said: “I was incredibly honoured to receive the award and I see it as a recognition of the achievements of, not only myself, but also Pauline and the whole team here at Little Holland Hall. I am very pleased with the progress we have made in the last eight months and  I really enjoy working with our residents and their families to provide person-centred care.”

Pauline said: “Mike is deeply committed to helping people reach their potential and he is willing to take on additional training to do that. He is also committed to raising standard levels within the home and, with his help, we will soon begin working towards the Gold Standard Framework for end-of-life care in Homes to ensure we are offering the very best evidence-based care.”

The award, approved by the NHS, Department of Health, Age UK and MacMillan Nurses, is designed to acknowledge the highest levels of end-of-life care and encourages choice and dignity for the patient as well as sensitive and effective support for relatives.

The GSF training programme is a three-stage quality assurance programme that includes training for all staff in the home and stringent monitoring, documentation and evaluation to ensure standards are kept at the very highest level. The home is then inspected to ensure all the techniques are fully embedded and that staff are consistently following the guidelines.