Nurse at Raigmore Hospital in Inverness is named nurse of the year
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An NHS Highland nurse has been named cardiovascular nurse of the year at the British Journal of Nursing Annual Awards.
Charlie Bloe, senior charge nurse in the coronary care unit at Raigmore Hospital, was nominated for work he led on, which has transformed communication and pre-hospital care between the coronary care unit and community teams.
The awards ceremony was held virtually due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Mr Bloe said: "It was a livestream from London and I was delighted when it was announced I was cardiovascular nurse of the year.
"As a team we’ve been recognised for the work we do with the local community where GPs and paramedics can send us ECGs of patients they are with and we can analyse the ECG and advise on the best treatment option.
"This means that, depending on the ECG, the patient can continue to be managed in the community or, if they require to be taken to hospital, their treatment has already started before they come to us in coronary care.
"It’s a team effort, with all of us who support this work which involves our nurses having a clinical workload with our hospital patients whilst also analysing up to 4000 ECGs a year from the community."
He added: “It’s fantastic that the work my excellent team do in providing pre-hospital support to GPs and paramedics has been recognised at a national level and I am delighted for the team.
"No other coronary care unit has this service in place and feedback since we started seven years ago has been very good. We’re just delighted that we can use our expertise to help colleagues in the community as they help patients."
Professor Steve Leslie, consultant cardiologist with NHS Highland, nominated Mr Bloe for the award.
He said: "Charlie and the cardiac nurses have done a great job across many areas of the cardiology service to ensure patients get the best possible care. I'm delighted that Charlie's leadership and drive has been acknowledged with this award."
Iona McGauran, lead nurse for Raigmore Hospital, said: "Huge congratulations to Charlie and the team.
"I was thrilled to hear this news on Friday and knowing the work that the team do I know it is very well deserved that Charlie and the team have been recognised in this way. I am delighted for them."
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