Local healthcare staff were delighted to accept the Dermatology Team of the Year Award which was presented by the Chair, and Honorary Chair and Founder of the Scottish Dermatology Nursing Society (SDNS) on a recent visit to Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary.
Karen Stephen, Chair of the Scottish Dermatological Nursing Society, and Barbara Page (MBE), Honorary Chair and Founder of the Scottish Dermatology Nursing Society, made the journey from Perth to present the award at a summer gathering.
Staff working in healthcare throughout Scotland can nominate any team that includes a member of the Scottish Dermatology Nursing Society working within the field of dermatology for their outstanding dedication to dermatology patients and services.
Laura Holland, Clinical Nurse Specialist and Carole Moffat, Staff Nurse in dermatology, were nominated by Helen Smith, Lead Nurse for the dermatology service at NHS Dumfries and Galloway. Helen, though not having nominated herself, is part of the team who have been awarded Dermatology Team of the Year.
Both new into post in 2018, Laura and Carole have since completed further education qualifications including BSc Honours and a non-medical prescribing course. The monitoring of patients on systemic therapy, patch testing, biologics and daylight Photo Dynamic Therapy (PTD) has been implemented and developed well with their co-ordination and support from the wider dermatology team, namely NHS Dumfries and Galloway’s Consultant dermatologists.
Helen Smith – Lead Clinical Dermatology Nurse Specialist, NHS D&G, said:
“Speaking on behalf of my colleagues, we are delighted to have been awarded Scottish Dermatology Team of the Year 2024. There has been a lot of excitement and pride in our department since we heard the big news. We are also honoured that Karen Stephenson, Chair and Barbara Page, Honorary Chair and Founder of the Scottish Dermatology Nursing Society, have come all the way from Perth today to hand over the award, and to spend time with us talking about the work that we do here.
“Laura and Carole go above and beyond in all aspects of their role, implementing and developing parts of the service, professional development, and in their one to one care of patients. Patients and their families time and time again come back with thanks for the care and compassion they and their families have had with Laura, Carole and the wider team. The award means a lot to us as individuals and to all of us as a team.”
Mark Kelly, Director of Nursing at NHS D&G, said:
“As Director of Nursing I was delighted to hear of the terrific news of this award received by of our Dermatology Nursing Team. This award is a testament to their dedication to delivering the best possible care to their patients and they are a credit to the nursing profession. My congratulations go to all of the team on this brilliant achievement.”
Barbara Page, Honorary Chair and Founder, SDNS, said:
“This award was historically awarded to a nominated individual and recognised as the Dermatology Nurse of the Year award. This year we wanted to acknowledge the value of a team approach in dermatology nursing. This has been really interesting, and an exciting time making our decision on which team we would make the award to.
“This is a small but highly effective team who show such commitment and dedication to the dermatology service at NHS D&G. We hope they can take great pride in their achievement. We have really enjoyed our visit to DGRI and spending time with Laura, Carole, Helen and the wider team.”
