TWO OF the county’s health schemes have made it through to the final of the 2024 Local Government Chronicle (LGC) Awards.
These two projects, run by Public Health in Worcestershire, were selected from a pool of over 900 entries spanning 22 categories and demonstrate great teamwork in addressing health inequalities in the community while delivering results.
One of the standout submissions focuses on empowering expectant mothers to break free from the grip of smoking addiction, while the other aims to bridge the gap in healthcare accessibility for people who are d/Deaf.
Smoking in Pregnancy celebrates the work to slash smoking in pregnancy rates to nine per cent – the lowest-ever level, with 2023 seeing the largest year-on-year reduction in the county for seven years.
Public Health staff teamed up with maternity workers and others to tackle the challenge head-on.
By using the best evidence available, they have made a real difference to expectant mothers and their families – ramping up efforts to identify smokers, provide specialised training for the workforce, rolling out a fresh postnatal support programme and revamping services from antenatal to postnatal care.
This has led to healthier outcomes for mothers and babies in Worcestershire.
The d/Deaf working group partnership was formed following the recognition of inequalities in accessing a variety of services and in health care outcomes for our local d/Deaf population.
The word ‘deaf’ with a lower case ‘d’ is often used to describe a person who does not hear very much or identifies as hard of hearing. A capital ‘D’ for Deaf generally describes someone who has been deaf their whole lives, and who often uses British Sign Language (BSL) as their first or primary language.
Identifying as ‘Deaf’ is to be part of the close knit community, culture and shared language used and is an important differentiation.
The partnership, which includes Worcestershire County Council, Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, Healthwatch Worcestershire and Herefordshire and Worcestershire Integrated Care Board, worked together to share expertise, knowledge and findings as well as track outcomes.
Previous focus groups and engagement sessions led by partners and a Worcestershire County Council-led group of ‘experts by experience’ informs the partnership and has led to a communications drive to help d/Deaf people find statutory providers across the county and understand where British Sign Language (BSL) provision is available and where to seek support.
Coun Karen May, Worcestershire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing said The Public Health team worked tirelessly to identify new ways to tackle inequalitites and keep the population healthy.
“These accolades stand as a testament to their unwavering commitment and excellent partnership working.”
Lisa McNally, Director of Public Health in Worcestershire, added: “I am immensely proud of my team’s well-deserved recognition, particularly against such stiff competition.”
And Sarah Shingler, Chief Nursing Officer at Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, said everyone was delighted the worthy projects had been shortlisted.
“We’re looking forward to continuing to build on the good work.”
The teams will put together compelling presentations and engaging interviews to state their claims to the judging panel of prominent local government figures.
An celebration of excellence will take place on June 12 in Grosvenor House in London when the winners will be announced.
