Not one, not two, but three of our longest serving nurses have been awarded silver in the Chief Nursing Officer Awards, which recognise outstanding contribution.

The awards were presented on Monday (22 July) following a special surprise lunch at Queen’s Hospital. None of the three, Juliet Kumar, Tracey Thorne, and Caroline Moore (pictured above l-r with our Chief Nurse Kathryn Halford, second left) knew they would be receiving the award, or that members of their family had been secretly invited to attend.

Tracey, who started her career at our Trust 35 years ago, was nominated thanks to her involvement in the development of our ward accreditation scheme, which aims to improve and standardise care across our wards.

She said: “I am absolutely gobsmacked and I can’t tell you how proud I am to receive this award, it’s just amazing.

“You can’t do it without your teams and your family. I was nursing when my children were young, so you do miss out on things.”

Tracey’s daughters Lisa and Vikki, along with grandchildren Zoe, 13, and Luke, 10, were at the ceremony.

Juliet was just 19 when she moved from Malaysia to train to be a nurse at our Trust. Her nomination recognised her dedication during the Covid-19 pandemic, including developing an oxygen receiving unit in just 24 hours to care for Covid patients who required CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) or high-flow oxygen.

She attributed her success to her supportive family, including husband Devan, who attended the presentation, and daughters Sharmini and Nadine.

Juliet said: “I feel totally overwhelmed and didn’t expect this. My life has been about my work and my patients, providing excellent care and making a difference. I couldn’t have done it if my family hadn’t been so supportive.

“I’ve stayed at our Trust for my entire career as I love the people and I love my job. Our Trust is the best place ever and I wouldn’t go anywhere else. I have been on a journey with many of my colleagues and built relationships.”

Caroline, a nurse for 40 years and at our Trust for 33 of them, was recognised for her exceptional contribution, including reducing vacancy rates in her division by a huge 24%.

She said: “I am overwhelmed and proud, what an honour to have been nominated. I’m shocked my family and best friends were able to keep this a secret.

“I feel incredibly lucky; I’ve had the best career with the best people. This Trust is the place to be. I love it and I’ve made lifelong friends here.”

Caroline’s husband Geoff and daughter Alex, along with her partner Joe, all came to see her receive her award.

They were presented by our Chief Nurse Kathryn Halford, on behalf of Deborah Sturdy, Chief Nurse for Adult Social Care, who attended the presentation virtually.

Deborah said: “There are exceptional people among us who shine a light on what’s fantastic about nursing. You’ve all shown exceptional leadership.

“Thank you for your incredible work, you’ve really made strides.”