BARNSLEY Hospital has been celebrating for a new children’s treatment programme - which is estimated to have saved 300 hours of waiting time - with a prestigious award.

The hospital won the Quality Improvement Initiative at this year’s HSJ Patient Safety Awards, rising above the 415 entries.

More than 1,000 healthcare workers attended the awards night - which was hosted by top comedian Zoe Lyons - who celebrated the work done across the UK to improve care services.

A new nurse-led training package for patients aged two to 16 earned them the award, as it has saved an estimated 300 hours in patient waiting time and 32 hours of healthcare professional time, after 30 per cent of head injury cases were discharged in this way.

Lead nurse, Lucy Schofield said: “We are beyond proud to receive this national recognition for our service.

“I am honoured to work amongst a fabulous team of professionals who strive to provide the highest standards of care for the children, young people and families of Barnsley and the surrounding area.

“We are truly honoured to have received this patient safety award and when we heard we’d won, we knew it would mean a huge amount to our colleagues as well as the wider community, so massive thanks to all who support us.

“It provides an incredible boost to staff morale when we receive professional recognition for our hard work and furthermore, it gives us the incentive to continually improve the services we deliver and focus on overall patient experience.

“Everyone across the healthcare sector knows that the HSJ awards programme is an important and high-profile platform on which to share and showcase our work, which is why we’re so overwhelmed to have been named the overall winner in the 2024 Patient Safety Awards.

“We hope our success will encourage colleagues to follow in our footsteps next year.”