Nicola and Graham have worked tirelessly in developing the working safely programme within the trust and have brought in the right people to do the right jobs with their recruitment process. They have inspired others to take ownership of their own health and safety and are also inspiring their own new team, filling them with the ambition, drive and trust. I am proud to be in their team and I am inspired by their leadership and vision for the service. The Trust is all about the experience of the patient, but what Nicola, Graham and the team have done and are doing is making sure that the WAST staff are safe in work. Without the staff there is no service.
June has worked for the service for 36 years with NEPTS and has always put others first. June never takes time off work off if she is unwell, in fact, the only time I have known her to take time off is recently with covid and even then she was not happy to be off. At the start of the pandemic June's age fell into the category that she should remain at home, yet she refused and continued to carry out her duties, ensuring the patients we were conveying at the time were safe and also making sure that the crews were fully equipped with the level of PPE required. For those who know June across the C+W corridor, would agree that she is an inspiration to many, and is always happy and smiling.
Callum has been acting control manager for several months and has previously been control supervisor for Central and West NEPTS. I am nominating him for this award as I feel he deserves proper recognition for what he has done in the time he has been in this role. He has executed his duties with humour and compassion, listening to staff concerns and suggestions for improvement to procedures. He has often taken up the shortfall himself, working late or coming in early to deal with issues and plough the road for the other staff to concentrate on controlling and planning. He has discharged his duties as a control manager effectively, but has never lost sight of the humanity of any given situation, dealing compassionately with members of staff on a number of delicate and personal issues. Above all else Callum has made the control staff feel as if they have someone they can confide in who will listen to their concerns and where possible raise or action them. Callum is also extremely modest and is quick to deflect praise to his staff rather than take credit himself. As control staff we very rarely get to see the outcomes of our labours and are often left wondering if we made the right decision or our actions resulted in good outcomes for our patients. Callum makes a point of sending emails to staff thanking us for undertaking particular actions or tasks, which in the very stressful control environment make a great deal of difference to staff morale. He has also been proactive in giving staff the opportunity to see other aspects of the service, such as days on the road or in ALO. Callum has said that he hoped that he has been able to make things a little easier and smoother for the staff in control, and he has certainly done that! He is an excellent example of someone who leads from the front and embodies everything that the Trust should be about. I would ask you to please give this lovely young man the recognition and thanks he deserves and hopefully encourage him to continue working for WAST and making a difference!
Steve has worked for the Welsh Ambulance Service since leaving his carpentry apprenticeship at a young age. Now approaching his retirement, he clearly has a wealth of experience, knowledge, and Paramedic skill. He is also the quietest chap you will ever meet! During the height of the pandemic, Steve became symptomatic and later became hospitalised. We were informed by our locality manager of the severity of his situation only during his recovery, as requested by Steve and his family. He was at one point, hanging on and narrowly avoided ITU support. Once recovered and at the earliest opportunity, Steve returned to frontline duties, despite approaching that certain age where he could have taken up a non-patient facing role or been on restricted duties. I have to choose my words carefully here - but when other members of front-line staff, much younger, happily took 6 months sick leave for Covid-19 related symptoms, I felt disappointed and let down - especially due to the amount of overtime I did during the busiest periods of the pandemic. However, seeing Steve get back in the driving seat and on frontline duties as quick as possible was a huge inspiration. I cannot imagine the stress this time must have been for Steve and his family. However, Steve continued his work on the ambulance, remaining dedicated to his job and equally dedicated to providing pre-hospital care to patients. He has a secret passion for pre-hospital care. Ironically his guilty pleasure is EMS themed American dramas such as CODE BLACK, CHICAGO FIRE and THIRD WATCH. Despite this kind of staged drama, there is no job that Steve, in his length of service, has not attended. Despite being very quiet, he has always been able to professionally, and tastefully, lighten the mood when leaving an address of a ROLE, suicide, or difficult job, when I have needed it most. Steve Smith is truly an inspiration to anyone working in pre-hospital care.
Mark joined the service just shy of two-years ago. He has begun his service with WAST as a hospital liaison at Glangwili where he has fitted into the role instantly. Marks larger than life and bubbly personality provides a refreshing and happy environment at the hospital for patients, Staff at the hospital and road staff during a difficult few years. Mark is a wheelchair user as he has Cerebral Palsy. This has not restricted mark in anyway and he is determined individual to strive perfection and, again, go above-and-beyond for not only the patients but the crews as well. He is forward thinking and a true inspiration to us all - proving that no matter what we are all able to achieve.