Heartbeat: Appreciating every member of the team

July 29, 2019

After having a particularly busy shift where she had not even had time to take a break, Sophia Panton Sister/Charge Nurse was touched by a patient who commented that all of the staff worked so hard but didn’t receive the appreciation that they deserved. Sparked by the patient’s kind words and recognising that we should start to appreciate each other, Sophia decided to take on the task of organising what has now become the AMU Appreciation Ball.

Sophia invites colleagues from the AMU and other multi-disciplinary teams to an evening where colleagues can come together and celebrate. The night is an awards ceremony, voted for by staff and recognising various categories such as AMU nurse of the year, AMU consultant of the year, AMU registrar of the year, acute nurse practitioner of the year, unsung hero, patient’s choice, and rising star.

The big award of the evening is the the AMU Appreciation Award which is essentially the people’s choice award. Everyone on the ward votes for one person that they think has gone above and beyond in their role, is approachable and generally possesses various qualities that make them easy to work with. Ward Nurse, Claire Obiakor took home the big prize this year.

Sophia is extremely dedicated to making sure the evening is an enjoyable one, organising everything from venue and ticket sales to seating plans and posters. She has even designed an electronic voting system to allow staff to vote for their colleagues.

Recognising people’s hard work and making them feel appreciated is crucial and Sophia understands the importance of this. ‘We spend most of our days with our colleagues, it’s important to show love and appreciation to each other” she said.

145 colleagues attended this year and Sophia is excited about making the event even bigger and better next year. “I am thinking about how I can make it a little bit different next year, maybe I can get in a local artist to make an appearance.”