Posted on: 19 October 2023
CNWL’s Eugenia Moyo from ARC Hounslow and Beth Crossland from ARC Hillingdon each won Infection Prevention Nurse of the Year at the British Journal of Nursing Awards this year.
They won for their part in the services' drive to test and treat Hepatitis C in marginalised communities.
Eugenia said: “We could not have got here by ourselves; we would like to say a big thank you to all colleagues who made this possible.
“From the first thought to be entered in an award by our esteemed colleagues, to being shortlisted, then chosen to win the category and awarded Infection Prevention Nurses of the Year by the BJN – which was completely unexpected but so wonderful.”
“We would like to say thank you to Dr Dima who supported us greatly and generously gave us her time, advice, and guidance. We are grateful to our teams for supporting us and allowing us to work at our best.
“We thank all our family and friends for their support and encouragement. We remember all our teachers from our formative years - all the way to University, without whom we could not have reached here.
“We thank all our mentors throughout our careers who supported us and were role models to us; we hope to role model and inspire others too.
“We would like to thank the editors of the BJN who gave us the opportunity to publish in their journal, they were so gracious to us, guiding us through the publication process. In addition, they granted us permission to share the publication with you and waived their right of charge.”
You can read the publication here.
The service achieved micro-elimination of the hepatitis C virus from its patient population by improving access to hepatitis C testing and treatment in people affected by drugs and alcohol. People who use drugs and alcohol often experience stigma, are marginalised, and from underserved communities, improving access to ground-breaking hepatitis C treatments was key in enabling patients to be cured of hepatitis C, significantly reducing health inequalities. Teamwork, partnership, and collaborative working with invested stakeholders were key to ensuring an enriched patient experience.
The ARC Hounslow team can now turn their attention to the Royal College of Nursing awards in which they have been nominated for Team of the Year.