The awards recognise outstanding achievement in providing high quality health and social care for older people in our community ‒ including caring for people approaching the end of their life, Care at Home Pharmacy, and providing health and social care to our residents through one integrated service.

The Palliative Care Partnership aims to enable more people to receive end of life care where they choose to, often at home or a care home, rather than having to remain in hospital or be readmitted. The staff who deliver the service ‒ including both care home staff and care at home employees, such as district nurses, social workers and physiotherapists ‒ provide education and support to care home colleagues and at-home carers.

The Partnership has seen the number of palliative care patients passing away in their own homes, including care homes, increase from 44 per cent in 2008 to 64 per cent in 2013/14. This led to it picking up the Special Integration Award at the annual NHS Scotland event at the end of June, and the Health and Social Care Integration Award at the Herald Society Awards this month.

Meanwhile, the Care at Home Pharmacy Service sees Pharmacy Technicians, working closely with Care at Home workers, visit patients and their families following a hospital stay to make sure they are confident with their new medication regime.

West Dunbartonshire’s lead for prescribing and clinical pharmacy, Pamela Macintyre, led the development of this project. Pamela has now won the Leading and Managing for Quality Award at the Scottish Health Awards 2015 for her involvement in this and other awards winning initiatives, while the wider service has beaten projects from all over NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde to pick up the NHSGGC Chairman’s Award for Improving Health 2015.

Councillor Gail Casey, chairperson of West Dunbartonshire Health and Social Care Partnership Board, said: “It is wonderful to see our services being recognised on a national scale for the fantastic work they do.

“As a Partnership we are committed to protecting vulnerable people within our communities and the staff who deliver these key services are on the frontline. I must thank them for their continued dedication and congratulate them on their awards success.”

Ros Micklem, vice chair of the board, added: “We are committed to a fully integrated health and social care partnership and are proud to have had this in place in West Dunbartonshire for the past five years.

“It is great that the hard work that has gone into making this happen is being recognised, but more importantly to see that it is clearly working for the benefit of our service users.”

@WDCouncil