Sutton service finalists in Palliative Care Awards

The whole team at Cygnet Lodge, on Sandown Road in Sutton-in-Ashfield, have been shortlisted as finalists for the Palliative Care Awards 2024 in the Care Team – Residential & Nursing category.

It is in recognition for the end-of-life support they gave to a service user who had been diagnosed with a rare neurological condition known as Wilson's disease.

Staff at the Cygnet Health Care service supported him through the physical and mental deterioration associated with the disease, which is a rare inherited condition that causes copper levels to build up in several organs, especially the liver, brain and eyes. It affects about 1 in 30,000 people.

Sarah Ashworth-Watts is the Principal Forensic Psychologist at Cygnet Health Care who helped to oversee the care of the service user.

She said: “This nomination is reflective of all of the hard work, care and compassion shown by Cygnet Lodge staff.

“It was an experience, and a team, I was proud to be part of.

“Care for this individual took a lot of team work from across all disciplines, especially in a field that’s not the usual day to day, and might be outside of people’s comfort zones.”

The aim of the awards is to pay tribute to individuals and organisations who provide high-quality, person centred, end of life and palliative care – enabling people to have a Good Life and a Good Death; recognising accomplishments at all levels from within the social care workforce and hospices.

The Care Team category in particular celebrates outstanding team work in the support of people facing the end of life in a social care or hospice setting and recognises exceptional teams who have made a real impact in improving the overall quality of life for individuals facing serious illness.

Average life expectancy for those with Wilson’s disease is 40 years old. The Cygnet Lodge team supported the service user for over a decade before he died.

They were able to draw upon their individual specialist expertise across a range of fields including psychiatry, nursing, psychology, speech and language therapy, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, dietician, and support workers. They also drew on personal experiences, and liaised with external palliative and neurological professionals to ultimately facilitate a good death.

Stevie Lambert is a Mental Health Nurse at Cygnet Lodge who helped to deliver the care. She added: “We made sure he had a person centred care plan and that his care package was the very best it could be.

“The patient was able to express his wishes and the entire staff built a rapport with him. We became his family and we were able to respect what he wanted.

“Normally in a care home, we want to promote independence and improve people’s lives. We knew unfortunately this person was going to die and we wanted to make that as dignified as possible. I feel we did that and made his final days, and hours, as comfortable and peaceful as they could be.

“As challenging as it was at the time, it was rewarding and an honour to care for him. It was an experience that will stay with us for a long time.”

Dominique St Clair Miller is the SLT Director for Cygnet Health Care. She said: “The work they all did with this individual is definitely deserving of this recognition. Getting palliative care right is not an easy feat and they all skilfully navigated this, drawing on the expertise of relevant parties and maintaining an extremely person-centred approach throughout.

“I wish them all the very best for the final.”

Cygnet Grange, on Mason Street, Sutton-in-Ashfield, is an 8 bed Neuropsychiatric rehabilitation, care and treatment facility for those affected by acquired brain injuries.

The Cygnet Health Care-run service provides a safe and secure place to aid recovery as well as offering those diagnosed with a progressive neurological disease.