This will be my last blog for a little while as we enter the pre‑election period, which limits what publicly funded organisations can say and do in the run‑up to the local elections on May 7. So, with that in mind, I want to make this one count by reflecting on some of my favourite moments from the past year.
I know the end of the financial year at the end of March doesn’t usually come with the same sense of celebration or reflection that New Year in January does – but bear with me. The last 12 months have been demanding for everyone and taking a moment to look back feels both important and deserved.
As I said last week, leaving the national Recovery Support Programme and not entering its replacement is a real vote of confidence and a credit to everyone at ELHT. It’s something every single colleague should feel proud of. You have each played a part in this success and in the many, real improvements felt by our patients and their families.
It’s been a year defined by challenge, yes – but also by innovation, teamwork and, most importantly, countless examples of colleagues going above and beyond to provide safe, personal and effective care.
When I look across our hospitals, community teams, research labs and education centres, I am genuinely proud of all we have accomplished together. ELHT is a remarkable place filled with people who care deeply about what they do and how they do it, and that continues to inspire me every day.
Let me start this with some feedback I received this week – which is among the most touching messages I have ever had. I will share the exacts words for everyone at ELHT who epitomises this spirit each and every day.
It said: “I hope you do not mind me contacting you direct, but I wanted to send kudos about the outstanding care at ELHT, that I have experienced for a loved one.
“My Mum came in to A&E in January with a lot of challenges including dementia. Very quickly, she became very sick and her vital signs began to deteriorate badly. As you will well know, A&E at that time, was stacked to the roof and Mum was in a bed in the corridor and a shadow was falling across her. At this point an ELHT Angel appeared, did a quick check and rushed her to Resus and within 15 minutes she began to stabilise.
“The challenge of looking after someone in her position must be enormous, as she was utterly terrified and struggled to engage with anyone. Thankfully family were able to fill in the gaps and the Angels were able to work their magic.
“A couple of days in A&E, turned into a journey through several wonderful wards, who all gave the utmost care and compassion. Everyone did their part, without question. The NHS deals in a priceless currency and it is the one one you cannot count how much you have. Time.
“From all the care, compassion, effort and genuine desire to help another human being, the Trust gave me the ultimate gift of more time with my Mum and on Mother’s Day, I was able to sit with her for two glorious, wonderful, tear-filled minutes when the veil of dementia slipped away and she was with me, holding my hand and smiling at me. I cannot put into words powerful enough, what that two minutes meant to me.
“So, to everyone at ELHT and the wider NHS, you may not know the impact your love, care and commitment can provide. I wanted to show, that beyond all that, someone, somewhere, loves you all for what you do.”
This is very much something I will carry with me as we continue to navigate and overcome our challenges. There are many more moments of inspiration I could share but I have picked a couple of my favourites below.
World firsts at ELHT
One of the standout moments this year was seeing 67‑year‑old Sandra Hargreaves become the first person in the world to take part in a pioneering stent study following a heart attack. To know that global‑first research is happening right here in East Lancashire is extraordinary. My thanks to Research Nurse Jane Liversage, Dr Ravi Singh and our Cardiology and Research teams for their incredible work.
Just as impressive was the launch of the national MANTRA trial, backed by a £2.5m NIHR grant and led by Professor Panos Kyzas – research that will shape jaw fracture surgery across the NHS for years ahead.
We also celebrated 10 years of robotic surgery when more than 3,000 procedures have been completed and patient Frank Steele returned to thank the team for what he described as ‘the gift of life’. Thanks to the fantastic support of ELHT&Me and its fundraisers, we now have three surgical robots and some of the best theatre utilisation anywhere in the country.
Improvements in services that matter
We’ve seen major service improvements this year that are making a real difference to patients too – I’ve mentioned some before but, for me, they never get old:
- Our virtual wards marked a milestone with more than 45,000 patients cared for at home in just three years.
- The Trauma and Orthopaedics team delivered one of its most productive days ever, completing seven surgeries before 5pm, and introduced our first day‑case partial knee replacement pathway, with the first patient home six hours after surgery.
- We opened a new Medical Decision Unit, which treated 266 patients in its first two weeks, with 65% discharged home, easing pressure across urgent and emergency care.
- At Burnley General Teaching Hospital, £1.6m of investment and GIRFT accreditation for our surgical hub have strengthened our position as a centre of surgical excellence.
Caring for the environment
Our sustainability journey has also taken major steps forward and it’s important to remember, in amongst everything else. This year we:
- Fully decommissioned leaking nitrous oxide systems, preventing over 51,000 tonnes of carbon emissions over the next decade
- Reduced desflurane use to almost zero, cutting a further 700,000kg of CO₂ each year
- Began installing solar panels expected to generate over one million kWh of clean energy annually
Our Green Champions continue to make practical improvements across theatres, critical care and community services. These changes matter – for our environment, for our patients, and for future generations.
Amazing colleagues
Some of the year’s most memorable moments came, of course, from colleagues achieving remarkable things.
Our Star Awards attracted more than 500 nominations, each one telling a story of compassion and commitment or excellence too. They were all worthy winners, but one nomination I keep returning to is Ward Clerk Jim Smith, whose kindness in organising a patient wedding touched many of us. Jim has now been invited to a Royal Garden Party at Buckingham Palace – a much‑deserved honour which is deeply deserved. I can’t wait to hear all about it from Jim.
We celebrated deputy Medical Director Georgina ‘Prof George’ Robertson receiving an honorary clinical professorship for her work in urgent and emergency medicine and four of our community nurses – Amanda Prescott, Amy Rogers, Rebecca Smith and Debbie Hood – achieving Queen’s Nurse status too.
Transplant recipient Catherine Makin continued her success at the British Transplant Games, and maternity support worker educator Keelie Barrett made history by becoming the first MSW nationally to receive an Honorary Fellowship from the Royal College of Midwives.
And of course, Alfie – our beloved therapy dog – captured the nation’s hearts as BBC Countryfile’s Dog of the Year.
Acts of kindness
This year, our ties with the community grew even stronger.
The Kay Family Foundation made an extraordinary £2m donation to our hospital charity ELHT&Me – the largest in our history. Their generosity is already enabling investment in neonatal incubators, bladder scanners, mobile X‑ray machines, ophthalmology equipment and much more. This incredibly generous gift will impact thousands of patients for years to come.
Our partnership with The King’s Trust also reached a milestone with 150 young people now offered employment at ELHT, helping to shape the future NHS workforce.
We continued to lead nationally on reducing medication burden in care homes too, with the transformation of 101‑year‑old Evelyn reminding us just how life‑changing personalised care can be.
And our work with Breast Cancer Now is ensuring patient voices shape the future of breast cancer services across East Lancashire.
Looking ahead
I could easily keep going, but I want to end with two reflections that matter deeply to me.
First, corridor care.
We have made a clear commitment to end it and early signs from the work are genuinely encouraging. At one point recently, we went more than 130 hours without a single patient on a corridor – something that would have felt impossible not long ago.
This improvement isn’t because fewer people are attending. In fact, we remain the busiest A&E for ambulance arrivals in the North West and are seeing around 170 more people every day than in 2023. And we haven’t had extra funding to employ more colleagues.
What has changed is how we’re working – in partnership, differently, and with a shared belief that we can eradicate corridor care. Not just for patients and families, but for colleagues too, who we know find this deeply challenging.
Secondly, we will continue listening to and supporting colleagues, wherever they work – hospital, community, clinical or non‑clinical – to protect and improve health and wellbeing in these challenging times. This is as important to me as anything else right now and together we will do more to help every colleague thrive.
It’s fair to say this barely scratches the surface of everything achieved over the last 12 months, but I hope it gives a sense of just how much happens here every day and night.
To all colleagues: thank you. I’ll be back with the blog in May and I look forward to continuing to celebrate the spirit of ELHT.
Martin