St Matthews Healthcare Ltd

UK Adult Mental Health and Social Care provider of in-patient and rehab care with step down and nursing care.

Northampton

SMHC 2023 Employee Awards Evening

This week we hosted a glittering Awards Dinner at the Hilton Hotel in Northampton to announce both the National and Corporate Employee Awards. It was a wonderful opportunity for teams across the organisation to get together, face-to-face and acknowledge our superstars both at a regional and corporate level.

The 4 national winners selected from across the 10 regional units in these categories included:

  • Lovedeep Banger from Broomhill, National Behind the Scenes Award
  • Deana Coughlan from The Avenue, National Caring Excellence Award
  • Maria del Carmen Moral Perez from St Matthews Unit, National Clinical Excellence Award
  • Sukhbir Singh from Maple Leaf, NationalRising Star Award

Across the corporate teams the following team members were awarded prizes:

  • Tomy Abrahams, Regional Manager, All Rounder of the Year
  • Louise Darby, Medical Secretary, Behind the Scenes Award
  • Kelly Mulhern, Chief Nurse, Leader of the Year Award
  • Hayley Crosbie, Safeguarding and Patient Safety Lead, Star of the Year Award
  • Dr Farha Omer, Associate Medical Director, Team Player of the Year

Lastly the ‘Team of the Year’ award went to the team that added the most value to the organisation. From the three shortlisted teams the Finance team took home the ‘SMHC 2023 Team of the Year’ cup.

Well done to the winners – well deserved accolades!

SMHC Strengthens the Board of Directors

We are delighted to announce two new promotions within our Medical team at St Matthews Healthcare in Northampton. Consultant Psychiatrists, Dr Shahid Latif, moves up to the Medical Director role, while Dr Farha Omer moves up to the Associate Medical Director role.

These two important promotions strengthen our Board of Directors, by not only adding additional experience and clinical knowledge, but also by bringing a caring, deep-rooted service user first approach.

Congratulations to both team members – these are both well-deserved promotions.

South East Asian Heritage Event Success

To kickstart Asian Heritage Month we hosted a South East Asian luncheon event yesterday in the newly refurbished conference centre at Broomhill Hospital in Northamptonshire. We were honoured to have the esteemed Prof JS Bamrah CBE, renowned consultant psychiatrist, author, and researcher provide the keynote address.

Prof JS Bamrah, spoke engagingly about ‘Mental Health in an Unequal World’. His enlightening presentation was well received and provided much food for thought and lots of discussion during the Q&A session.

This was followed by delicious Indian lunch and then an informal panel discussion. The panel comprising of Prof JS Bamrah, SMHC’s Head of Psychology, Dr Mayuri Senapati, Trust Grade Doctor, Dr Ifrah Ali and CEO, Dr Imran Malik. This frank and open discussion touched on lived experiences and sharing learnings and was expertly facilitated by SMHC’s Deputy Medical Director, Dr Shahid Latif.

Dr Latif summed up: It was a wonderful opportunity to come together and not only celebrate how South East Asians have enriched the UK but also acknowledge and discuss the continuing discrimination in the healthcare sector.

A Warm Welcome at the St Matthews Hospital Open Day

On Wednesday, St Matthews Hospital, our namesake rehab mental health hospital in Northampton, opened their doors and welcomed external stakeholders and colleagues to visit and share a multicultural meal alfresco in the garden.  

Visitors enjoyed a guided tour of the 18-bed, high dependency rehab unit dedicated to the treatment, care, and rehabilitation of those with chronic mental ill-health and behaviours that challenge. They then joined staff and patients in the sunshine for a feast of delicious flavours including BBQ, Italian, Indian and African dishes. Staff representatives, including the student nurses, then took turns to share their experiences of working at St Matthews Hospital. It was lovely and heart-warming to hear all the accounts especially as the welcoming family feel of the setting and the supportive team were repeatedly mentioned. Thank you to the Manager, Judith Acquaye, and her wonderful team for the warm welcome and all their hard work in making the event such a success.

Summer Management Conference Success

The reoccurring theme from yesterday’s SMHC Summer Management Conference in Northampton was ‘working together’ which was beautifully illustrated across the day’s presentations. It was gratifying to see how our core values of ‘partnership’ and ‘people first’ were inextricably interwoven into the theme.

As always it was a great opportunity for Unit Managers and the Executive team from across the country to network and share experiences and learnings with each other.

The high energy, positive atmosphere of the day reflects the camaraderie of the team and the ongoing success of our strategic reset one year on. Dr Imran Malik, CEO, says:

“It is heartening to see how using our shared values as the foundation, each department has aligned themselves with the organisational strategy and are enroute to deliver the SMHC vision, from here on its only onwards and upwards!”

New Partnership with Cats Protection League

We are delighted to share that Broomhill Hospital in Spratton, Northamptonshire have started collaborating with the Cats Protection League. They have launched a pilot project to foster cats in need that are cared for by Broomhill service users.

The first rehomed cat, Aurora, arrived a month ago and has settled in well on Cottesbrooke Ward.

Aurora is being cared for by a service user who is an experienced cat owner and has found the experience of caring for a cat again to have had a positive impact on her mental health and well-being.

The service user shares her experience:

‘It is now the fourth week since Aurora has been staying with me. Starting last week, I have been taking her outdoors for a short time each day to introduce her to the garden. So, she becomes used to being outside and amongst others so everyone can enjoy her company. She loves being outside.

If I could describe her personality in a few words, I would say she is gentle, loving, caring and friendly and occasionally naughty.

It has been really fun to have Aurora to look after. I am really grateful to have had the chance. It has really helped my depression in a positive way, having someone to look after. It is a reason to get up in the morning. It is one of the most positive experiences I have had in my life.’