FRIMLEY Health NHS Foundation Trust has been named Best Organisation at the 2016 Patient Safety Awards.

The trust which runs Frimley Park Hospital was announced as the winner during a ceremony in Manchester last month.

It had been shortlisted with other top organisations from across the country in the awards run by the Health Service Journal and the Nursing Times.

Judges said naming Frimley Health as Best Organisation was a “unanimous decision” and praised its “courageous approach” to improving safety.

The trust impressed the panel with improvements it has made at the once-struggling Wexham Park Hospital since taking it over in 2014.

The hospital has now been rated ‘good’ by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and praised for its strong patient safety culture.

The watchdog described the turnaround as “undoubtedly the most impressive example of improvement” it had seen under the current inspection regime.

The judges said they had seen good examples of learning from others and powerful stories, and that the trust was not afraid to face challenges head on.

Tracey Coulson, head of patient safety at Frimley Health, said: “We are delighted to be named Best Organisation, patient safety is at the core of everything we do. It is a real team effort and this award reflects the continuing hard work of all our staff across the trust and our ambition to improve patient safety at every opportunity.”

And the Royal Surrey County Hospital has been highly commended in the awards.

The trust was recognised for its ‘Sock it to Sepsis’ campaign in the clinical leadership category.

The awareness programme which launched in 2015 and saw staff don distinctive red and white stripped socks, provided staff with additional training and support to recognise the early symptoms of sepsis.

The condition kills approximately 40,000 people in the UK every year, more than breast cancer, bowel cancer, HIV and road traffic accidents combined.

It is triggered by an infection, that if not treated quickly enough could lead to multi-organ failure and death.

The campaign which has now been rolled out in all areas of the hospital culminated in the launch of one of the first maternal sepsis pathways in the UK.

Geeta Aggarwal, anaesthetic registrar and clinical research fellow, said: “The aim of the campaign was to make sepsis recognition and treatment part of the fabric of the hospital and that has really happened.

“We are very proud that are initiative has been acknowledged nationally. As a result of this and other important projects in the hospital, the Trust now has one of the lowest mortality rates in the country.

“The trust is now also helping other hospitals to launch their own initiatives to tackle sepsis.”