A HOSPITAL library has been hailed for its innovation.

The Francis Costello Library at The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital has made it in to the top 10 in the Sally Hernando Innovation Awards 2018.

The awards, which are run by Health Education England, are designed specifically for NHS library and knowledge services.

They are held in memory of Sally Hernando, who died in 2010 and was a great supporter of developing library services.

RJAH submitted two innovations for consideration.

The first, Dismantling the Silos – Sharing and Celebrating Good Practice, was submitted by Lis Edwards, Library Services Manager.

It was a poster event which took place in May 2017 and gave staff at RJAH the departments shared good practice.

Lis said: “The executive team and trust board received overwhelming feedback which indicated that staff wanted their colleagues in different areas to recognise the value of the work that was going on within their department and to know more about what other areas were doing.

“All staff were invited to create a poster to be displayed as part of an exhibition which gave both staff and patients an opportunity to see the diversity of work that goes on. Staff were given stickers which were used to vote for the poster that they felt had the most impact.

“The event was a successful learning opportunity which allowed staff to break out of their individual silos and engage in meaningful conversations with colleagues.”

The second innovation submitted was by Louisa Fulbrook, deputy library services Manager, and aimed to link with the nursing teams.

Louisa said: “This innovation involved updating and standardising Link Folders on our wards. These contain key information and research and are an important part of the internal approach to monitoring quality standards of patient care, Sustaining Quality Through Assessment and Review (STAR).

“Because of out-of-date and inconsistent folders, the wards were struggling to meet the required standards as part of the STAR assessment. The library team worked with the nursing teams to update and standardise the link folders.”

Lis added: “There were over 25 nominations put forward for these awards. We’re delighted that both our entries made it to the top 10.”

Louisa said: “Both innovations have helped us build stronger relationships with other departments and promoted the work we do within the organisation.”