Two nurses who work for Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust (LPT) have been shortlisted for national awards celebrating their fantastic efforts as BAME role models in health and social care.

Asha Day is shortlisted for BAME Nurse of the Year, while specialist palliative care nurse Pretty Manyimo, is in the running for the Ground-breaking Researcher Award as part of the National BAME Health & Care Awards 2023.

Pretty said: “What an honour it is to be nominated and shortlisted. I will definitely attend and carry the LPT flag.”

Asha said: “I did not know about the nomination, so it came as a complete surprise! Congratulations to Pretty too, this is great news for LPT.”

The pair will discover if they have been successful during a ceremony held in Central London on Thursday, 28 September.

Now in its fourth year, the awards aim to highlight the diverse talent pool making a difference across the UK health sector.

Asha, who works as LPT’s international recruitment lead, was nominated for BAME Nurse of the Year partly due to her ongoing work voicing issues affecting both BAME patients and staff.

Her nominator said: “Asha is always personable, professional, structured, and logical in her thinking. She has presented at several national Covid vaccination campaigns addressing anxieties of populations from the Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities which successfully lead to increased vaccination in Punjabi, Hindu and Islamic communities.

“Asha has gone above and beyond with the work she does in her own time to support ethnic minority staff which benefits them in many ways. She does this because of her passion and belief in a better way on the road to equality.”

Meanwhile, Pretty’s research, completed during her part-time secondment with LPT and De Montfort University (DMU), explored the experiences of nursing staff delivering palliative care in the homes of patients from a BAME background across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.

Pretty’s findings are helping to inform service improvements to facilitate individualising end-of-life-care for the diverse ethnic minority population in the region.

Nominator Viveen Ashman, said: “Pretty identified that providing end-of-life care in the patient’s own environment is challenging, even more so in the presence of diverse attitudes and beliefs towards death and dying, especially when the nurse is from a different ethnic and cultural background to that of the patient.

“During her secondment she has worked diligently and creatively. Her research has enabled us to better support our staff to deliver the best care they can and equip them to manage the issues that they may face.”

The National BAME Health & Care Awards celebrate BAME staff and networks across British health and social care who are making significant improvements in BAME career development support and forging better healthcare initiatives for their communities.

The full shortlist and more information about the awards can be found at: https://bamehscawards.org/2023-shortlist/