The Lincolnshire Community and Hospitals NHS Group (LCHG) team has been honoured with the Nurse-Led Patient Safety Initiative of the Year award at the HSJ Patient Safety Awards 2026. This recognition follows a rigorous judging process for their pioneering rapid access angina clinics.
These clinics, believed to be among the first of their kind nationally, enable patients with suspected angina to receive prompt assessment, including a same-day CT scan and results. This streamlined approach significantly reduces the need for lengthy referrals and multiple hospital visits, allowing patients to be seen much faster.
Maria Hobden, Nurse Consultant in Cardiology, expressed pride in the team's achievement: “We are so proud to have our hard work recognised on this national platform and against such strong competition from across the NHS. Our clinics are the result of team working from every part of the patient’s angina journey... We saw an opportunity to make services better and safer for our patients, using a new way of working in the community in partnership with our community diagnostic centres and we believe these clinics were the first of their kind nationally to take this approach. The results we are now seeing show how much of a difference we are making for patients.”
In collaboration with NHS Lincolnshire ICB, the team reconfigured the service access by integrating hospital-based clinics with the county’s three community diagnostic centres. Close work with radiology staff ensured that CT scans were available on the same day for urgent cases, maximising the use of Lincolnshire’s advanced CT equipment.
This innovative model has led to waiting times being reduced by several months and a decrease in missed appointments by bringing care closer to the community. By expediting patient care, the service has helped to lower hospital admissions for chest pain and reduce the incidence of heart attacks and subsequent heart failure.
The initiative also presents valuable role development opportunities for radiographers within LCHG. The team is also a finalist in the Modernising Diagnostics category at the HSJ Awards, with the results announced on Thursday 19 November 2026.
