A FLINTSHIRE doctor has been named Innovator of the Year at a national awards ceremony for her work with people with severe and enduring mental illness.

Dr Hina Tahseen, a consultant psychiatrist at Cygnet Delfryn House mental health hospital in Mold, was singled out for her dedication to quality improvement and innovation at the rehabilitation service over the past year, including to reduce stigma around mental illness.

She receiving the honour at the Cygnet Annual Psychiatrists Conference and National Awards 2021 on Wednesday (September 15).

Dr Tahseen, an affiliate member of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, said: “I am so humbled and excited to have been shortlisted for the awards.

"As an international medical graduate, I could never have imagined coming this far.

“I am very grateful to Cygnet and my wonderful team at Delfryn House, who have given me every opportunity to develop. Cygnet fosters a culture of creativity and I always felt encouraged and valued whenever I went to my team or senior management with an idea.

"I couldn’t have achieved this award had Cygnet and the Delfryn team not supported me throughout."

Organised by Cygnet Health Care, one of the UK’s largest independent providers of specialised mental health services for the NHS and local authorities, the Cygnet Innovator of the Year award celebrates a doctor who has driven innovation to improve the quality of services, empowering service users and putting them at the centre of care, engaging stakeholders and reducing stigma. Presenting the award, Stephen Firn OBE, independent non-executive director at Cygnet Health Care, said: “Over the past year, Dr Tahseen has been working on a new study to look at effective medication management in a high dependency in-patient psychiatry rehabilitation unit, which she also presented to the recent Royal College International Congress 2021.

“She has also been conducting an audit cycle of physical health monitoring and record keeping related to long term in-patients at male and female psychiatric rehabilitation wards using a formal quality improvement approach and has assisted in a new Cygnet MRCPsych programme to support patients.

"These initiatives and the dedication of staff like Dr Tahseen ensures Cygnet is able to deliver high quality care for our service users and develop examples of best practice across the sector.” Alongside the awards ceremony, representatives from the NHS, public and independent sectors also participated in a conference that examined the latest research and developments in psychiatry, focussing this year on the wellbeing and resilience among medical professionals.

Commenting on the awards, Dr Jon Van Niekerk, Group Clinical Director, Cygnet Health Care, said: “We have seen so many wonderful examples of our doctors and other clinicians, going above and beyond over the last year and stepping up to contain anxieties, work beyond their role and sacrifice their time for the benefit of the individuals in their care. It makes me proud to be the Group Clinical Director of these exceptional individuals who are a living embodiment of our values at Cygnet.”