The awards, which are organised by the professional body for cardiac science, celebrate those involved in the field.
Sarah Pollard, the non-invasive lead for cardiology at Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, expressed her delight in celebrating her colleagues’ efforts.
She said: “Too often we squirrel away these fantastic people and don’t tend to recognise their excellent work, so it’s good to get some national recognition through these awards.
“In total we had four winners and a further two finalists, which were chosen by a panel of experts within the field of cardiac science.”
Helen Kavanagh, one of the pacing specialists, won the innovator prize for her work in pioneering the use of home monitoring for patients in the South West, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ms Pollard continued: “As we live in such a rural county, we were already using a good level of home monitoring, so Helen and the team felt it made more sense to make it so those patients didn’t have to travel unnecessarily, and it’s taken off from there.
“Thanks to their work, over 5,000 patients are now being cared for at home, where their vital cardiac device data is downloaded to a cardiac monitor in their home, which is sent securely to our cardiology team.”
The team then receives alerts if there are any problems, as well as carrying out routine checks and monitoring of the health and safety of the device battery.
Jacques Robertson, a trainee clinical scientist at Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, won the Rising Star award.
Ms Pollard said: “Jacques has just completed his student programme and is now employed with us as an echocardiographer.
“He has been an absolutely outstanding student, and has taken time to mentor and support others through their student journey too – a fantastic member of the team.”
Jacques also set up and implemented a training programme for their cardiographer colleagues.
Sue Davison was named Cardiographer of the Year for going above and beyond every single day at work.
Ms Pollard added: “Sue does so much more than her cardiographer day job for us, as she always goes out of her way to help and support if someone has a problem or is struggling.”
Emily King, a cardiac clinical scientist, took home the Cardiac Scientist of the Year award for her incredible efforts in teaching others.
Ms Pollard said: “One of Emily’s key achievements has been the establishment of regular teaching sessions, which have been vital in fostering a collaborative learning environment.
“She has also been recognised for her outstanding contributions as regional practice educator for the Cardiac Scientist Training Programme (STP) students in the South West region.”
Two other colleagues, Esme Andrew, a student cardiac physiologist, and Amy Szewiel, a senior echocardiographer, were finalists in the SCST awards.
Ms Pollard said: “Everybody I’ve spoken to couldn’t be more impressed with her professionalism and how she supports them in the workplace – she exemplifies what you’d want in a student.
“We are so lucky in Somerset to have these amazing colleagues and I couldn’t be any prouder of the team.”