Research Matron in south London honoured with professional award
CRN South London’s new Research Matron, Cherylin Reinholtz, has been recognised for her outstanding practice with a unique professional award.
Cherylin received the Nightingale Nurse and Midwife Award, along with 43 others, at a virtual ceremony, and she was presented today with her personally engraved badge and certificate. The Research Matron now has the honour of being known as a ‘Nightingale Nurse’ due to her previous work at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust.
To receive this Guy’s and St Thomas’ award, nurses and midwives have to provide evidence from their managers, peers and patients of their outstanding practice and how they daily demonstrate the organisation’s values. They also have to complete a programme of academic work accredited by King’s College London.
The Network’s Research Matron described achieving the award as one of the proudest moments of her career. Cherylin said:
“I feel very proud to be a nurse. I have worked for Guy’s and St Thomas’ for many years and this is a prestigious award that I have always wanted to achieve, so it is fantastic to see that all my hard work has paid off.
“My message to other research nurses and midwives is to apply for the award, as it is an opportunity to acknowledge how diverse and adaptable the profession is. Even during a global pandemic, we have all worked so hard and achieved so much. The award takes time and effort to complete but the Nightingale Academy team is very helpful and supportive. My message is simply believe in yourself and go for it!”
The award was named in honour of pioneering nurse Florence Nightingale, who established her first nursing school at St Thomas’ Hospital in 1860, the award is unique to Guy’s and St Thomas’.
Since it was launched in 2017, more than 250 individuals have successfully achieved the award. The Nightingale Nurse and Midwife Award is part of the Nightingale Academy at Guy’s and St Thomas’, which was created to provide a platform for innovation in practice and service development, education and research in nursing and midwifery.
In the past, nurses who trained at the Nightingale nursing school and worked at St Thomas’ Hospital for more than a year received a special blue badge and were known as ‘Nightingales.’ This was phased out after the school was transferred to King’s College London with the last badge being issued in 1996.
CRN South London’s Deputy Chief Operating Officer Dawn Beaumont-Jewell said: “It is wonderful to see Cherylin recognised for her outstanding work. She should feel immensely proud of her achievements during what has been such a challenging year.”
