We’re delighted to announce that NHS Greater Manchester, Health Innovation Manchester, and NIHR Greater Manchester Patient Safety Research Collaboration has won the Improving Medicines Safety Award for ‘Scaling a Local Safety Medication Dashboard (SMASH) Programme to Benefit the 2.8 Million Population of Greater Manchester’ at this year’s HSJ Patient Safety Awards –  an esteemed awards programme, designed to encourage and drive improvements in culture and quality across the NHS.

The HSJ Patient Safety Awards was hosted by top comedian and presenter Zoe Lyons, who compered the proceedings and kept the audience of more than 1,000 healthcare workers entertained as the winners to all 25 categories were revealed during the evening.

An incredible 415 entries were received for the 2024 HSJ Patient Safety Awards, with 206 organisations, projects and individuals making it to the final shortlist, having gone through two rounds of rigorous judging, overseen by an impressive panel of highly influential and respected figures within the healthcare community.

The Safety Medication Dashboard (SMASH) is a pioneering IT system, created by the University of Manchester, designed to prevent prescription errors. Successfully tested by pharmacists and GPs in Salford between 2015-2018, it runs patient record data against evidence-based harm indicators, e.g. acute kidney injury or gastrointestinal bleeds (originally the PINCER set), highlighting where reviews are required for patients.

When the GM Care Record was launched, an opportunity arose to redevelop SMASH within GM Care Record BI architecture, broadening the user base to 2.8 million people and creating a prototype process for widespread medication safety initiatives.

Dr. Gareth Thomas, Digital Innovation Director, NHS Greater Manchester & Health Innovation Manchester said, “Congratulations to all in the team. This is a real-world innovation with demonstrable impact upon patient safety across 2.8 million people.”

The Awards Ceremony is the highlight of the HSJ’s annual 2-day Patient Safety Congress (which took place on Monday 16  and 17 September 2024 at Manchester Central), welcoming a diverse range of delegates, all working at the forefront of safety, quality and clinical excellence.

Editor of the Health Service Journal, Alastair McLellan, commented; “It’s always wonderful to celebrate those working at the forefront of patient safety, delivering core services and seeking new ways of overcoming challenges. It therefore gives me great pleasure to congratulate NHS Greater Manchester, Health Innovation Manchester, and NIHR Greater Manchester Patient Safety Research Collaboration who scooped ‘top spot’ in the category of Improving Medicines Safety.”

The full list of winners and finalists for the 2024 HSJ Patient Safety Awards can be found at https://awards.patientsafetycongress.co.uk/winners-2024.