Independent sector leader receives Outstanding Service to Nursing Award from NHS

IHPN’s Director of Regulation, Dawn Hodgkins, was last week presented with an NHS Silver Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) award for Outstanding Service to Nursing by NHS England’s Dame Ruth May.

The Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) and Chief Midwifery Officer (CMidO) Awards have been developed to reward the significant and outstanding contribution made by nurses and midwives in England and their exceptional contribution to nursing and midwifery practice. 

Dame Ruth May DBE, the Chief Nursing Officer for England, made a surprise appearance at IHPN’s weekly CNO meeting and presented Dawn with the award and thanked her for her all her hard work and leadership over the years.

Dame Ruth expressed what a fantastic advocate Dawn is for nursing in the independent sector, praising her ability to work collaboratively, to inspire, and in particular her passion and dedication for improving patient safety. This includes her work in developing and implementing IHPN’s Medical Practitioners Assurance Framework (MPAF) which seeks to increase the consistency around clinical governance in the sector and which is part of the NHS Standard Contract and used by the Care Quality Commission to assess how “well-led” an independent healthcare provider is.

Dawn began her career working in, what was then, Bupa Hospitals and has since worked in numerous clinical, management and governance roles in the NHS and the independent sector, as well as holding inspection and policy roles within the Care Quality Commission. 

Dawn Hodgkins, Director of Regulation at IHPN, said:

“From my first experience of nursing as a care assistant to my role as Director of Regulation at IHPN, I’ve been privileged to work with some amazing nurse leaders. Not only do their drive and commitment to patients and patient safety inspire me, but their willingness to open up and share best practice and experiences help me to do a better job. Nursing is undoubtedly a team sport and this award is dedicated to all the fantastic nurses I have the privilege of working with who make a real difference to the lives of so many people every day.”

David Hare, CEO of the IHPN, said:

“From the whole IHPN team and broader membership, we could not be more proud of Dawn. She goes above and beyond in her role as Director of Regulation in supporting the sector’s nursing and wider workforce, and her commitment to further improving the quality and safety of patient care in the sector means she is a thoroughly deserving recipient of this Award.”