Former Sheffield Hospitals nurse 'humbled' to receive British Empire Medal for outstanding services

A former nurse director, who began her career over 40 years ago, has received a British Empire Medal after being named in the King’s Birthday Honours list in 2023.

Catherine Bailey, aged 61, was awarded for her outstanding services to nursing throughout her career at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals.

At the start of the COVID pandemic, with just two days’ notice, she created a training programme used to train more than 1,000 nurses in a month in preparation for managing patients with COVID-19.

Catherine said: “It was such a fabulous and humbling surprise. To be recognised for my contribution to nursing and the job which I loved and felt so passionate about means a great deal to me.

"I feel so very blessed and thankful, not only to have worked alongside and been supported by such amazing colleagues, but to the patients I learnt so much from.”

Catherine began her career as an intensive care unit nurse, and went on to develop ‘Bug Busters’, a scheme which reduced surgical site infections for hip replacement patients.

She also developed a dashboard for other senior nurses to see information about their ward, for example how well they were preventing pressure ulcers in patients. 

Catherine was presented her medal by Prof Dame Hilary Chapman DBE, Lord-Lieutenant of South Yorkshire.

She also received a ‘Gold’ Chief Nursing Officer award in 2021.

Prof Chris Morley, chief nurse at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Catherine held the highest standards of care in both clinical practice and leadership and always kept patients at the forefront of any conversation. 

“This medal is richly deserved and a fantastic testament to her outstanding achievements and passion for nursing.”