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Mr Sunanda Mahapatra, commonly known as ‘Roy’, is the latest Countess Gem of the Month award winner after colleagues praised his selfless demeanour and dedication.
Sunanda, who has worked at the Countess for seven years, described how the surgical teams he works with at the hospital have become like a second family.
“We spend more time here than we do at home so this is like a second home,” he said. “How you value your family is how you have to value your colleagues as well because they are your family until you retire.”
Sunanda has received several nominations since the Countess Gems awards started. You can read a selection of those nominations below:
Consultant General Surgeon Mr Mike Johnson: “Sunanda has shown outstanding dedication to his role within the Department of General Surgery for the last 10 years. He is always very supportive to the junior doctors, managing the rotas in a proactive way.”
ST6 Trainee Philippa Wadsworth: “Roy keeps the department afloat really. He coordinates the junior rotas and always works hard to help people looking to swap for important events etc., as well as looking out for potential training opportunities for them. Particularly in the past few months when we have been short, he has worked tirelessly to ensure a safe service and happy team. Roy is also an excellent trainer, both in terms of training surgical skills and as a role model in good leadership.”
Colorectal Support Nurse Chelsea Owen: “Roy goes above and beyond for the colorectal team putting patients at the heart of everything he does. He is both conscientious and very hard working. He is the "go to" guy of the colorectal department nothing is too much trouble or hard work. The department would be lost without him. I would like to nominate him for he continued hard work and for personally helping me develop my surgical knowledge. Thank you.”
Surgical Registrar Catherine Bell: “Roy is a fantastic person to work with. He is always approachable and always willing to take on extra workload in order to give the patients the best service. He does this all with a smile on his face. The surgical department would not be able to function without him.”
Consultant General Surgeon Ms Nicola Eardley: “Roy Mahapatra works so hard for the department of general surgery. He covers rota gaps at the drop of a hat. He co-ordinates the trainee rotas and always tries to ensure that rota gaps are filled by internal staff rather than locum agency staff. He goes out of his way to ensure that the department runs smoothly and is always staffed as well as it can be. I recently heard that he gave someone a lift home all the way to Prestatyn on Christmas day as they didn't have a car! Clinic not cancelled - Roy covers it. Theatre list needs doing - Roy does it. No SHO for nights, Roy pops to Morrison’s and buys a load of snacks for the SHO who stayed back to cover the night. I could go on and on with all that Roy does. He really is a true gem.”
Colorectal Specialist Nurse Claire Smith: “I have been lucky enough to work alongside Sunanda for many years. Throughout this time he goes above and beyond his role. He is the glue that gels the colorectal team together he is approachable and supportive to us as a specialist nursing team and to the junior doctors and other health professionals. I believe he is worthy of a countess gem as a small token of our appreciation.”
Sunanda was overjoyed to read the comments from his colleagues and see how they appreciate his efforts.
“It’s a bit overwhelming really,” he said. “I have worked with some of them only for six months and they have spoken highly of me, it’s fantastic.”
He added: “I think this is a nice initiative. I believe there are lots of people in this organisation who value it very much. This will give them the recognition they deserve. It will also be inspiration for others who loves to come working here.”
Deputy Director of People and Organisational Development Dee Appleton-Cairns said: “We were all touched by the stories of Sunanda going out of his way to help his colleagues, especially taking a colleague to Prestatyn on Christmas day. This kind of selfless approach and dedication to both our colleagues and our patients is exactly what Countess Gems were created for. Congratulations Sunanda!”
About Countess Gems
‘Countess Gems’ are a monthly recognition awards scheme at the Countess of Chester Hospital, with members of staff nominating colleagues who they think deserve special praise. Every person/team nominated officially becomes a ‘Countess Gem’ with a certificate. Once a month the leadership group reviews all the nominations and selects an overall winner. This team/individual will then receive £125 to spend with in-house Catering Services to celebrate. The Countess Gems awards are funded through donations from patients and families in thanks for the care they have received (charitable funds).