Two groundbreaking Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust and University of Manchester schemes which provides psychological care to cardiac patients have been shortlisted for the Mental Health Innovation of the Year at the HSJ Awards.
The MCT-PATHWAY and PATHWAY Beacons led by Professor Adrian Wells secured the place at the prestigious awards ceremony, to be held later this year, for their outstanding contribution to healthcare
The scheme was among a record-breaking 1456 entries received for this year’s Awards, with 223 projects and individuals reaching the final shortlist, making it the biggest awards programme its 43-year history.
Approximately 100,000 people attend cardiac rehabilitation each year in the UK. The NIHR-funded PATHWAY programme is the UK’s first successful group-based mental health intervention (Metacognitive therapy; MCT) that can be delivered alongside usual cardiac rehabilitation (CR). Group-MCT+CR was found to significantly improve anxiety and depression and halve the deterioration rate in comparison to usual care.
This is of vital importance as heart disease patients suffer significant anxiety and depression, which is not routinely treated in cardiac services and is linked to poorer health outcomes, greater mortality, greater healthcare use, and poorer quality of life. The follow-on NIHR-funded PATHWAY-Beacons project is currently evaluating the effect of implementation and roll-out of MCT-PATHWAY in the NHS.
“The team and I are thrilled to be shortlisted for the mental health innovation of the year award. A big thank you to the HSJ judging panel and to all our collaborators and participants whose dedicated work has improved the mental wellbeing of people living with heart disease” said Professor Wells, Chief Investigator, from The University of Manchester and GMMH NHS Trust.
Patients who have received MCT as part of the roll-out of MCT-PATHWAY given it rave reviews: One patient, Angus told the research team: “I truly do not know if I would still be alive if it was not for the course”
And another, Jan said: “Without this service I don’t think I would have got to were I am now, they gave me confidence that I could live my life again and feel normal, easing all the anxiety I felt after my cardiac event.”
HSJ editor Alastair McLellan, said: “It always gives me great pleasure to congratulate our finalists at this stage of the judging process and this year is no exception as we acknowledge MCT-PATHWAY and PATHWAY Beacons for being shortlisted in the category of Mental Health Innovation of the Year.
“However, it’s always important to remember that the HSJ Awards are not just a celebration of success stories but also a platform to shape the future of the NHS.
“We can’t wait to welcome our finalists to the awards ceremony in November and to recognise and applaud such impressive achievements across the sector – as well as coming together to help mark the 75th birthday of our great NHS. Huge thanks also go to our new headline partner, Vodafone, who share our mission of driving the standard of healthcare excellence and creating better patient experiences.”
The 2023 awards judging panel was made up of a diverse range of highly influential and respected figures within the healthcare community, including; Crystal Oldman, Chief Executive, Queen’s Nursing Institute; Dr Habib Naqvi MBE, Chief Executive, NHS Race and Health Observatory; Anne-Marie Vine-Lott, Director of Health, Vodafone; Sir Jim Mackey, National Director of Elective Recovery, NHS England, as well as a range of esteemed Chief Executives from NHS Trusts across the UK.
