ADVANCED nurse practitioner Jo Boyd has won a prestigious accolade at the British Journal Of Nursing Awards.

Jo, who works for Seqol, was named Deep Vein Thrombosis Nurse Of The Year at the ceremony which took place in London, at the end of last month.

She is based in Swindon and provides support to patients across Wiltshire.

She was honoured for her pioneering work diagnosing deep vein thrombosis.

She has speeded up the diagnosis by providing a scanning service. The initiative saw Jo become the first nurse in the country to be trained as a deep vein thrombosis sonographer.

She said: “The team were concerned about the wait for ultrasound diagnosis. The symptoms of often mimic other conditions so an ultrasound scan is sometimes the only safe way to exclude the condition.

“Patients needed an injection of anticoagulants daily until they had a scan. This delay in diagnosis caused people to feel uncertainty and concern.”

Jo’s suggestion has meant that patients at Seqol’s specialist treatment centre, at the Moredon Medical Centre, can be seen and scanned on the same day.

Seqol is a social enterprise which provides care and support for adults in Swindon and the surrounding. The organisation is very proud of the deep vein thrombosis initiative.

Seqol’s chief executive officer Heather Mitchell said: “The best ideas can often come from those who are working on the ground and have first-hand experience of ways that can make diagnosis and care easier for both patients and those looking after them.

At Seqol, we encourage all employees to come forward and explore their ideas, as Jo has done.

“We’re very proud that Jo has received this national recognition and that her ideas are helping so many people in Swindon.”

Last year the innovative saw Jo receive the Lifeblood Ambassador Award at the House of Commons. She lists the latest achievement as the proudest moment of her career.

She said: “Being recognised at a national level was the proudest moment of my career. Listening to other stories of how nurses were impacting patient care was very humbling and for our work to recognised alongside these was a great honour.

“Although I was terrified to have to make a speech, I was proud to be able to say I am lucky enough to work for Seqol, who listen to their nurses and allow us to have a direct impact on how we deliver patient care.”

Visit www.seqol.org.