WINNER

Modality Partnership

Wellbeing as a Safety Strategy: Embedding Psychological Safety Across 55 Sites

Modality Partnership delivers care across 55 GP practices with 1,800 staff operating in high-pressure NHS environments. Recognising the direct link between workforce wellbeing and patient safety, the organisers implemented the CARE Wellbeing Network, a system-level, values-based infrastructure embedding psychological safety, proactive wellbeing and modern employment practices into everyday operations. The network has delivered a 23.1 per cent reduction in sickness episodes, a 33.4 per cent reduction in stress-related absence and significant improvements in staff engagement and confidence. By shifting from reactive support to embedded, preventative infrastructure, the model reduces burnout risk, strengthens workforce resilience and enables safer, more reliable patient care at scale.

Read a detailed case study about this project at HSJ Best Practice.

Highly commended

East London FT: SAFERR QI Project

Finalists

Cambridgeshire and Peterborough FT: CPFT’s AHP Led, Evidence Based Wellbeing Programme Supporting a Healthier Workforce

Lancashire and South Cumbria FT: HCSW Development project

Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust: Suicide Postvention Support

Central London Community Healthcare Trust: Championing Reasonable Adjustments in the NHS

Swansea Bay University Health Board: Caring for Those Who Care: Staff Health Check Programme

Calderdale and Huddersfield FT: From RESPOND to Recognition: Embedding Great Work Across Our Surgical Unit

Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership Trust: Supporting Staff, Strengthening Skills: AWP’s Staff Trauma Support Service

Topics

HSJ Patient Safety Awards 2026: Winners revealed

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The winners of the HSJ Patient Safety Awards 2026 were announced last night, recognising outstanding efforts to make care safer.