East Midlands mental health service for cancer patients shortlisted for national award
The East Midlands Cancer Alliance Centre for Psychosocial Health (EMCA CPH), run by Nottinghamshire Healthcare, has been shortlisted in the HSJ Digital Awards, in the Improving Mental Health through Digital category. This is recognition of its dedication to pioneering digital solutions that are shaping the future of healthcare across the UK.
The service provides high quality training to cancer care professionals, mental health support for those living with and beyond cancer, and leads on research and evaluation, to ensure patients continue to be provided with the best possible support. The service delivers all of its interventions digitally via remote video call, making them easily accessible. The service also monitors and addresses where patients may not have access to digital technology, and works collaboratively with locally provided services to ensure patients are still able to receive support.
Many people living with or beyond cancer experience impacts on psychosocial health, quality of life, functioning and broader health outcomes. Timely, accessible, and personalised psychosocial support can have a significant positive impact on a broad range of health and social aspects of life, as a way of addressing this key, long term need for people affected by cancer.
As part of their work, the team have developed and disseminated openly available web resources , alongside personalised self-help smart-messaging programmes for common difficulties associated with cancer, including anxiety, low mood, sleep problems, nausea, and pain.
The service routinely monitors and evaluates how it is performing and has achieved excellent outcomes for patients with recovery rates placing it as one of the top performing services in the country.
Dr James Rathbone, Consultant Clinical Psychologist and Co-lead for EMCA CPH said:
We are thrilled to see our service shortlisted for a national award. We have a dedicated team who are really committed to pursuing excellence in clinical care and improving the lives of those who are living with and beyond cancer. We're so proud to be making a difference.
Receiving a diagnosis of cancer is often an exceptionally difficult time, commonly impacting on mental health as well a physical. We're delighted to be able to provide an effective service that supports patients through this challenging time.
We are particularly pleased the digital innovations we have introduced to enhance our effectiveness and improve access have been well received by our patients and have had a positive impact. We're looking forward to sharing what we have found with others.
The team also train cancer care staff in psychological screening and intervention skills supported with ongoing supervision. Where more severe or complex difficulties are identified, they provide specialist psychological therapy. Alongside the clinical pathways, the service has dedicated research staff to evaluate service innovations and outcomes.
Cancer care staff often report challenges with managing mental health problems in their setting, with the psychological skills training provided they felt they had significantly increased their skills and confidence in managing mental ill health and also reported improvements in their own well-being as a result of attending.
Dominic Gardner, Mental Health Care Group Director at Nottinghamshire Healthcare said: This is fantastic news. The team are really passionate about ensuring cancer patients receive the best possible mental health support, which is really important during such a difficult time in their lives. It's brilliant to see them recognised nationally for their work, and we wish them all the best of luck for the next stage
It is delivered digitally across five counties in the East Midlands region, working collaboratively with a range of NHS organisations and psycho-oncology services.
The HSJ Digital Awards shine a light on teams and organisations driving meaningful change through technology, improving patient outcomes, streamlining processes, and enhancing the overall quality of care.
The winners will be revealed at the HSJ Digital Awards ceremony on 26 June 2025, a night dedicated to celebrating the brightest minds and most impactful projects in digital health. For more information about the HSJ Digital Awards, visit https://digitalawards.hsj.co.uk .
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