Wales Air Ambulance employee wins national award

Nick Bowen, the Charity’s Training and HR Business Partner, beat off stiff competition to fly out on top during the national Charity Learning Awards.

Nick, from Swansea, joined the Charity nearly two years ago and since his appointment has come up with a unique idea to develop the Charity’s e-learning. This meant that all staff, even those who had already completed an induction earlier in their employment, needed to complete the new learning modules, to ensure a consistent and coherent approach was met across the organisation.

Digital transformation is a key focus for the Wales Air Ambulance and Nick had the support from senior management to develop its basic e-learning.

Over 100 staff at the Charity completed their induction pathway within the set timeframe and all leaders were also tasked with finishing a management pathway, which they all accomplished this year.

Nick’s hard work hasn’t stopped at the Charity, he was determined to share his skills and knowledge with fellow charity learning consortium members and beyond.

A proud Nick said: “On a personal level I’m delighted to win the award and the best part is seeing a ‘vision’ come to life, but to be externally acknowledged really is a bonus. For Wales Air Ambulance as a charity to be recognised amongst all other national charities is something we should be very proud of.

“This award is a reflection of the hard work that’s been put in by so many people and this wouldn’t have been possible without everyone’s help.” 

Nick would like to give particular thanks to his colleagues – Nick and Kieran in the IT team for their insight into making things automated, along with Michael Cove for helping to create the new dashboard.

He added: “Everyone has played a part, whether you’ve given feedback, been a selected ‘guinea pig’, or just ensured that training has been completed on time, it’s all part of the bigger picture and is a great example of collaborative working.

“I hope that all of our staff can see the improvements we’ve made in training, learning and development to make it more user-friendly and accessible, to enable the Charity to achieve our goals both on a personal level, and strategically as a Charity.”

Dr Sue Barnes, Chief Executive Wales Air Ambulance said: “Congratulations to Nick on achieving his award. Since Nick joined the Charity he has shown how passionate he is about learning and development and he wasn’t afraid to the make the changes that needed to be made. We are delighted that Nick’s hard work has been recognised, not only by the Charity and its staff, but by other learners in the third sector. Nick should be extremely proud of all he has achieved during his time at the Wales Air Ambulance.”

Wales Air Ambulance is consultant-led, taking hospital-standard treatments to the patient and, if required, transferring them directly to the most appropriate hospital for their illness or injury. For the patient, this can mean hours saved when compared to standard care and is proven to significantly improve the chances of survival and early recovery.

This advanced critical care includes the ability to administer anaesthesia, deliver blood transfusions and conduct minor operations, all at the scene of an incident.