SINCE last year’s Health and Social Care Awards, the world has become a different place, and it’s one in which the dedication, commitment and sheer hard work of health and social care professionals around the country has come into sharp focus, appreciated now more than it has ever been.

Every day we hear stories of health workers who have voluntarily isolated themselves from their own families to enable them to continue to care for the relatives of others.

We hear of staff working incredibly long shifts, displaying compassion as they hold the hands of the dying to ensure they are not alone.

And every Thursday for eight weeks we have opened our windows, taken to our doorsteps, added bells and whistles, and applauded enthusiastically to demonstrate our appreciation for all that everyone in the sector is doing.

This year’s Hereford Times Health and Social Care Awards offer another way to express that appreciation, that gratitude, for all these previously unsung heroes do for us and our loved ones.

We know that every health and social care worker is going the extra mile in these unprecedented times and we want to celebrate all that they do every minute of every day to make life better for their patients and clients.

There are 12 categories – from Health Care Team to Good Nurse, from Dementia Carer to Mental Health – and we want to hear about the heroes who’ve touched your life, and pay tribute to the difference they make even though they believe they’re ‘just doing their job’.

For full details and to nominate, visit www.herefordtimes.com/awards/healthandsocialcare

  • Newsquest, the group to which the Hereford Times belongs, has also been raising money to support the NHS workforce with donations used for well-being packs, food deliveries, travel and accommodation costs and more to enhance the wellbeing of NHS staff and volunteers. To donate visit https://bit.ly/2QKcIEi