SCHEMES to make visiting hospital a better experience for patients have been recognised in the annual Royal Bolton Hospital awards.

The schemes include better treatment for alcoholics, extra wheelchairs for patients, shorter waiting times for test results and support for patients with specialist needs.

They are some of the ideas suggested by staff that have introduced over the last 12 months.

David Fillingham, hospital chief executive, said: "The standard of entries has been very high and it is very encouraging to see the number of ways our staff make positive contributions to improving services.

"The awards give us an opportunity to recognise their achievements and thank them."

Nurses Sandra Crompton and Emma Dermody work with patients who have been admitted with alcohol problems.

In the last year, they have introduced a range of measures including detox programmes for every patient and continued support following discharge.

They have been honoured with the clinical improvement champion award.

Nurse Crompton said: "If you offer the right support, you get a positive response.

"We also get the families on board and offer them help so they can continue that support at home."

Customer care manager Ruth Adamson was awarded the customer service champion prize.

She realised there were too few wheelchairs in the main reception area and patients who had difficulty walking to appointments had to wait for one to become available.

So she and the rest of her team contacted nearly 300 local businesses, appealing for them to sponsor wheelchairs.

Scan Computers, in Horwich, and Silcoms Ltd, an engineering company in Farnworth, and three more wheelchairs have been added to the hospital's pool, bringing the total to 13.

Mrs Adamson said: "This is a whole team effort and it isn't just me. It might not seem like a lot of wheelchairs, but it's made a big difference to patients' waiting times."

l Other award winners include staff on the trauma stabilisation unit, who have been named the clinical positive performance team of the year; the microbiology team, who are the non-clinical positive performance team; Maureen Kearon, who is the non-clinical improvement champion; Stephen Tyldsley, who is the organisational learning and development champion; Vicky Welsby and Dave Hanson, who won the diversity and equality initiative champion award; Linda Woods and Dr Simon Stacey won the clinical leader of the year award; Steve Sawley won non-clinical leader of the year award; and Marie Stephan won the health professional student of the year award.