A nurse based at Bronllys Hospital has been chosen as the first ever Learning Disability Nurse of the Year at this year's Royal College of Nursing Wales Awards.

Catherine Davies has been recognised for her commitment and drive to make healthcare work better for people with learning disabilities across Powys.

This work has included raising awareness among GPs and other health professionals on how people with learning disabilities may need particular support, and leading the charge to ensure that around 90 per cent of this group receive an annual learning disability health check.

Liaison Nurse, Ms Davies, hails from Abercraf in the Swansea Valley.

“I’ve trained, lived and worked pretty much all of my life with Powys and it's amazing to have received the award" she said.

"But it’s not just me, it’s been a team effort and this is all about improving the lives of the individuals that we support.”

“We know that across the UK people with learning disabilities have a reduced life expectancy, often dying prematurely from avoidable and preventable causes. Our work is about reducing these health inequalities,” she added.

Part of the awards process involved a panel interview with the RCN Wales judges. This came at a difficult time for Ms Davies, whose mother passed away in the week before the interview.

“I wasn’t sure if I could do it but then, my colleagues encouraged me, and I thought I’ve got to do it for Mum as she was always such an inspiration for me," she explained.

"When I was at her bedside in hospital towards the end she was telling me I should be getting on with my work instead."

Ms Davies joined nurses from across Wales at the prestigious awards ceremony in Cardiff. Her colleagues and friends shared their joy on social media, describing Catherine as “an inspiration” and the accolade as “very well deserved”.

Ms Davies was nominated by her line manager, Hayley Tarrant, Head of Learning Disability Services at Powys Teaching Health Board.

“Catherine always goes over and above the requirements within her role," said Tarrant.

"This award is amazing and we are honoured to have someone like Catherine in our team.”

Claire Roche, Executive Director of Nursing, Quality, Women and Family, was also able to join in the celebrations.

“I am incredibly proud of Catherine's achievement, which is so well deserved," she said.

"Catherine demonstrates so much passion for Learning Disability Nursing and her focus is always on the needs of our service users in Powys.”

Ms Davies has also branched out to provide training to social care colleagues and the Welsh Ambulance Service alongside delivering sessions to practice nurses and newly qualified health staff on the Preceptorship programme. To date she has trained more than 500 learning disability champions and has many sessions planned for the future.

Ms Davies is no stranger to success, as the health board's Learning Disability Liaison Team was a well-deserved winner in the health board’s Staff Excellence Awards last year.