Tallaght Hospital has won a prestigious international 2011 Gold Quill Award for excellence in communication from the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC). This is the first time that a Gold Quill, often cited as the communication industry’s oldest and most prestigious award, has been won by an Irish organisation.
Tallaght Hospital was selected from nearly 1000 entries from 26 countries. The Gold Quill will be presented to Tallaght Hospital at the World Conference in San Diego, USA in June 2011.
The Communications and Public Relations Manager from Tallaght Hospital, Laoise O'Murchu accepted the award.
This award follows winning the European and Middle Eastern Emerald Award for Excellence in Business Communication presented at EuroComm 2011 conference in Turin on 7 April, 2011.
“It is a rare honour to receive a Gold Quill, known as the ‘Oscars’ by many business communicators. That this is the first time in the award’s 36 year history that work undertaken by an Irish organisation has been awarded the Gold Quill is a source of great pride. This award is testament to the dedication of our staff to delivering the best possible care to our patients. We would also like to share this achievement with all the external agencies that have been instrumental in supporting the Hospital during our change process. They include the Department of Health and Children, the Health Service Executive and the Health Information and Quality Authority in addition to GP and Patient Forums)” said John O’Connell, Acting CEO of Tallaght Hospital.
Speaking about the award Laoise O’Murchú, Communications Manager at Tallaght explained, “We are immensely proud of this achievement. It is recognition of the Hospital’s commitment to excellence. The Gold Quill Awards are one of the few opportunities for communicators to have their work recognised at a global level. The awards recognise work done in the many and varied facets of business communication, but in all areas it is primarily concerned with demonstrating how the communicator has added value to their business through strategic, innovatively-executed and thoroughly measured communication activity.”
The Hospital won the Gold Quill for Issues Management and Crisis Communication. Their submission detailed how the Hospital dealt with the initial crisis it faced in March 2010 and more importantly how it resolved the issues and continued far beyond them implementing changes across the Hospital in processes and structures. It also highlighted how the Hospital communicated these improvements to all stakeholders.
The Gold Quill Award entries went through two rigorous rounds of judging by top senior communicators from around the world. The final selection was made by the Gold Quill Awards Blue Ribbon Panel of judges in March. To win the Gold Quill Award Tallaght Hospital competed with peers from 26 countries including: Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Hong Kong, Mexico, New Zealand, Netherlands, Philippines, Russia, Slovenia, South Africa, Switzerland, United Kingdom and the U.S.
ENDS:
About Tallaght Hospital:
Tallaght Hospital strives to improve the healthcare experiences and outcomes of all its patients, by developing and delivering the highest quality patient care in a safe and caring environment. Tallaght Hospital is an Academic Teaching Hospital affiliated with Trinity College Dublin.
About IABC:
Founded in 1970, The International Association of Business Communicators is a professional network of some 15,000 business communication professionals in over 80 countries. The Gold Quill Award acknowledges excellence and professionalism within business communication.
