Staff from NHS Hastings and Rother are in the running to win a national honour.
The team have already won the Success in Partnership Working Award at the Best of Health Awards - the regional heat of the national Health and Social Care Awards - and are now keeping their fingers crossed for next week's national awards ceremony (18 November 2010).
Over the past 30 years, the incidence of melanoma skin cancer has increased more than any other common cancer in the UK and rates are expected to double every decade.
Working with a private company, Scansol, NHS Hastings and Rother was able to provide a new skin cancer diagnostic service in the community using TeleDerm - a hand-held device to view skin structure.
The service was piloted from September 2008 to March 2009 with GP practices in the area and has continued on a full time basis since then.
Emma Cuppini, Practice Based Commissioning Project Officer, NHS Hastings and Rother said:
"It was fantastic to win at the South East Coast Best of Health awards and we are really hoping we canm do the same at the National Health and Social Care awards.
The Telederm scheme is a great example of the way that the NHS, the private sector, and groups of local GPs can work together to give patients improved services."
The team will find out if they have been successful at the national Health and Social Care Awards in Liverpool on 18 November 2010.
