January 14, 2026 - 207 views
An advanced neonatal nurse practitioner helped lead a team to success, with two prestigious national awards for improving the life chances of premature babies.
Rhian Smith, based at Glan Clwyd Hospital, was lead nurse as part of an all-Wales team on the PERIPrem Cymru (Perinatal Excellence to Reduce Injury in Premature Birth Cymru) project.
The highly-skilled group set out to reduce the variation in perinatal care across the country. They were so successful they received the overall Outstanding Contribution to Healthcare Improvement Award, at the NHS Wales Awards late last year. They also won the NHS Wales Team Culture Award for good measure.
A delighted Rhian revealed tackling rates of preterm mortality was a subject close to her heart and how she is fully committed to sharing best practice in the field across Wales.
She said: “It was important as the national nurse lead, who lives and works in North Wales, that the programme benefited families and babies across the whole of Wales - regardless of where they were born. Our moto 'pob babi, bob tro' (every baby, every time) was close to my heart.
“We wanted PERIPrem Cymru to be accessible to all families, babies and staff. So, we committed to a schedule of visits around Wales as a national lead team. The lead midwife and I also set up weekly drop-in sessions for staff, so they could easily access peer and national support as we sought to develop our perinatal community.
“There was strength in our united approach for Wales when we had to revisit difficult issues regarding some of the interventions during the funded programme. These were done swiftly and consensus was obtained from teams.”
“I am grateful for the invaluable experience of leading on this national project,” added Rhian. “I want to thank the Health Board for enabling to me do this. I also want to thank Angela Wood, our Executive Director of Nursing, who spoke powerfully at our national launch event in March 2023.”
As one of four national leads on the project, Rhian helped launch the programme in March 2023. The improvement programme looked to make sure evidence-based perinatal care across Wales was applied consistently.
They supported the delivery of a 10-element bundle of life and brain-saving interventions for babies born before 34 weeks’ gestation, through coaching, shared learning events and regular data reviews. The benchmarks were around improving survival and reducing preterm brain injury.
Since the launch of the initiative, more than 1,200 babies have benefited. Compliance with the bundle of care interventions rose by 160%, with eight out of the 10 interventions showing improvement. Preterm mortality across Wales reduced by more than 15% during the same period.
Between 2022 and 2024 the National Neonatal Audit Project preterm mortality rate (babies born before 32 weeks) fell by more than a quarter. Wales went from having the second highest preterm mortality rate across UK neonatal networks to a lower-than-average rate – now in the lowest third of networks.
Feedback from parents, who were key partners in the development of the scheme, highlighted improved communication, consistency of care and empowerment.
Angela Wood, BCUHB’s Executive Director of Nursing and Midwifery, said: “I’m really pleased and proud of the work Rhian has done. As a lading member of this team she benefited preterm babies, not just in North Wales, but across the whole of the country.
“Rhian demonstrates the commitment shown by so many of our colleagues, not just to look after vulnerable patients but to proactively improve our services for the good of everyone.”
