NURSE Julien Standing has won a prestigious award for being a master caster.

Julien, an outpatients nurse at Stroud General Hospital, has won the Lois Barr Memorial Award for Outstanding Achievement for the quality of her plaster casts.

The award, from the Association of Orthopaedic Practitioners, is given at the end of each year to the nurse who has gained the highest overall marks in the British Casting Certificate examinations, run by the British Orthopaedic Association.

“I was very keen to try and win the award because I knew the prize was a place at the AOP’s annual conference – and that’s a wonderful event to attend to learn about all the latest technologies and techniques in casting,” said Julien, 44, who studied at the Bristol Royal Infirmary and Royal Gwent Hospital in Newport before taking exams at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in London.

Julien is now a qualified orthopaedic practitioner.

Helen Acock, team manager for surgery and outpatients at Stroud General Hospital, said: “Julien runs the plaster room here and we are already using her skills to develop others so that more staff can benefit from her skills and knowledge. As a manager this also makes me feel motivated because personal and professional development of staff is a key priority at the trust, so every achievement is important.”

Earlier this year, Stroud Hospital League of Friends provided a range of new equipment for the plaster room. This included a QuietCast cutter - a hand held, battery operated cast cutter which makes removing casts less distressing for vulnerable patients such as children and people with dementia – a hydraulic plastering chair, three ergonomic portering chairs, a leg roller and leg rests.