Tara Fifield, an Occupational Therapy Assistant, has won the International Creative Ability Network (ICAN) Celebrating Occupational Therapy Support Workers Award for 2025.
Based in Sevenoaks, Tara works at Cygnet Hospital Godden Green, a 33-bed service which provides specialist acute and PICU services for women.
Tara, who has been in her role at the Cygnet Health Care service for just over two years, was praised for her commitment in implementing a new tool which better engages but has already made a mark with her unwavering commitment to patients in Occupational Therapy activities.
Reacting to her win, Tara said: “I am incredibly honoured and genuinely surprised to be recognised for my work. I didn’t even know I’d been nominated, which made receiving the award even sweeter.
“Having worked at Cygnet Group for just over two years, I’ve always been passionate about patient-centred care. It’s been a truly rewarding experience and I’ve seen first-hand the positive impact my work implementing the model has had on both our patients and the team.”
Tara has been instrumental in implementing a new model – known as the the Vona du Toit Model of Creative Ability (VdTMoCA) – which looks at how patients best engage in daily recovery activities.
Tara added: “I’m really passionate about this. It’s an incredibly powerful model in PICU mental health services as it allows us to identify our patients’ creative ability, and their readiness and capacity to engage, which is so important.
“It helps to support the journey of recovery for our patients whilst respecting their dignity and encouraging participation. It has fundamentally impacted my view of therapy and has equipped me to better support my colleagues.
“I’ve worked closely with several Cygnet Health Care Support Workers to help improve patient dignity and I’m really proud of the collaborative spirit we’ve created. This has strengthen our team cohesion and the overall care we provide.
“I believe that all patients, regardless of their presenting challenges, can access meaningful therapeutic engagement and I can already see the tangible difference this has made on our patients’ lives already.”
Tara was nominated by Theoca Moodley, Head of Occupational Therapy at Cygnet Hospital Godden Green, who praised her dedication in supporting not only patients, but colleagues too.
Theoca explained: “Tara truly deserves this recognition. Her proactive engagement and keen observational skills have become a cornerstone of our assessment process on the Castle Ward.
“Her support of the team has significantly improved morale positive impact on the quality of patient care we provide.
“Tara’s ability to better understand and support the complex needs of our patients but also her capacity to effectively guide and support her healthcare colleagues on the ward is amazing.”
After recognising Tara’s ongoing championing of the VdTMoCA, ICAN has awarded her a certificate and £200 for her win.