Medical officer receives award from Resuscitation Council UK

Wasdale Mountain Rescue Team's medical officer Lucy Belson, was one of the winners of the 2024 annual Excellence in Resuscitation Awards on May 16.

Lucy was one of the first Resuscitation Officers in the country when she took up her post at the John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford in the early 1990s. She spearheaded developments in resuscitation training at all levels and delivered this with a real passion, inspiring her trainees with the confidence to put in place these skills.

Lucy moved to Cumbria in the late 1990s, where she worked across the county in both primary and secondary care, including delivering resuscitation training to staff in custodial settings. She took a short break from her NHS commitments in April 2000 and flew to Kosovo, working with the International Medical Corps, where she spent several months teaching resuscitation skills and developing frontline medical services in a post-combat zone.

Since her retirement, she has worked with North West Ambulance Service in serving her locality as a Community First Responder but her real focus now lies in supporting England’s busiest Mountain Rescue Team. Shas worked tirelessly as their Medical Officer, building confidence with hill-going volunteers in resuscitation and other medical skills with innovative training, sourcing, and maintaining modern equipment - ensuring that nothing is ever left to chance.

Miranda Lambourne, Judith’s daughter, added: “I wholeheartedly endorse her nomination. I think my mum would be thrilled by this. She sounds like an amazing woman.”

A spokesperson for WMRT said: "Lucy’s attention to detail, diligence and passion for improvement has made a huge difference to our capability as a team. Hugely deserved and well done."

The other three winners of the night were Jo Rainsley with the Peter Baskett Mentor Award - Jo Rainsley and Jilly Luck with the Sam Richmond NLS Nursing and Midwifery Award.