Our work to help build stronger community engagement and internal communication for Ambulance Victoria was last night recognised by the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) Victoria with two Bronze Quill Awards for 2019.

The two pieces of work have previously been recognised with IABC international Gold Quill Awards for 2019.

The two Bronze Quills were awarded for:

• The Better Together program.

When we set out at Ambulance Victoria to improve community engagement we never looked at it as a one-off communication and engagement campaign.

Backed by real commitment from the leadership, we were given the freedom to develop a new model for community and stakeholder engagement, working to fundamentally shift the way the organisation used community insight and participation to plan and manage its business, and meet local and diverse needs.

It’s wonderful to know that our efforts to give the community a greater say in their ambulance service will contribute to better patient experiences and better health outcomes for Victorians.” Mairi Barton

• The 30 Years of Women in Ambulance commemorative album.

The first female paramedics permitted to work in Victoria arrived for duty in an all-male ambulance workforce in 1987 and paved the way for many women who have served since.

The courage and resilience shown by pioneering female paramedics Andrea Wyatt, Pat Richards, Mel Buckingham and Georgie Hall in pursuing their career dreams is truly inspirational and the history of these first female paramedics has been preserved in a commemorative album.

“It was an honour to help share the stories of women in ambulance to celebrate their significant contribution, show how far we’ve come and to open a conversation about the work that’s left to do to create a gender-balanced workplace.” Mairi Barton

Last night’s gala dinner in Melbourne also commemorated the 20th anniversary of IABC Victoria. Pinch Yourself Communication acknowledges the outstanding contribution to developing our communication profession by IABC Victoria over the past two decades and congratulates all the outstanding Bronze Quill recipients recognised last night.

Thank you to Ambulance Victoria for the opportunity to contribute to their important work and congratulations to former Executive Director Communications and Stakeholder Engagement Kate Bradstreet on a total of three Bronze Quill Awards in 2019 for communication projects at Ambulance Victoria.