Monthly archives: March 2018

Salary sacrifice – car parking (amendment to previous messages)

Further to previous messages regarding the removal of the salary sacrifice scheme for car parking (originally announced in the government’s 2016 Autumn Statement) payroll have received clarification that the scheme is not being totally withdrawn but is being reduced (only the tax relief element of the scheme is being withdrawn).

Consequently with effect from 1 April 2018, any staff signed up to the salary sacrifice scheme will still be a member of that scheme, and will continue to receive the benefit of a reduced national insurance contribution and pension deduction (if they are a member of the NHS pension schemes) but will no longer receive the 20% tax relief on their car park permit charge.

For a standard lower rate tax payer this will mean a reduction in take home pay of £3.50 per month, rather than the £5.60 originally stated in previous messages.

Windows 7 Laptops

We have had an issue where the old anti-virus software (Sophos) has become activated on Windows 7 laptops. This stops access outside the Trust working. We have made changes so that if you reboot your laptop when connected to the Trust network (i.e. in one of our buildings with the network cable plugged in or on WiFi) the problem will be permanently resolved.

If this does not sort the problem, please contact ext. 4050 when your PC is on the network.

Unity Devices Update

We’ve now rolled out the powered computers on wheel in ED and the assessment units. Laptops on wheels are now in place in Sandwell and will shortly be distributed across City and Rowley. Work to ready theatres has been completed in Sandwell and is planned for City. The equipment has received a positive response:

“Can I please say thank you for the COWS that have been allocated to AMUA, they are amazing, the appear to have a very good wifi signal and so far they are just as fast as any other computer.”

We’ll review the success of the equipment during the dress rehearsal to ensure that we have it right. Information on the equipment is published in the Unity area of Connect.

New lockdown process introduced into e-rostering system

A new lockdown process has been introduced into the e-rostering system.

E-rostering will be locking down the rosters as they become 4 weeks old.

By then the expectation is that all assigned shifts will have been verified or deleted.

Please ensure all working hours, annual leave or sickness, have been accurately recorded.

This process will be starting as of 19 March 2018 and in preparation all open rosters up to and including any rosters prior to 18 February 2018 will be locked.

E-rostering lockdown schedule 2018-19 and e-rostering planning schedule for 2017-18

Note: As a reminder all Band 6 staff should have full managers access to the e-rostering system. All Band 5’s should have, at minimum, read only access to the managers software.

Child sexual exploitation: Meet the children safeguarding team between 14-16 March

The children safeguarding team will be offering advice and support to how you or your team can support the safeguarding team in regards to child sexual exploitation between 14-16 March.

The children safeguarding team will be at Sandwell Hospital’s Accident & Emergency department on Wednesday 14 March from 10am-1pm, City Hospital’s Birmingham Treatment Centre Thursday 15 March from 12pm-2pm and New Square shopping centre, West Bromwich Friday 16 March from 1pm-5pm.

The team will also be hosting a ‘Tweet Chat’ on Friday 16 March from 12pm hosted by WeSchoolNurses using #WeScNs. The link to access this is: http://www.wecommunities.org/tweet-chats/chat-details/4161

For more information please contact Jayne Clarke or / Noreen Ahmed on ext. 2844 or alternatively, contact Sandra Robinson on ext. 2424.

Nutrition and hydration: 14 March

In order to promote Nutrition and hydration week, the nutrition and dietetic department’s current students will be having a stand outside Arches café at City Hospital on Wednesday 14 March between 10am- 3pm.

Their aim is to raise awareness and share current knowledge for patients, staff and visitors and motivate active participation through interactive quizzes.

Focusing on the following topics:

Awareness of calorie, fat and sugar content in foods
Protected mealtimes
Healthy eating
Hydration

Get involved – Commonwealth Games 2022

Organisers of the Commonwealth Games to be held in Birmingham in 2022, are calling for 2,022, 16 – 25 year olds to participate in the official Commonwealth Games handover event on Sunday 15 April 2018.Over two thousand people will come together in a large-scale event, in a secret city centre location, giving a glimpse into what the world can expect from the city when it hosts the games in 2022.

The team are looking to represent the young and diverse population of the city and region.

Applicants need to be able to commit to the following dates:

A ‘try out’ session on either Friday 30 March, Saturday 31 March or Tuesday 3 April
Some rehearsal sessions between the dates 7 – 11 April
All day rehearsals (09:00 – 18:00) on Thursday 12 April, Friday 13 April and Saturday 14 April
Performance date: 08:00 – 15:00 on Sunday 15 April

Unfortunately, we are not able to accept submissions from people who cannot commit to the above dates.

All rehearsals and performances will be local to Birmingham City Centre. A travel bursary will be provided for rehearsal dates only.

Visit the Birmingham 2022 – get involved website for more information

Fire alarm test at City to take place between 11.30am – 1pm this week

Due to operational reasons, the weekly fire alarm test at City Hospital which takes place Tuesday and Wednesday this week will be delayed and will take place between 11.30am and 1pm.

Note: The times changes will only be for this week only.

OPAT & MIS services merging 2 April offering 7 day service

From 2 April 2018, medical infusion suite (MIS) and outpatient intravenous antibiotic therapy (OPAT) services will be merging together, offering a 7 day service from 8am – 8pm.

This will enable patients living closer to City hospital to receive their treatment on MIS.

Patients can either make their own way to Rowley or City or hospital transport can be provided. OPAT referrals need to be made via connect on OPAT home page.

All patients must be referred by an SWBH clinician, using the MF5547 referral form and it must be emailed to dorothy.lord@nhs.net

No Smoking Day 2018 – employee smoking cessation programme

With No Smoking Day on Wednesday 14 March, colleagues wanting to kick their smoking habit can now access our free smoking cessation services during working hours.

This service allows colleagues to get support to quit smoking and to improve their own health as part of a 12-week smoking cessation programme.

A dedicated one-to-one personal advisor is available for up to 12 weeks to support colleagues to quit smoking alongside a range of free Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) products.

Clinics can be accessed by appointment only by calling 0800 1583535 or 0121 663 0007 ext. 232 (note – appointment booking system and appointments during working hours must be agreed by line managers).

The free and confidential service is run by external providers and is available during working hours.

The initial booking session takes 30 minutes, thereafter appointments take 20-30 minutes.

It is recommended that a weekly support session is attended for the first four to six weeks. Then from seven to twelve weeks, sessions can decrease to once a fortnight for most individuals.

Clinics are held at Sandwell clinic every Monday 8.30am – 12.30pm and City clinic every Tuesday 9.30am – 1.30pm.

Colleagues must contact Occupational Health for a voucher in order to register for the service. The providers of services will provide appointment cards, with a signature, to evidence the appointment time and date.

To register, contact Jatinder on extension 3306 or e-mail jatinder.sekhon@nhs.net

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Monthly archives: March 2018

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