Monthly archives: September 2018
Your Trust Charity single
Do you want to be part of our 1st charity single ‘O Holy Night’ in partnership with Bristnall Hall Academy and help raise funds for Your Trust Charity?
Recording will take place Tuesday 6 November, 2pm in the main hall at Bristnall Hall Academy, Bristnall Hall Lane, Oldbury B68 9PA.
If you would like to be involved contact amanda.winwood@nhs.net as soon as possible so numbers can confirmed for the recording session.
Please see the lyrics below which we will be using for the single.
Shop and save with SWBH Benefits
There are some fantastic deals coming up during October on reloadable cards thanks to SWBH Benefits.
Reloadable cards offer instant spending power and great discounts at a range of high street retailers. You can choose from a wide range of cards, saving you money on the high street.
| Retailer | What is the offer? | Current Discount | End Date |
| B&Q | Additional 2% Discount | 8% | 7 October |
| H.Samuels | For every £75 loaded, get £5 free e.g. Load £525 and get £35 free | 7.5% | 14 October |
| The Dining Out Card | Additional 2% Discount | 10% | 14 October |
To order a reloadable card, sign up to SWBH Benefits online at www.swbhbenefits.co.uk and you’ll be given access to the full range of staff benefits.
Once you have an account, you can order your reloadable card through the following link: https://swbh.lifestylehub.co.uk/giftcard
Exhibition captures Windrush generation nurses
Featured in The Phoenix Newspaper
These are the photographs which capture the Windrush generation nurses who have helped to shape the NHS.
[caption id="attachment_107128" align="alignnone" width="640"]
Matron Natalie Whitton attended the Windrush Exhibition[/caption]
They feature in the Here To Stay exhibition, which will be on show at Sandwell Hospital, in West Bromwich from October to mark Black History Month.
The pictures have been taken by photographer Inės Elsa Dalal. Those included in the powerful collection include Jennifer Simpson, whose parents came to the UK in the late 1950s.
Her mother began working for the NHS, starting as a State Enrolled Nurse, and worked her way up to become a senior staff nurse. Jennifer followed in her mother’s footsteps and also became a nurse, working at Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust, which runs Sandwell, City and Rowley Regis Hospitals.
“I was quite overwhelmed with getting the post because I had quite a few issues which made me think I wasn’t able to get a job,” explained Jennifer, who is a single mum.
“I went straight into theatres for 18 months, but during that course of time I was so interested and motivated by what I was learning that it triggered a desire in me to want to know more.”
She recalled: “The consultant hadn’t got a junior doctor at that time, the role was very new. So here I was, black, female, and a single parent of a disabled child, pioneering this new role.”
Over time, Jennifer carried out various procedures including peg insertions, as well as colonoscopies, and sigmoidoscopies, which are screening tests that use a camera to look at the colon.
“Nurses, particularly black nurses don’t get the opportunity to rise into more managerial places so for me to have pushed and blurred the boundaries between the medical profession was quite something,” she added.
The exhibition will feature Jennifer’s story in full, as well as other employees’ from the Trust.
Donna Mighty, Assistant Primary Care Liaison Manager and Co-Chair of the BME Staff Network, who has helped to organise the exhibition, said: “As a collective, it is important to acknowledge the Windrush generation and the challenges faced then and now.
“The Here to Stay exhibition is about celebrating our nurses – past and present and thanking them for their dedicated contribution to the National Health Service. We are grateful to all the participants for agreeing to be involved in the project, for giving their time and sharing their stories with us.
“I want to say a special thanks to documentary photographer Inės for curating the exhibitions.”
To find out more head to the exhibition at the Education Centre, at Sandwell Hospital, West Bromwich, from 1st October.
Window on World mural at clinic
Featured in the Express & Star
Art students have transformed the waiting room at a hospital’s fracture clinic by creating a colourful mural on the wall.
[caption id="attachment_107121" align="aligncenter" width="544"]
L-R: John McKeon, Head of Section for Construction at Sandwell College, Jackie Roxborough, Kissing it Better, Lisa Comfort, Ward Sister, Helen Sweeting, Art and Design Lecturer.[/caption]
The enchanting handiwork, named Window on the World has been painted by students from Sandwell College and can be found hanging at Sandwell Hospital in West Bromwich. The budding artists took on the challenge as part of their community arts module. It was co-ordinated by healthcare charity Kissing it Better. The clinic has no natural light, so the students designed a mural featuring large windows depicting scenes of the borough’s multicultural communities. Patient Wendy Kimberley, of Great Barr, said: “I’ve been coming here over some time now as I’ve had a knee replacement, and I have noticed the change.
“Blank walls are so boring, so it’s nice to see something different. It’s lovely to know that it’s been done by students from the local college.”
Support Your Trust Charity – Sandwell Pretty Muddy Race for Life 5k
Gabby Downey, Obstretrics & Gynaecology Consultant, will be joined by the Chief Nurse and a number of theatre colleagues on Saturday 29 September where they will attempt to complete the Sandwell Pretty Muddy Race for Life 5k.
They will be raising funds for Cancer Research UK and Your Trust Charity.
If you are able to cheer them on, they will be at Sandwell Valley Country Park from 10.30am.
Alternatively, to support them please by visitng https://www.justgiving.com/swbh and stating the “Theatre Fairies Group” when making your donation to Your Trust Charity.
QIHD Poster Competition – Sharing good practice and knowledge
We’ve launched the first ever Quality Improvement Poster Competition which is set to become an annual event in our Trust calendar.
Sharing good practice, quality initiatives, innovations, partnerships and research and development has resulted in improvements for patients relatives and colleagues and this competition aims to build upon that.
The QIHD poster competition gives you the opportunity to share your knowledge, be celebrated and acknowledged as well as rewarded, with entries judged the best being in with a chance to win a share of £5,000.
We are looking to see improvement projects and programmes written up and captured in a poster. Don’t be put off by this because help is available. Medical Illustration will provide support to design and produce the poster and you can discuss your ideas on content with the library services team.
The information sheet below gives guidance on size, style and layout for your poster.
The competition closes on 26 October with exhibitions taking place from 19 November.
For more information or to discuss your ideas, please email swbh.welearnposters@nhs.net or call ext. 3372.
Heartbeat: Dress rehearsal of Unity takes place in focused clinical areas
‘A useful exercise but more training is required’ was a running theme from the feedback of over 90 colleagues who took part in the second dress rehearsal of Unity.
The dress rehearsal was in focused areas at Sandwell and City hospitals including critical care, ED, BMEC, cardiology and BTC. In their feedback colleagues were enthusiastic about Unity but also highlighted issues that require resolving before we are ready for go-live.
Shafiq Ullah is responsible for ensuring a smooth go-live of Unity, he explained more to Heartbeat.
“The dress rehearsal was very useful for everyone who took part. Issues were raised and we have logged these and will be working through them over the coming weeks to ensure a resolution. We will also work closely with colleagues to inform them of progress regarding any queries raised.”
The purpose of the dress rehearsal was to identify issues and drive out risk before go-live of the new system. For the selected operational teams, the dress rehearsal was an opportunity to verify that Unity works in a business as usual context.
So we asked Shafiq how he felt we measured against the aims. He said: “The user engagement was very positive; colleagues felt that this was a worthwhile exercise and especially now they were able to use Unity with some of the devices such as printing and scanning.
“We also had the opportunity to test our process for managing IT issues, both locally with colleagues and through the service desk – logging IT issues through the service desk enables us to identify any common problems across the organisation. This will be a crucial process at go-live as we will seek to resolve issues as quickly as possible.”
Shafiq continued: “Additionally, I am aware that many areas were looking forward to participating in the dress rehearsal, and to ensure we don’t lose the opportunity to engage we have planned to visit a number of specific areas to carry out further Unity activities similar to the dress rehearsal using the live system.”
Heartbeat spoke to colleagues who took part in the rehearsal and a continuing theme was the requirement for more training and ensuring that colleagues are provided with opportunities to keep their knowledge fresh.
“We are certainly aware that this was a key issue for many colleagues,” said Shafiq. “The availability of the Unity play system will certainly help colleagues to maintain familiarity with Unity. There are also plans in place to develop some online learning. Colleagues can also keep engaged with Unity by making use of the Unity corners which can be found in many departments. And the clinical informatics team also deliver weekly targeted 121 coaching sessions across our sites. There are plenty of engagement activities taking place across the Trust, and I would urge colleagues to look out for these and speak to their digital champions and clinical sponsors for further support and information.”
Are you entitled to claim tax relief?
Throughout September and October HMRC is running a campaign to reach PAYE customers who claim tax relief on business expenses.
Colleagues that want to claim tax relief on work related purchases or cleaning uniforms are be encouraged to use the free HMRC service – link below.
www.gov.uk/tax-relief-for-employees
Note: Taxpayers will receive the full tax relief they are entitled if their claim is approved.
Eroster – roster locking update
Rosters dated 3 September-30 September will be locked on Tuesday 2 October.
Please ensure your roster is all up to date (including shift amendments, verifications, cancellations and sickness) and all changes and verifications are captured by 1pm on Tuesday 2 October
Note: After this date the rosters will be locked and you will be unable to action any changes.
For more information please contact Swb-tr.SWBH-GM-Erostering-Helpdesk@nhs.net
Patient raises 1.5k for hospital trust
Featured in the Express & Star
A 10-year-old patient has raised nearly £1,500 for a hospital trust’s charity – after taking on a gruelling triathlon.
The youngster from Smethwick waded through a freezing lake, completed a 1km run and a 2km bike ride – despite suffering from Henoch-Schonlein purpura.
Stan’s triathlon medal[/caption]
Stan Green decided to take part in the event to raise funds for Your Trust Charity, at SWBH, as a way of saying thank you for the care he has received.
The money will go to the Paediatric Department, where he has been treated. He said: “When I was diagnosed with HSP, I never thought two years later I would be in a fit state to complete a triathlon. I even had to learn to ride a bike.
“But here I am today, having finished the challenge in 21 minutes. I’m really pleased to be able to do this.”
Stan’s problems started when he began suffering with cold-like symptoms. But this soon escalated and his mum Tegan rushed him to Sandwell Hospital when he complained of severe pain and developed a rash.
Tegan said: “I was worried sick that Stan had meningitis. But it was the doctors here at Sandwell who were quick to realise that he actually had HSP. The early diagnosis meant that he was given immediate treatment, which helped his recovery immensely.”
← Older items Newer items →