Monthly archives: June 2019

Heartbeat: Working together to get the most from Unity

Imagine a new system that will make the way we work safer and more efficient? That is exactly what Unity will do for you and your patients.

Even if you work in a department that uses other systems like BadgerNet or SystmOne, our electronic patient record will join up what we know about care.

So what are the biggest benefits?

• Safety: Electronic prescribing will replace paper drug charts. This will mean the information can be viewed in different places at the same time, but also that transcription errors will reduce.
• Quality: Simplified and standardised ordering will improve speed, accuracy and legibility. If you attended a Favourite Fair to set up your favourites, the orders you need most will be easy to access.
• Time: Unity will make it much quicker to submit orders, process investigations and produce reports, freeing you up to care. It will also make handover simpler and again we will all use a single approach.

Another integral part of Unity is the clinical decision support system which aims to present the right information at the right time, provides recommendations for best practice (based on clinical guidelines and evidence–based medicine), and delivers alerts when a chosen action deviates from recommended practice or could cause an error. We have worked hard to get the balance between too many alerts and the right prompts!

Putting Unity into place is just the first step. Every clinical group and directorate is now working towards a set of optimisation measures. This reflects the fact that we will all get the most from Unity if we all make good use of Unity. One person opting out affects the body of knowledge on which we all rely. That is why individuals and teams will, after go–live, get data driven feedback on your use of Unity, and how it compares to your colleagues and peers. We will be working intensively with individuals to make sure that we achieve optimal use over a six month period.

In the last few weeks, the 28–Day Challenge has focused on increasing everyone’s skills, knowledge and confidence, while Favourite Fairs gave colleagues the opportunity to customise their settings on Unity and make it easier to use. Over 95% of colleagues have now undertaken basic training. E–learning modules are also on the way next month to support further training and the Play

System means that you can test your skills and knowledge in a safe environment. All of us will undertake a core competency assessment in the next few weeks against the key Unity skills we need, and each local team will also be going through testing and assessment before go–live. Digital champions will have an important role to play in the coming months. We now have more than 900 across the Trust, who will help to resolve issues and support anyone who may be struggling to use Unity. The first part of digital champions training, focusing on soft skills, has been launched. All line managers will also, as part of their role, become super users, able to coach team members in how to get the most from the system.

As an organisation, our IT infrastructure has been upgraded and more work is being done to ensure it can support Unity. All devices are being tested and new ones introduced in areas that need them. These are some of the key criteria that the Board has adopted before go–live to make sure that we have a successful launch. The Chief Executive’s Friday message will give you more information each week on our countdown. There is a huge amount going on to be ready for the new system – we need everyone to play their part.

Volunteers’ Week 2019

To celebrate Volunteers’ Week, we are be showcasing our volunteer service throughout the week.

Our volunteer service are hosting a variety of awareness events across our sites to celebrate Volunteers’ Week. The events aim to raise the profile of volunteering and will give colleagues the opportunity to find out how a volunteer could help them in their ward or department. Please see below for more information or email swbh.volunteer@nhs.net.

• Tuesday 4 June: 8.30am – 5.30pm, leadership event at Bethel Conference centre
• Wednesday 5 June: 10am – 2pm, entertainment from Bristnall Hall School at Birmingham Treatment Centre, City Hospital
• Thursday 6 June: 5.30pm – 7.30pm, volunteer appreciation awards evening at Sandwell Education Centre
• Friday 7 June: 11.30am – 2pm, entertainment at Sandwell Hospital (main reception)

How can a volunteer support your service?

Joshua Adegoke volunteers across our Sandwell Hospital site. We caught up with Joshua to find out what he enjoys most about volunteering and why he does it.

Be sure to check out this short video featuring Josh briefly talking about his volunteering role at the Trust.

Heartbeat: Working against the odds to improve experience of homeless patients

There has been a huge increase in homelessness over the past few years and this continues to rise with shocking figures revealing that one in 73 people are now homeless in Birmingham. This rise has been linked to spiralling rents, welfare cuts and a lack of social housing.

Following an annual review in 2018, the charity ‘Shelter’ revealed that an astonishing 15,538 were recorded as ‘homeless’ in Birmingham.

Despite these horrific statistics, our homeless patient pathway (HPP) team continues to work against the odds improving the experience of our homeless patients by providing much needed interventions such as securing accommodation, advice and signposting, food, clothing and toiletries.

Helen Taylor, Lead Nurse for HPP plays a fundamental role in ensuring that we continue to support our homeless patients.

She said: “The majority if not all of our homeless patients face rates of physical ill health several times higher than the general population, often combined by mental ill health and substance misuse. In addition to this, depression is also extremely common, with homeless people being nine times more likely to take their own life than the general population. With this mind, it’s vital we continue to support this client group as they are some of the most vulnerable in our community.”

HPP aims to reduce homelessness across Sandwell and Birmingham by either securing suitable accommodation on discharge or signposting to the relevant agencies for additional support. They assist our homeless patients by helping them to access services to manage their situations of crisis.

Helen believes we are achieving this but we must continue to maintain the high standards so the service can maintain its success.

Colleagues can assist with this by identifying homeless patients and referring to the team as soon as possible so they have adequate time to respond and achieve a safer discharge.

A perfect example of this was a young vulnerable patient who was helped by the team and has now completely turned his life around.

Helen said: “The patient was made homeless due to family conflict and was only 19 years old at the time. The patient was suicidal due to debt issues and homelessness and had attempted to take his own life on multiple occasions.

After being admitted into City Hospital he was immediately referred to the homeless team. The support of HPP ensured stable supported accommodation as well as external agency referrals to address his mental health and financial difficulties.

They also offered community follow up, GP registration, food and clothing. Following on from the interventions from HPP the patient is still sustaining a tenancy, has returned to full time employment and enjoying a healthier lifestyle by attending his local gym three times a week.”

Unity Favourite Fairs – next steps

Following the success of the Favourite Fairs held earlier last month, the Unity team will be providing further support to help colleagues personalise the system to suit their clinical role.

The Unity team will be bringing Favourite Fairs to a location near you between 10 June and 4 July. Plans are currently being made so keep an eye out for more details in the communications bulletin and on Connect over the coming weeks. If you would like a session to be held within your area then please contact us on swbh.unity.queries@nhs.net to arrange.

If you would like to set up your favourites yourself, then you will be able to use the instructional videos, Favourite Fairs packs and quick reference guides to help. The information will be loaded onto Connect ready for when the Unity upgrade is complete.

Heartbeat: New era for GP surgery as it joins our SWB family

We have welcomed GP surgeries to our SWB family to deliver “closer to home” care to thousands of patients.

One Sandwell GP practice will operate over two sites – Great Bridge Health Centre and Lyndon Health Centre (formerly Parsonage Street GP Practice) which we will run in collaboration with Your Health Partnership.

We will be working with Broadway Health Centre in Birmingham to deliver care at Heath Street Health Centre, formerly known as Summerfield GP Practice.

Working with partners, our organisation will embrace the opportunity to work differently which may see some patients having their care delivered by consultants in a primary care setting, and seeing increased consultant–led clinics opening closer to home.

For many patients, they will see the benefit of having almost all their NHS services (with the exception of mental health) delivered by one organisation that includes, primary care, acute and community services.

Dottie Tipton, Primary Care Liaison Manager, said: “We have successfully launched our first GP Practice which incorporates two surgeries – Great Bridge Health Centre and Lyndon Health Centre.

“We have been liaising closely with colleagues at both sites, with members of the primary care team embedded at the surgeries, giving them a warm welcome to the Trust. The teams at all sites will continue to deliver great care to thousands of patients. It’s an exciting time for our organisation as we grow further within our community.”

Toby Lewis, Chief Executive said: “The new arrangements are a chance to do, to learn and to build trust. We want to move fast to provide the very best long term conditions care for children and for adults that redefine traditional home and hospital boundaries.”

Dr Simon Mitchell, Executive Partner at Your Health Partnership added: “Your Health Partnership is delighted to have the opportunity to work with the hospital Trust to deliver primary care services in West Bromwich. We have a well–established relationship with the Trust and believe the opportunity to work together in this way will create lots of exciting new ways to improve the health of the patients whilst continuing to deliver great quality general practice.”

Smokefree – Five weeks to go

With only five weeks to go before our Trust goes smokefree on 5 July, we’ve asked colleagues, visitors and patients about why it matters.

Here is what Kiran Mann, sister on  OPAU said: “I think it’s a brilliant idea for the Trust to go smokefree, as it might encourage more people to stop smoking as there won’t be designated smoking areas anymore which hopefully will make more people want to quit altogether.”

Volunteers’ Week 2019

To celebrate Volunteers’ Week, we will be showcasing our volunteer service throughout the week.

Our volunteer service will be hosting a variety of awareness events across our sites to celebrate Volunteers’ Week. The events aim to raise the profile of volunteering and will give colleagues the opportunity to find out how a volunteer could help them in their ward or department. Please see below for more information or email swbh.volunteer@nhs.net.

• Monday 3 June: 9am – 1pm, entertainment at Rowley Hospital (Main reception)
• Tuesday 4 June: 8.30am – 5.30pm, leadership event at Bethel Conference centre
• Wednesday 5 June: 10am – 2pm, entertainment from Bristnall Hall School at Birmingham Treatment Centre, City Hospital
• Thursday 6 June: 5.30pm – 7.30pm, volunteer appreciation awards evening at Sandwell Education Centre
• Friday 7 June: 11.30am – 2pm, entertainment at Sandwell Hospital (main reception)

How can a volunteer support your service?

Nazia Akhtar volunteers in critical care and theatres at Sandwell Hospital. We caught up with Nazia to talk about how her role as a theatre and critical care liaison volunteer acts as a bridge between ward and theatre colleagues and the friends and families of patients.

Be sure to check out this short clip featuring Nazia talking about the difference she makes as a volunteer.

Volunteers’ Week 2019

To celebrate Volunteers’ Week, we will be showcasing our volunteer service throughout the week.

Our volunteer service will be hosting a variety of awareness events across our sites to celebrate Volunteers’ Week. The events aim to raise the profile of volunteering and will give colleagues the opportunity to find out how a volunteer could help them in their ward or department. Please see below for more information or email swbh.volunteer@nhs.net.

• Wednesday 5 June: 10am – 2pm, entertainment from Bristnall Hall School at Birmingham Treatment Centre, City Hospital
• Thursday 6 June: 5.30pm – 7.30pm, volunteer appreciation awards evening at Sandwell Education Centre
• Friday 7 June: 11.30am – 2pm, entertainment at Sandwell Hospital (main reception)

How can a volunteer support your service?

Our volunteers’ service have continued to play a vital part in supporting loved ones of patients in both critical care and theatres at Sandwell. In March, we introduced the critical care liaison volunteer role to act as a bridge between ward and theatre colleagues and the friends and families of patients in either critical care or theatres.

This new volunteer project has been spearheaded by Patricia Hunt, volunteer service manager who is delighted with its initial progress.

She said: “The programme only launched at the back end of March and we have already had a fantastic interest and uptake. With seven volunteers already in place at Sandwell who are absolutely enjoying their volunteering in critical care and theatres, we will definitely have to think about expanding this particular role across Sandwell and  eventually to City.”

Heartbeat recently caught up with Nazia Aktar, who is one of the first theatre and critical care liaison volunteers to find out about her first couple of months in this role.

What Challenges do you face in critical care?

“Critical care can be a very face paced environment with many staff attending to a variety of patients. This means that there are also quite a lot of visitors so it can be a little difficult at times to build a real rapport with a small number of people who visit the patients especially as it can be a highly stressful situation for them”

How do you feel about volunteering in critical care?

“The critical care liaison role has allowed me to gain confidence in speaking to people who I don’t know but more importantly, working in critical care means you build resilience over time and get stronger emotionally which is quite important when doing this kind of volunteering role.”

What do you enjoy most about volunteering in critical care?

“I enjoy this role very much as it is a great way to give back whilst learning new things. Volunteering makes you feel good about yourself but this role in particular makes me feel I’m making a huge difference even if I’m just acting as a point of contact.”

Why are you volunteering in critical care?    

“For me personally it’s for the experience and to enhance my CV whilst learning new skills. On top of this I find volunteering in critical care very rewarding.”