Monthly archives: May 2020
Heartbeat is online now
The April edition of Heartbeat is now online! You can read the latest news from around the Trust on Connect. Find out about our fight back against COVID-19 and read some of our inspirational survivor stories.
Star of the Week – Beata Wojtas, Sister
This week’s Star of the Week goes to Beata Wojtas, Sister.
In the absence of Leasowes ward manager, Beata has been amazing by taking on the role of manager and has thrived in this position. Ever since Leasowes changed from rehabilitation to palliative centre for patients with COVID-19, colleagues have experienced a great deal of challenges in adjusting. Beata has provided a lot of support and reassurance and positive thinking to get Leasowes through with the changes and running of the centre on a day to day basis. Beata does not just accomplishes her duties as a Band 6, but especially during these difficult times, she goes the extra mile. On numerous occasions, Beata makes sacrifices and comes in on her days off, as well as her recent birthday and she even missed her anniversary to ensure the ward was covered to maintained patient safety.
COVID-19 Bulletin: Sunday 10 May
This is our every night bulletin. Please use this bulletin and cascade arrangements within care and corporate groups to guide your actions. Throughout May we are determined to reduce avoidable harm and death in the people we are taking care of. Kindness remains the guiding principle of all the actions in our work to tackle the virus – kindness in how we look after patients, visitors, and one another.
A huge thank you to everyone working within our Red Areas. We still have multiple wards and much of our critical care units looking after people with COVID-19. Coming into work, while others talk about going back to work, in these circumstances is terribly difficult. Though most patients with the virus survive, very many do not. We will use our QIHD time on Wednesday to consider what more we could do to improve the chances each person has of recovering in our care.
Numbers not statistics: Today’s totals (Yesterday’s totals)
| Number of our patients confirmed with COVID-19 during the pandemic | Number of positive COVID-19 patients who have been discharged during the pandemic | Number of patients who have died in our hospitals who tested positive for COVID-19 during the pandemic | Number of patients entered by the Trust into a COVID-19 research trial to date | Number of COVID-19 positive patients who are inpatients with us today | Number of our staff absent due to ill-health or isolation today |
| 1116
(1116) |
727
(726) |
313
(312) |
105
(105) |
76
(78) |
—
(605) |
1. Shape your future at Wednesday’s QIHD
The Trust’s final plan for Restoration and Recovery is being developed this month for approval at June’s Trust Board. There will be #nogoingback so please do grab this chance to say what works best in your view, both for your team and for our patients. QIHD is the place where teams debate the evidence, consider ideas for improvement, and discuss future plans. Details of the topics under discussion will come out tomorrow, but make sure you know the WebEx details for your team and find some time to contribute.
2. Big Clean Up continues at Rowley Regis
Our programme is all about restoring public confidence in care in order to ensure that those in need seek help. This will help us to get moving with services like endoscopy, cardiac physiology, some surgical procedures and infusion treatments. During May, and through to the end of the summer we expect to be providing services ringfenced for COVID-19 patients, but also restarting our work. Rowley Regis has a specific part to play:
It is our blue and lilac streams for community discharge. But in addition is a major outpatient facility away from an acute hospital setting. Most outpatients will be undertaken by video technology now and in the future, but for those people who need to attend a site Rowley will play a key role in our future.
You will find new hand hygiene requirements on entry and a general ‘tight regime’ around infection prevention and control across our sites. Please work with staff implementing those rules, they are there to protect us and they apply to everyone. Let’s not let the green brigades’ hard work be wasted!
3. Testing patients for COVID-19: Use the correct swab
It helps to follow the correct process for sampling of swabs from our patients. This will ensure that the swabs are able to be processed by the labs so that results are returned quickly and swabs are not wasted.
The pathway sets out clearly who should be swabbed, which swabs to use, how to take a sample, the arrangements to collect and transport the specimens and which swabs to use. Follow the directions on the swab guidance document linked below.
4. Smoking– red lines, COVID-19 and uniforms…
Since July 1 2019 the Trust has been Smokefree, because smoking kills. We know that research on COVID-19 recovery suggests that smoking is a contributory factor to people who struggle to recover. So there is every reason to stay away from smoking or to switch to vaping.
If you cannot stop smoking then you have to walk over the Red Lines that surround our sites. In addition, if you wear uniform that must be covered up. We have seen growing numbers of complaints about people standing in uniform on the street smoking and are working with local authorities on their powers to enforce further bans. Wearing our uniform on the street, smoking, breaks our health and our infection control policies. Please don’t let your colleagues down.
5. Social distancing – Don’t stand so close to me
Two metres apart. In lunch queues. On garden benches. In your office. During handover. On the bus. It’s ok to challenge people standing too close to you.
You may work in an environment where you feel social distancing is almost impossible. For example, the room where you do handover in critical care may be too small for the number of people now working there. Speak up. Ask your line manager what can be done, make your suggestions or get in touch with Rachel Barlow or Toby Lewis. We want to find solutions where you work.
Some of the team have developed a short film just to illustrate the two metre rule. Enjoy!
https://youtu.be/p-TfKYUbyJ0
Anyone working from home is also asked to take 10 minutes to complete this short survey to share your views and ideas on what has worked well and what has been difficult. This will help to inform the Trust’s future home working guidance. https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/SWBWFH2020
Heartbeat: Wave goodbye to… Lis Hesk
Recently we bid adieu to Lis Hesk, Matron in gynaecology and gynae oncology. Having started her career in 1982 in Leicester, Lis has had a long and varied career in nursing. In 1988, she completed her midwifery training at Queen Charlotte’s Hospital in London and has never looked back.
Speaking to Heartbeat about her career, she said, “I have always been a nurse, I cannot imagine doing anything else. I started my training in 1982 before most of my staff were born! I have always worked in women’s health – it’s an area I feel incredibly passionate about.”
Lis joined our Trust in 2012 as matron of gynaecology and gynae oncology. Over the years she’s had a number of career highlights including the implementation of Unity. Looking back on it she said, “This was a massive project that affected each member of the team. We had fantastic support within gynaecology; the team really embraced the electronic patient record and it has had such a positive impact on the care we deliver.”
Danielle Joseph, Deputy Group Director of Operations commented, “Lis is an exceptional nurse and leader. I’ve worked with her for some time now and have a huge amount of respect for her. Lis is caring and patient focused – something you need to be within gynae and gynae oncology. She is most definitely a team player, collaborative and always up for a challenge. Lis has been a pleasure to work with and we are all going to miss her greatly.”
Looking ahead to the future Lis is planning on spending time with her family and friends. “I’ve not taken a day off sick since 1989 – I’ve never wanted to let my colleagues down. I will definitely enjoy some quality time with my loved ones when I retire.”
Thank you for your hard work and dedication, Lis.
COVID-19 Bulletin: Saturday 9 May
This is our every night bulletin. Please use this bulletin and cascade arrangements within care and corporate groups to guide your actions. Throughout May we are determined to reduce avoidable harm and death in the people we are taking care of. Kindness remains the guiding principle of all the actions in our work to tackle the virus – kindness in how we look after patients, visitors, and one another.
On Wednesday 13th May we hold our latest virtual QIHD. In April 30+ teams took part. This month we will be focusing on ‘learning from COVID-19 @SWBHnhs; so far’. This is your chance to shape your future and our plans. Please get involved, talk to your QIHD lead, your group management team, or the governance team. The Trust’s final plan for Restoration and Recovery is being developed this month for approval at June’s Trust Board. There will be #nogoingback so please do grab this chance to say what works best.
Numbers not statistics: Today’s totals (Yesterday’s totals)
| Number of our patients confirmed with COVID-19 during the pandemic | Number of positive COVID-19 patients who have been discharged during the pandemic | Number of patients who have died in our hospitals who tested positive for COVID-19 during the pandemic | Number of patients entered by the Trust into a COVID-19 research trial to date | Number of COVID-19 positive patients who are inpatients with us today | Number of our staff absent due to ill-health or isolation today |
| 1116
(1116) |
726
(723) |
312
(307) |
105
(103) |
78
(86) |
605
(605) |
- Recharge: Let’s learn from you #welearn
Getting involved with the booth can be in two ways: Listening in, or volunteering to share your story. These stories are important learning for all of us. Please consider if sharing your experience would help you or us.
The Recharge Booth will be open every Thursday from 2pm for 20-30 minutes to hear a different story each time from a colleague who has put themselves forward to share an experience that they want to talk about – it can be anything but likely to be COVID-19 related to begin with. We start on Thursday May 14th – get in touch with Claire Hubbard and Richard Burnell if you want to be involved.
2. Big Clean washes into Rowley Regis
Today saw the continuation of our recent Big Clean programme, this time at Rowley Regis Hospital. Teams volunteered to get things cleaned up as part of Restoration work the Trust is undertaking with partners in Ladywood, Perry Barr and across Sandwell #greenshoots.
Our programme is all about restoring public confidence in care in order to ensure that those in need seek help. This will help us to get moving with services like endoscopy, cardiac physiology, some surgical procedures and infusion treatments. During May, and through to the end of the summer we expect to be providing services ringfenced for Covid-19 patients, but also restarting our work.
You will find new hand hygiene requirements on entry and a general ‘tight regime’ around infection prevention and control. Please work with staff implementing those rules, they are there to protect us all. And they apply to everyone.
The Big Clean at Rowley continues tomorrow. Thank you to everyone involved.
3. Do you know what to do if someone discloses domestic abuse?
Tragically, during lockdown we know that domestic abuse is more prevalent with less opportunity for people to find help. Some testing sites across the country and other locations where people have been attending for health care needs have had cases of people presenting to disclose a domestic abuse situation.
Support services remain open including Black Country Women’s Aid with a 24 hour helpline and whatsapp message service. Information on how to get help is on the gov.uk site that includes free, confidential helplines as well as West Midlands Police information https://www.westmidlands-pcc.gov.uk/no-excuse-for-abuse/.
4. Proning patients with COVID-19 to improve clinical outcomes
We are working every day to save lives. One of the recommended ways that we can make a difference to patient outcomes is to consider proning in our acute medicine and general ward environments, as well as in intensive care. Our guidance on awake proning covers length of time, positioning and the importance of consent.
We must also record patient proning in Unity using the Awake Prone Position (APP) PowerPlan. A Quick Reference Guide (QRG) has been developed to guide you through the steps you need to take to record proning. Please make sure you read this guide so that you can record when patients are receiving this intervention.
If you have any questions about our Proning Policy please contact Chief Nurse, Paula Gardner directly.
Heartbeat: Inside the mortuary – taking care of our patients right to the end
When many of us think of a mortuary we are filled with dread and fear often imagining what it must be like to be surrounded by death. However, when you meet our colleagues who work in the mortuary at City and Sandwell it is somewhat reassuring to see that the mortuary is a calm, even homely looking place aimed at making loved ones feel at ease during the most difficult time of their lives.
Heartbeat caught up with our Mortuary Service Manager, Jessica Arnold who told us more. “People often have misconceptions about the mortuary and what we do – our aim is simple – patient care. We look after patients who have passed away and ensure they are taken care of until they leave for a burial or cremation.
We can deal with very emotive cases but the team are here because they are compassionate and caring.”
We asked Jessica to explain the flow of a patient leaving the ward and going into the care of the mortuary.
She said: “When our patients are brought down by portering colleagues, part of our role is to check their paperwork is in order. We check that the patient has the correct ID and that all their personal belongings are accounted for. Patients are also measured as part of the requirement for the undertakers who require the measurements in order to prepare the coffins. There is a beautiful handwritten register where we write the patient’s name, date of death and the name of the undertaker. The information is also recorded electronically.”
Five technicians make up the team in the mortuary who all take part in undertaking post mortems. Jessica explained that not all patients have a post mortem and it depends on whether the cause of death is known.
“Post mortems are usually carried out if a patient dies unexpectedly,” said Jessica. “The process is meant to piece the puzzle of how someone died. Our coroner’s jurisdiction has access to a digital autopsy which is situated at Sandwell crematorium; it is a scanner that helps to ascertain the cause of death limiting the need for invasive procedures. In some cases the scan can be inconclusive so we have to carry out a full invasive post mortem.
“As technicians we remove all the organs in preparation of dissection and examination by the pathologist. This can sometimes result in further examination where blood and urine is collected for further testing in the lab. Once it is clear how a patient has died, the coroner can issue the necessary paperwork for a funeral to take place.”
It’s hard to imagine what it must be like having to deal with patients who have lost their lives and their families.
Kulwinder Johal, Clinical Directorate Lead has recently taken on the overall management of the mortuary. She said: “Dealing with people in a bereaved status is very challenging. I am in awe of how the team take care of our patients as well as manage the expectations of loved ones.
“They often have to have sensitive conversations with families to prepare them about what to expect when they see their loved one.”
Jessica added: “We are not a funeral home so we are limited as to what we can do to prepare patients for viewing.
But we do ensure that hair is brushed or combed and that the eyes and mouth are shut. The aim is to give the impression that the patient is sleeping so we lay them on a viewing trolley that looks like a bed.”
Kulwinder aims to raise awareness of the mortuary service and the amazing work they do. “I don’t think colleagues around the organisation fully understand the work and skill that goes into caring for deceased patients,” she said. “We have just gone through a Human Tissues Authority (HTA) inspection and there is a lot of structure and accountability required to run a mortuary service.
“We have worked together with our colleagues including clinical nurse practitioners, bereavement support midwives and ward managers as part of a stakeholder group involved with the deceased to achieve the standards of the HTA and deliver a coordinated approach to the way we care for deceased patients.
“Together we work to ensure patients are laid to rest quicker and we also provide training particularly for the rapid release process. The rapid release process ensures that a death certificate is signed on the ward at the time of death (if cause is known). A signed form is issued to the family who will give authority for the body to be released. The patient is then escorted to the mortuary by a ward colleague and handed over straight to the undertaker. When done right, rapid release can take up to four hours and is a great comfort for families as they can lay their loved ones to rest.”
Jessica commented: “Part of the work of the stakeholder group is also to ensure families are supported throughout the process and where necessary direct them to services that provide financial support.”
COVID-19 Bulletin: Friday 8 May
This is our every single day bulletin. Please use this bulletin and cascade arrangements within care and corporate groups to guide your actions. Throughout May we are determined to reduce avoidable harm and death in the people we are taking care of. KINDNESS remains the guiding principle of all the actions in our work to tackle the virus.
Thanks to everyone working this Bank Holiday weekend. A special shout out to the team coming into Rowley Regis this weekend to get things cleaned up as part of our Restoration work #greenshoots. Like the BTC where we kick off again next week, we want to make sure that people have confidence in our arrangements. So you will find new hand hygiene requirements on entry and a general ‘tight regime’ around infection prevention and control. Please work with staff implementing those rules, they are there to protect us all.
Numbers not statistics: Today’s totals (Yesterday’s totals)
| Number of our patients confirmed with COVID-19 during the pandemic | Number of positive COVID-19 patients who have been discharged during the pandemic | Number of patients who have died in our hospitals who tested positive for COVID-19 during the pandemic | Number of patients entered by the Trust into a COVID-19 research trial to date | Number of COVID-19 positive patients who are inpatients with us today | Number of our staff absent due to ill-health or isolation today |
| 1116
(1115) |
723
(719) |
307
(303) |
103
(102) |
86
(93) |
605
(541) |
- #SWBCleanhand – How clean are your hands?
This week is still our Hand Washing Week and a friendly reminder to remember to continue washing and sanitising your hands. Today we caught up with Liza Gill, SWB World of Work Project Lead and Volunteer Service Manager to talk about all things hand hygiene.
Liza told us: “It is important for all of us to remember to wash our hands throughout the day for no less than 20 seconds each time. I find that singing the Happy Birthday song twice, ensures I wash my hands for the correct length of time.”
Let us know what you’re doing to keep your hands clean at swbh.comms@nhs.net, sharing your pictures, films and stories and share them on social media too using #SWBcleanhands
- Home working is part of our present and our future
About 5% of the Trust’s workforce are working from home right now. We know that with social distancing rules and restrictions on travel this summer, that will carry on. So we want to make home working work for everyone who needs it. There is a special Webex event to hear from people who have been working from home which is taking place next Thursday 14 May at 2.30pm.
Anyone working from home is also asked to take 10 minutes to complete this short survey to share your views and ideas on what has worked well and what has been difficult. This will help to inform the Trust’s future home working guidance.
https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/SWBWFH2020
- Social distancing – Don’t stand so close to me
Two metres apart. In lunch queues. On garden benches. In your office. During handover. On the bus. It’s ok to challenge people standing too close to you.
You may work in an environment where you feel social distancing is almost impossible. For example, the room where you do handover in critical care may be too small for the number of people now working there. Speak up. Ask your line manager what can be done, make your suggestions or get in touch with Rachel Barlow or Toby Lewis. We want to find solutions where you work.
Some of the team have developed a short film just to illustrate the two metre rule. Enjoy!
- Personal Protective Equipment – gloves are off…
We can see from the Stock Tracker that we are doing pretty well for PPE. But we also know that there remains confusion or disagreement over the guidance, and real fear about getting hold of what you need. So please take another look at the Red Poster. This poster reminds you that the safe guidance says you may wear different things in different parts or situations of a red area.
Remember, gloves should not be used by you on more than one patient. Just like handwashing, gloves can spread the virus. So when you start work, work out how you will get your supply.
- Let’s help you look after you
It is really important to continue to look after your health and wellbeing during the Pandemic.
A range of resources and support are on offer for all colleagues including 24/7 access to confidential counsellors, the Wellbeing Sanctuary, and our wellbeing film and podcast library. Go to the dedicated pages on Connect for full details.
The film below is about the benefits of exercise and tips on how you can exercise safely during the current lockdown restrictions. Please consider how you can make physical exercise part of your daily regime.
https://player.vimeo.com/video/411453232
Have you check your emergency equipment trolley?
Be sure to check out this short video from deteriorating patient and resuscitation team regarding the frequency and requirements of checking you emergency equipment.
Note: This video is aimed at all clinical areas with responsibilities for checking their emergency equipment.
Chief Executive’s Message – Friday 8 May
Today is, of course, a day of commemoration and a chance to reflect on the sacrifices made by older residents, friends and neighbours. Some of those who served now live in residential or nursing home care locally, and I am sure that all of us will share a concern from national news about the risks posed in small communal environments to vulnerable adults. The Trust has been working closely with the Care Home sector from the start of the Pandemic, providing advice and Personal Protective Equipment, and we have just made our wider employee Wellbeing Offer available too. We are working with the local authorities to see what we can do to widen that help further to the home-care sector, often very lowly paid people providing incredible support travelling from home to home. We would hope, after the Pandemic phase is passed, that there will be chance to reflect on the care sector as whole. Promised Green Papers have come and gone, paused and deferred. Out of the tragedy, perhaps, may come the impetus to settle funding models for long term care and move away from a low-wage, poor paid culture with a week’s care priced at £550. We continue to explore the role the Trust might play in such a renaissance – both in supporting the local authority’s expansion of their provision and in launching our own.
Life in the NHS now seems to come with regular celebrations or moments marking public support. I was saddened last night to read of some staff feeling blocked from joining in with #clapforcarers and I want to make it clear that any of us may wish to do that, even at work, and if workload allows that sounds like a good time to take your break. That written it is worth emphasising our social media policy. Videos posted on TikTok or other platforms must be appropriate and it is very rare in the work context that that can be achieved with due privacy. If you are contacted by media outlets then the communications department will help you. None of this paragraph should be read to any way seek to dissuade speaking up or honesty about difficulties that we face. This week I have spoken with individuals about PPE and still more on risk assessment requested for Black and Minority Ethnic colleagues. It helps to keep us all safe if people highlight the gaps between what we say is happening and their experience. Our Freedom to Speak up Guardians are a resource to consider, alongside trade unions, incident forms, line managers, or our independent anonymised helpline. Quite often of course concerns stem from mutual misunderstanding and you know that our Pandemic HR support line on 3116 is available to try and make sure we apply all our approach and policies fairly and consistently.
International Nurses’ Day is coming up on Tuesday, and Tuesday gone we celebrated both International Midwives’ and the 10th anniversary of our Serenity Midwife led birth centre. The Trust has one of the largest such units in the region and a commitment to supporting safe choice at birth. One of my strongest memories from 2019 was watching our community midwives present their strategy for the future to the Trust’s Board, and Covid-19 has forced change at pace. So both Villa Park and the Hawthorns are now hosting services for local families. I have no idea when football might resume, but we will work with new partners to develop that idea of venues that work for our teams but also encourage or enthuse the people that we are caring for. Our Star of the Week this week, Miriam Pappworth, played an immense role in reorganising services in March and April to meet the challenge of community maternity services, as GP practice arrangements changed rapidly. Community based work must have at its core that agility to respond to neighbourhood change and circumstance. That is one of the key advantages of such small-scale service models, and we have some terrific examples of that person-shaped work across the Trust. Yesterday’s Trust Board, another WebEx extravaganza, saw us discuss how we might take the learning from our adult iCares services, and consider the best wrap around services we might begin to provide for children and young people at the Trust.
Learning is becoming the common thread in my Friday messages this year. On Wednesday coming we have our latest Quality Improvement Half Day. This one is very much a chance to formalise your views on what has worked well during Covid-19 and what we want to keep for the future. That restoration work is the focus of attention across the NHS right now. Of course, we are still sometimes waylaid by supply issues, the latest around laboratory re-agents, so the pace of change will follow from the surge, changes to the lockdown, and our ability to safely gear up. Birmingham’s Treatment Centre is ready to re-start in its new guise and this weekend the Big Clean Up continues at Rowley Regis, which we also see as a key hub for non-Covid (or Covid unlikely) care.
Learning too is at the heart of Thursday’s 14.30pm WebEx about Working from Home. Whatever the Prime Minister does or does not announce on Sunday, we will be keeping through May our strong support for home based working where we can. The point of the WebEx and this week’s survey is to understand what makes WFH tolerable or indeed highly productive, and how we work to enable that. Thursday is also our launch day for the Recharge Booth. Similar to a Schwartz round but virtually based. Claire Hubbard and Richard Burnell will be supporting this weekly programme which gives you chance to talk and share, or listen, to someone’s story. Story telling is bound to be a huge part of the recovery process in our organisation. Whatever data does or does not tell us about own situation or international comparisons each of us has a lived experience that we will carry forward from these past few weeks. Those beliefs will shape our views of one another, of other organisations, and of the future, and so we are determined to create the broadest possible scope for people to share and consider those experiences. Thank you again to those who have stepped forward as mental health first aiders and if you have yet to hear from us you will over the coming few days. Training kicks off shortly, and all accredited managers will have a part to play in thinking about the psychological needs of those in our organisation in the months and years ahead.
Remember in the meantime, that there is a huge volume of resources available to you to support mental wellbeing – both yours and those at home with you. So please find a moment to consider what you need to do to help yourself and support yourself at this difficult time.
Star of the Week – Miriam Papworth, Community Midwife
This week’s Star of the Week goes to Miriam Papworth, Community Midwife.
Miriam has recently shown shown great professionalism, empathy and care helping a patient who was a victim of domestic abuse. As a result, this case has now been flagged by the police and relevant authorities ensuring the safety and wellbeing of the patient.
Miriam’s tenacity, dedication and professionalism has made an important and significant difference to the care that this pregnant lady will receive. This has undoubtedly improved the outcome for her and her unborn child. Like many other areas within the NHS, Midwifery has faced staff shortages the impact of which has been compounded by the current Pandemic. In spite of reduced resources and increased pressures, Miriam has gone above and beyond to locate a vulnerable person who was at significant risk.
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