Monthly archives: May 2021

Star of the Week – Nicola Coley

Our Star of the Week this week is Nicola Coley, Nursing Associate.

Nicola worked very hard to arrange elements of a complex discharge for an end of life patient. She ensured all plans were in place and the patient was safely discharged home with all required equipment and community referrals in place despite also caring for a bay of patients.

Nicola’s hard work during a very busy shift meant that a patient’s wishes at end of life were met. She kept the family updated at all times about the progress of the discharge and involved them in the process.

Do you know someone in your team that has gone above and beyond the call of duty? Why not put them forward for Star of the Week by clicking here.

Latest edition of Heartbeat now online

Check out the latest edition of Heartbeat online now.

What can you expect to find inside this issue?

This month we bid farewell to Richard Samuda who has left the Trust after being our Chairman for nine years.

Plus, we’ve got all of this:

• Nominations are open for our Star Awards 2021
• RECOVERY trial reaches one year milestone
• How we can protect each other and our loved ones by doing the weekly LAMP test.

You can email lauren.jones104@nhs.net if you have an idea for an article or call us on ext. 5303.

Unity referrals for mental health – getting patients help when they need it

When someone is struggling with their mental health, it’s often referred to as a crisis, it’s a time when you will find patients at their most vulnerable, and when they are in desperate need for those they seek help from to do everything in their power to get them the right help.  And thanks to the latest addition to Unity, the right support is just a couple of clicks away.

The process to refer has never been simpler, both Sandwell and City Hospital have dedicated mental health liaison teams, who provide a service to the trust 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Black County Healthcare Foundation Trust provides the service to Sandwell Hospital and Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Foundation Trust provides the service to City Hospital. Both services work in a similar way, responding to referrals for patients who are experiencing difficulties with their mental health across the ED and all inpatient areas. Patients who have symptoms of mental illness who require assessment and treatment will be considered, along with patients who present in mental health crisis, such as relapsing psychosis, suicidal ideation, or self-harm.

When making a referral, ensure that the patient is well enough to engage in the assessment; patients do not need to be declared ‘Medically Fit For Discharge’ prior to referral.

All urgent referrals should be followed up with a phone call to the respective liaison team in order to alert them to the urgency of the referral.

For any further queries relating to mental health referrals, please contact Abbie Gogarty, team lead for Sandwell Mental Health liaison Team, and Patrick McGlynn , Team Leader for the City Hospital based liaison psychiatry team.

• Sandwell liaison psychiatry – 0121 612 8607
• City liaison psychiatry – 0121 507 6063

Further guidance on how to refer through Unity can be found here: Clinical Documentation – Inpatient Referral to Specialist Service

Works around City Hospital during May

Throughout the month of May, there will be building works to the pavements on Lansdowne Street (by City Hospital) which will last up to two weeks.

These works will then proceed to the pavements on Aberdeen Street (by A&E at City Hospital) which will last another two weeks. These works will not restrict/block access to City Hospital or A&E.

Though there will be a team present who will control flow of pedestrians, we ask that colleagues please be mindful and remain vigilant when accessing City Hospital and the surrounding areas on foot.

We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.

We want your feedback from the most recent Grand Round

Following from the recent Grand Round on Thursday 29 April around managing clinical disagreements in a pandemic, we want your feedback.

If you attended the Grand Round, please take a couple of minutes to complete this short survey and give us your feedback by clicking here.

Mouth care matters ward display board competition

Thank you to the 17 ward teams that took part in the mouth care matters ward display board competition.

The judging process lead by Acting Chief Nurse, Melanie Roberts took place on Friday 14 May.

She said: “We were absolutely delighted with the quality of submissions. All the teams put in excellent effort to demonstrate why mouth care really matters when caring for our patients. After much deliberation we managed to choose first, second and third place. But I must stress that all the boards were wonderfully produced and it wasn’t an easy decision for the judging panel.”

In the communications bulletin this week we will feature all the display boards that were submitted for the competition and will reveal the winners on Friday.

Today we highlight Surgery at Sandwell, Priory 2, D26 and D27.