Monthly archives: February 2022

COVID-19 vaccination in pregnancy: masterclass for midwives

All healthcare professionals have a responsibility to make every contact count in informing and encouraging pregnant women to get vaccinated against COVID-19.

On 2 March, Professor Jaqueline Dunkley-Bent, Chief Midwife for England, is hosting a second masterclass for midwives and other interested NHS professionals, to give objective advice on vaccination, based on the best available evidence.

Join national experts from the UKHSA, MHRA, NHSEI, RCM and more for talks on the risks of COVID-19 infection in pregnancy; the science behind vaccination, common questions and concerns, and what midwives and other professional scan do to safeguard women, parents and babies from COVID-19.

There will also be an opportunity to raise questions and concerns in a Q&A with our expert panel.

Please register to attend here by 5pm tomorrow (Tuesday 1 March).

Support for colleagues affected by the conflict in Ukraine

Following the shocking events of recent days with the invasion of Ukraine by Russian forces, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Sajid Javid has released an open letter of support of all Ukrainian health and care staff in the UK.

In his letter, Rt Hon Sajid Javid writes, “The world is united in its condemnation, horror and disgust at the unprovoked Russian invasion of Ukraine – a shocking event governments around the world, not least the UK, strained every diplomatic sinew to prevent. I can only imagine how scared, angry and outraged Ukrainian nationals must be feeling right now, including those living and working in the UK.

“I want you to know we recognise wholeheartedly the vital role Ukrainian nationals and those of Ukrainian origin play in the health and care sector. Your compassion for those you care for is undoubted, and your pain is our pain.

“That’s why the British Government is doing all it can to support Ukrainian nationals living and working in the UK. Building on immediate support provided in recent weeks to assist British Nationals to leave Ukraine, the Home Secretary recently confirmed Ukrainians who are on work, study or visit visas in the UK will have their visas temporarily extended or be able to switch onto different visa routes. We are also in ongoing discussions with our Ukrainian counterparts to determine what support, including medical supplies, is needed.

“I know that nothing can make up for the hurt you will be going through, particularly those with loved ones in Ukraine, but I hope these visa changes provide some stability amidst the current uncertainty. You have helped our country through the most difficult times, often placing yourselves at risk as you did so, and it is only right that we help you too.”

Full letter available: SofS Letter to Ukrainian Health and Care Staff

If you are worried, anxious, or experiencing problems, you can contact the Trust’s confidential counselling service. The counselling service is free to all SWBH colleagues. Alternatively, specialised trauma focussed therapy is available to colleagues. If you feel formal counselling support is not required at present but would like to talk to someone confidentially on an informal basis or for wellbeing support then please contact Occupational health and wellbeing team for an appointment at our wellbeing hubs or via telephone.

To book an appointment, call Occupational Health on 0121 507 3306 and choose option 1.  There are also further additional resources for you to choose from which can be found at https://connect2.swbh.nhs.uk/od/occupational-health-and-wellbeing-service/wellbeing/

Pension annual allowance charge compensation scheme deadline: 31 March

The deadline for the 2019/20 pension annual allowance charge compensation scheme is fast approaching (Thursday 31 March).

The 2019/20 pensions annual allowance charge compensation policy compensates clinicians in retirement for any pensions annual allowance charges they incurred during 2019/20.

This applies where ‘Scheme Pays’ is used to meet those charges as they fall due.

If you have not already done so, applications can be submitted up until Thursday 31 March.  The application form can be downloaded from NHS England’s website by clicking here. This website also contained more detailed information about the policy.

Chief Executive’s Message – Friday 25 February

Hello to you all – towards the end of a week where I think that we can really start to see the daylight hours getting longer – I hope you find this as uplifting as I do!

More good news in that this week we can celebrate a truly remarkable achievement in our Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia Unit as our clinical team were among the first in the country to give a brand new treatment to patients. This new drug, Crizanlizumab, was given on Wednesday in our SC&T unit which is one of 10 dedicated specialist centres nationwide. The drug, which is given as a monthly infusion, will reduce episodes of severe pain (crises) by 40% in those with sickle cell disease and was recently approved for use in the NHS.

I was so proud to hear about this on the national radio and then to see the national news coverage on the work our unit has done, and to hear what a positive impact this treatment will be from one of the patients treated yesterday. Thank you to everyone who has contributed to this life-changing innovation for our patients and their families.

We have been considering our response to the government announcement on ending of all COVID-19 restrictions. We received some NHS guidance yesterday that reinforced our own Trust decisions which is to remain with our existing arrangements and to take a phased approach to easing our COVID-19 restrictions.  We have started that with the stepping down of FFP3 masks for general care of amber patients. Next week we will introduce booked visiting on our amber wards with evidence of a negative lateral flow test, and enable face to face meetings to take place once more on our sites. As we have done throughout the pandemic, we continue to take a considered approach to COVID-19, based on risk assessments of COVID-19 cases in the community, in our hospitals and any outbreaks.

For avoidance of doubt, all NHS colleagues must continue to stay away from work if you test positive for COVID-19, with the possibility of a return on day six if you have had two negative lateral flow device test results on days five and six.

We also still expect all our staff to test regularly to avoid transmission of infection for people who are asymptomatic. Before the end of March we can expect to receive information on the forward testing programme for NHS staff in light of the planned introduction of charging for COVID-19 tests for the general population. Please continue to test regularly to keep yourselves and others safe.

We know that COVID-19 has not disappeared and learning to live with COVID-19 is our next challenge. The pandemic has affected each and every one of us. As restrictions are eased you may be thinking that you need to reflect and recharge. The first thing you can do in relation to this is ensure, if you’re a line manager, that your team members have a plan to take all of their annual leave entitlement; we have a duty of care to eachother to ensure our well being is prioritised. Also as individuals please do ensure you prioritise your own time off and make it happen! We would like all colleagues to have taken their annual leave entitlement and be up to date by the end of March 2023, so if you’ve got some leave left to take in this financial year, please agree to carry over leave in to the next financial year if you can’t take it by the 31^st March 2022, or when your leave year ends if it is different. This week we launched a scheme for the Trust to buy back some of your annual leave – as long as you have taken a minimum amount, and our preference is of course that you carry forward any annual leave not taken this year, and plan to take adequate rest! Details have been issued on comms bulletins this week and can be found on Connect by clicking here.

So many teams have taken advantage of the recovery funding to have some team time out and it has been wonderful to hear how much you have all enjoyed it. If your team hasn’t had your event yet – you have until the 31^st March to get your form approved – the link to the application form is here and when it is complete please send it to swbh.recovery@nhs.net for approval and assistance with getting your event planned and paid for.

Richard did quite an extensive update on well-being in his message a few weeks ago, and details are available on Connect;  please familiarise yourselves with all the Trust has to offer by way of support for your own health and wellbeing. We continue to put our people first so do let me know personally if there is something you need that we are not currently providing. We will consider all of your suggestions and see what we can do to best support you.

Thank you for all you do for us, may you be proud of the work you do, the person you are, and the difference you make.

Dinah McLannahan, Chief Finance Officer

Richard Beeken is away

No right turn into entrance from Dudley Road from 3 March

From Thursday 3 March, there will be no right turn into the BTC entrance from Dudley Road and no right turn leaving the BTC exit due to on-going road improvements works by Birmingham City Council.

Signage will be updated accordingly however colleagues are reminded to plan for delays when travelling to and from City Hospital.

Please see link to no right turn drawing for further details.

We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.

Alert: Fraudulent calls to colleagues claiming to be IT security

We have been made aware of fraudulent IT calls being made to colleagues by individuals claiming to be from the IT department or IT Security asking to colleagues to press “Windows” and “R” on the keyboard.

With this in mind we ask colleagues to remain vigilant and if you believe you are on a suspicious call ask the caller for a call reference number and advise them you will call them back.

If you receive a call that is suspicious, ensure you report it to our Local Counter Fraud Specialist Sophie Coster on 07436 268747 or via email sophie.coster@rsmuk.com. Alternatively, calls reporting to be from IT can be confirmed by calling our IT Servicedesk directly on 0121 507 4050.

Make sure your voice is heard – consultation to extend temporary pension rules

The government has begun its consultation on proposals to extend the temporary pension rules currently provided by section 45 of the Coronavirus Act 2020.

The Coronavirus Act included the following temporary pension changes:

• Special Class status (SCS) normal pension age (NPA) 55. Staff can retire and return and work additional hours without abatement. Applies to nurses, midwives, health visitors and staff with Mental Health Officer status (MHO).
• 16-hour rule – staff can work more than 16 hours a week in the first calendar month without their pension being suspended. Applies to all staff.
• Pension draw down – take pension and continue working without abatement i.e. ability to increase hours without detriment. Applies to staff in the 2008 Section and 2015 Scheme.

The consultation asks for feedback regarding:

• Continuing the temporary pension rules from 24 March 2022 to 31 October 2022 and
• Extending the rules beyond 31 October 2022

The government are currently seeking your views on any impact you believe the withdrawal of the rules could have on you.

The consultation should take no longer than five minutes to complete and can be completed by clicking here.

Note: The deadline to complete this consultation is Tuesday 1 March, 11pm.

Essential Unity system upgrade affecting Unity interface messaging service: 3 March, 11.30pm

Please be aware that an essential Unity system upgrade is taking place on Thursday 3 March, 7pm until Friday 4 March, 1am by our support vendor Cerner to our software.

Unity will remain fully available however, once the software upgrade is complete a rolling cycle of the Unity services will be required at around 11.30pm resulting in 10 minutes Unity interface messaging downtime. This will affect the following services which will be subject to a short delay:

• Patients new to the Trust will be able to be registered on iPM (Lorenzo) but not visible in FirstNet
• Patients new to BMEC FirstNet will not be visible in Medisoft
• Orders placed in Unity will not go to Radiology/Pathology during this time but will be sent once the systems come back up
• New results will not be visible in Unity during this time but will be sent once the systems come back up.
• Inpatients admitted from ED will not show up in iPM until the systems are back up.
• Inpatients transferred between Wards will show on Capman but not on iPM until the systems are back up.
• Inpatients discharged during this time will not show as discharged in iPM until the systems are back up.

The activity will be closely monitored and desktop alerts will be issued from 10:30pm to remind colleagues and at completion.

Note: This will affect all staff working on night shift on Thursday 3 March

Please do call the 24-hour IT service desk if you have any queries on this on ext. 4050 or 0121 507 4050.

COVID-19 Bulletin: Thursday 24 February

Numbers not statistics: This week (last week)

Note: Percentages may decrease due to changes in the number of inpatients and in the number of staff members (starters and leavers). 

1. New: Guidance on ending COVID-19 restrictions

The Trust is undertaking a number of steps that affect both visiting and staff activities as we continue to ease COVID-19 restrictions. On Monday the Government announced a planned end to all COVID-19 restrictions across England. However, the NHS guidance, that was received yesterday has clarified that our own local arrangements will remain in place:

• NHS staff who test positive: All colleagues who have tested positive for COVID-19 should not attend work until they have had two negative Lateral Flow Device (LFD) test results taken 24 hours apart. The first test should not be taken before day 5 after their initial positive test. For more information see our staff isolation guidance.
• NHS staff with no symptoms must still test weekly / twice weekly. Please see the information in item 4 about moving from LAMP to twice weekly LFD testing.
• Our IPC guidance also remains in place with our recent change from FFP3 to FRSMs in all amber areas. Mask wearing must continue in all areas including shared office spaces.
• General visiting is being reintroduced from 2 March. See item 5 for our arrangements for safe visiting.

2. New: Make sure your voice is heard – consultation to extend temporary COVID-19 pension rules

The Government has begun its consultation on proposals to extend the temporary pension rules currently provided by Section 45 of the Coronavirus Act 2020.

The Coronavirus Act included the following temporary pension changes:

• Special Class status (SCS) normal pension age (NPA) 55. Staff can retire and return and work additional hours without abatement. Applies to nurses, midwives, health visitors and staff with Mental Health Officer status (MHO).
• 16-hour rule staff can work more than 16 hours a week in the first calendar month without their pension being suspended. Applies to all staff.
• Pension draw down – take pension and continue working without abatement i.e. ability to increase hours without detriment. Applies to staff in the 2008 Section and 2015 Scheme.

The consultation asks for feedback regarding:

• Continuing the temporary pension rules from 24 March 2022 to 31 October 2022.
• Extending the rules beyond 31 October 2022

The government are currently seeking your views on any impact you believe the withdrawal of the rules could have on you.

The consolation should take no longer than five minutes to complete and can be completed by clicking here.

Note: The deadline to complete this consultation is Tuesday 1 March, 11pm

3. New: Vaccination as a Condition of Deployment legislation

Consultation has now concluded to inform the review of the Vaccination as a Condition of Deployment legislation.

Currently the legislation remains in place until the outcome of the review is known and we are continuing to confirm the vaccination status of all our staff. You may be contacted by telephone to confirm your vaccination status as well as NHS Number (where we do not have a record of this) and for a copy of your COVID pass if you have been vaccinated.

Alternatively you can confirm your status to the HR email advice line swbh.hr-advice-for-covid-19@nhs.net if we have written to you or contacted you to say we have no record of you having first and second doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, attaching a copy of your COVID pass wherever possible.

We are expecting an update on the review to come in due course and we expect to take a consistent approach with other Trusts in the country, and particularly within the Black Country and West Birmingham Integrated Care System.

4. Reminder: Moving from LAMP to lateral flow – Keeping safe with simple testing

Although restrictions may have eased, working in the healthcare sector means it is possible we will  come in to contact with those suffering with COVID-19 and vulnerable patients – so it’s critically important that we stay on top of testing.

From the 14 March we will move from our current LAMP testing programme which requires colleagues to submit a saliva sample on a weekly basis to colleagues being asked to complete lateral flow tests at home twice a week before they come in to work. You will be required to report your lateral flow results and we will advise you of the reporting arrangements in due course.

Lateral flow testing kits can be ordered online from the following website with colleagues either having them delivered directly to their home address or alternatively collecting from community locations.

Order your lateral flow kit online here: https://www.gov.uk/order-coronavirus-rapid-lateral-flow-tests.

5. Reminder: Easing of visiting restrictions from 2 March

From 2 March we are easing our visiting restrictions to allow inpatients in amber areas to receive one visitor for up to 30 minutes per day. Patients can nominate two individuals who can visit for the duration of their stay, ideally from the same household. Visitors must use hand sanitiser and wear a face mask on entry. They must also show evidence of a negative lateral flow test result taken that same day to be checked on entrance to the building. All visits must be booked in advance by telephoning the ward to allow wards to limit the number of visitors on a ward/bay at any one time. All visitors must be free of COVID-19 symptoms, and must not attend if they are a household contact of a COVID-19 positive case. We regret we are unable to allow visits by children (under 16 years) or those who are immunocompromised.

For more information see the visiting information here.

The current visiting arrangements for paediatrics, maternity and ICU remain in place. Maternity services will be increasing the length of time that partners are allowed to visit on inpatient wards. Our usual exemptions apply for inpatient children, those at end of life and people who lack mental capacity.

Red and green areas, where visiting is current not allowed should ensure you have robust systems in place to communicate with relatives/next of kin and to support communication between patients and their loved ones.

We will review visiting arrangements regularly based on a risk assessment taking into account COVID-19 case rates in the community and numbers of COVID-19 cases in our hospitals.

6. Reminder: Working from home guidance has been updated – Roadmap to returning to normality

The working from home guidance has been updated and is currently being reviewed in order for our Trust to enable a supportive transition for colleagues to begin returning to office working.

As the government roadmap indicates a lifting of restrictions and that a return to onsite work is possible, all staff should be prepared to work onsite when required to do so (subject to any changes to government guidance).

However, we recognise that the last couple of years has been challenging and the pandemic has changed the circumstances of some and impacted both work and personal lives. For those who have been working remotely for the past year, the prospect of returning may be exciting and/or anxiety inducing for multiple reasons. There may also be practical considerations and the need to plan for many.

SWB is committed to working with our people to ensure they are supported as we start to plan our return to ‘normal working’  and will maintain a ‘people first’ approach, focussed on the wellbeing of our staff as we have throughout the pandemic.

Accepting that some will feel anxious and have practical considerations about returning, leaders and managers are asked to deal with the gradual return in a sympathetic and supportive manner, including considering if there are reasons for increased flexibility to continue during this period. If you require advice at any stage, please contact your HR Business Partner.

During the transition back to work, a flexible and supportive approach is essential to:

• Welcome staff back to onsite work in a phased way, taking into account the impact the pandemic has had on the individual circumstances, mental and physical health.
• Account for the fact that some Trust buildings have been repurposed during the pandemic (i.e. Trinity House) so are no longer available at the same capacity.
• Anticipate possible future changes to government guidance including the potential to revert to ‘work from home if you can’ or similar guidance.
• Ensure any social distancing guidance that might impact building capacity is observed as well as other Infection Control measures
• Trial and test new working methods with a view to exploring what our future working practices will be.

Recognising the above, managers are encouraged to make local arrangements to bring their teams back to site to re-connect, re-familiarise and benefit from SWB facilities. Individual staff may also return to work on a regular basis should they wish. Subject to government guidance, SWB sites will revert to being the default workplace for those staff who have worked remotely for the duration of the pandemic.

Return to practice networking event: 1 March

On Tuesday 1 March, Healthier Futures are supporting a networking event hosted by The Black Country AHP and Nursing Faculty to welcome Allied Health Professionals (AHP) or nurses back to practice.

Perhaps you are an AHP or nurse who is already registered and looking for a period of updating before starting a new role? Or maybe you are an AHP or nurse who lives abroad and plans to return to work in England, maybe you have had a career break and are now ready to return to work and once again be on the Health Professions Council or Nursing and Midwifery Council register?

If so, Heathier Futures wants to meet you!

• Date: Tuesday 1 March
• Time: 10.45am – 12.15pm
• Online event: register on Eventbrite here

At the event, you’ll be hearing from Health Education England’s leads, stories from others who have returned to practice and take part in a question and answer session.

For further details including the draft agenda, please click here or email Jennifer.glynn1@nhs.net or Ian.Bosworth@nhs.net

To join, please reserve your place using Eventbrite.