Monthly archives: March 2022
Sandwell and City multi-storey car parks open on Monday!
The long awaited multi-storey car parks at Sandwell and City Hospital are now scheduled to be fully open on Monday 4 April ready for colleagues to use.
However there are a few things you need to know:
- New Square users: All New Square permits will expire at the end of 31st March 2022. Please do not park in the New Square multi-storey after 31 March 2022 as you will incur a fine from New Square which cannot be rescinded.
- Car parking charges: The national agreement on free car parking for NHS staff ends on 31 March 2022. The Trust has agreed not to introduce car parking charges for staff at the present time. This will be in place for April – June and will then be reviewed.
- Need to apply for a parking pass: Details of how to apply for your new Q-Park permit can be found here: How to apply for you parking permit. Please allow five working days for processing. You will receive a confirmation email once your application has been accepted.
- Make sure you’re using a new parking pass: If you are currently using an old style NHS parking permit that does not have the Q-Park logo on it, please be aware these will shortly be deactivated and will cease to operate on the barriers. All staff parking on site will need to be using the new Q-Park permit to enter and exit staff car parks.
- Need to collect your parking permit? If you have been notified that your new Q-Park parking permit is ready for collection, please collect your permit from the collection point listed below. Your permit will only be available from your primary site which you have stated in your application. Please ensure you bring a form of ID with you to collect as permits can only be given directly to the applicant.
Collection point Day of the Week Collection Times City temporary Q-Park lodge in energy centre (opposite eye centre car park) Monday – Friday 6am – 8am, 12pm – 1pm and 6pm – 8.30pm City temporary Q-Park lodge in energy centre (opposite eye centre car park) Saturday – Sunday 6am – 9am and 6pm – 8.30pm Sandwell Hallam Restaurant, room on the right side as you walk in (old fit test room) Monday – Friday 10am – 1pm and 6pm – 8pm Sandwell Hallam Restaurant, room on the right side as you walk in (old fit test room) Saturday – Sunday 11am – 2pm and 6pm – 8pm Rowley main reception Monday – Friday 8am – 4pm
For more information please email sandwell@q-park.com.
Has your patient tested positive for COVID-19?
Jodie Brown embarks on her new role as Covid Care Coordinator. Her role is to monitor Covid-19 positive patients across the Trust and support clinicians to make decisions regarding treatment pathways.
Be on the lookout for suspicious emails and stay cyber aware
Please remain vigilant of suspicious emails asking you to login and update passwords.
There is currently an email in circulation which is advising colleagues that their NHSmail password is due to expire. The email then presents a link to a fraudulent website which is designed to steal your login details.
If NHSmail passwords have expired and need updating, colleagues should go directly to the NHSmail system to update their passwords and not follow unsolicited links in emails they may have been sent. NHSmail can be accessed directly by using the link on Connect or by going to https://www.nhs.net.
If you are unsure or suspicious of an email you have received, you can contact the IT Servicedesk for advice on 0121 507 4050.
If you feel you could do with brushing up on your cyber security skills, log in to the free cyber security training now on offer from the National Cyber Security Centre, on the link below:
Joining the Chaplaincy team for Easter
The Chaplaincy Department under the leadership of Rev Mary Causer is offering an opportunity for everyone in the Christian faith to join us in celebrating Lent. This year, we recently held the Ash Wednesday across sites.
On Good Friday (15 April) from 10 am to 12noon, we will be offering free drinks and hot cross buns to our staff in the City Hospital Chapel, SGH Chapel, Rowley Regis cafe near reception, Leasowes Centre (Canteen)
Easter Services will be held on Sunday (17 April) at City Hospital from 11 to 12 noon and Sandwell from 2:30 pm to 3:30 pm.
Have a blessed and meaningful Lenten season!
Get involved with Sepsis Rapid Improvement Week
Sepsis is a life-threatening reaction to an infection. It is the second most common cause of death in UK, second only to cardiovascular disease and it sadly remains one of the common causes of death here in at SWB.
Research has shown that prompt recognition and early management saves lives.
Improve your understanding of Sepsis by taking part in our Sepsis quiz: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/SWBSepsisQuiz
Create your own user feedback survey
You can also take part in our Sepsis focussed display board competition and a bake off which will be judged by the executive team with prizes for 1st,, 2nd and 3rd place which is due to be judged tomorrow.
Entries for the bake-off can be dropped off at the Acute Medicine Short Stay Unit on Newton 5 ready for judging tomorrow afternoon (30 March).
Back to basics: Spotting the red flags and screening for Sepsis
Sepsis (also known as blood poisoning) is the immune system’s overreaction to an infection or injury. Normally our immune system fights infection – but sometimes, for reasons not yet fully understood, it attacks our body’s own organs and tissues. If not treated immediately, sepsis can result in organ failure and death. Yet with early diagnosis, it can be treated with antibiotics.
Spotting sepsis in patients can at times be difficult due to the symptoms being similar to many other conditions, but following a few simple screening rules can significantly improve detection and treatment times.
Red flag criteria indicating high risk of deterioration
- Objective evidence of new or altered mental state
- Systolic BP ≤ 90 mmHg (or drop of > 40 from normal)
- Heart rate ≥ 130 per minute
- Respiratory rate ≥ 25 per minute
- Needs O2 to keep SpO2 ≥ 92% (88% in COPD)
- Non-blanching rash/mottled/ashen/cyanotic
- Lactate ≥ 2 mmol/l
- Recent chemotherapy
- Not passed Urine in 18 hours (<0.5ml/kg/hr if catheterised)
Once sepsis has been detected, applying the sepsis six care bundle within 60 minutes can double your patients chance of survival:
- Give high flow oxygen
- Take blood cultures
- Give IV antibiotics
- Give a fluid challenge
- Measure lactate
- Measure urine output
Colleagues who are unsure of the sepsis screening processes are encouraged to speak to their ward matrons or contact the deteriorating patients and resus team on ext. 5908.
Rapid improvement: Saving lives with the Sepsis Six
Today we launch our Sepsis Rapid Improvement Week – a week in which we are providing focussed support and interventions to improve out screening and treatment pathways for Sepsis patients.
Throughout this week we will have senior colleagues on hand across both acute sites working with colleagues in the emergency areas to review and understand the processes in place for screening and treating patients with sepsis with a view to identify blocks, review alternatives and apply improvements to our working practices to ensure patients receive safe and effective care.
Every year, patients at our Trust unfortunately lose their lives due to sepsis and it is clear that with systematic screening, early detection and timely treatment we could save many lives.
In many cases sepsis is avoidable and treatable but this is predicated on early detection and timely treatment to give the patient the best chance of survival.
Did you know:
- Sepsis accounts for at least 11 million deaths worldwide annually
- Sepsis related mortality in England stands at 28.9%
- Every hour in the UK 5 people die as a result of Sepsis
- At SWB alone, every week approximately 175 patients are diagnosed with Sepsis
Colleagues who are unsure of the sepsis screening processes are encouraged to speak to their ward matrons or contact the deteriorating patients and resus team on ext. 5908.
Teamtalk April 2022
TeamTalk took place last week (Wednesday 23 March).
If you were not able to make the session you can download a copy of the briefing presentation below and watch the TeamTalk video.
Job of the week: Student health visitor
A great opportunity has arisen to join us as a specialist community public health nurse (Health Visiting). We are looking to recruit enthusiastic and thoughtful practitioners who are passionate about making a difference to children and families. You will be a caring professional with an interest in public health and a genuine desire to promote the needs of the child and ultimately provide leadership within community health. You will be motivated to learn and develop your skills and be committed to providing safe, quality and compassionate care.
Applications are invited from nurses and midwives with the appropriate entry requirements and evidence of recent continued professional development. Current NMC registration and a full driving licence are essential.
If you feel you have the right qualities and the role excites you, we’d love to hear from you. There will be two parts to the recruitment process: a numeracy and literacy test and a focus group where you will have the opportunity to meet other candidates and discuss a health related topic. You will need to pass the numeracy and literacy tests in order to be selected for the next stage of the recruitment process which will be an interview. Numeracy/literacy tests and focus groups will take place on Wednesday 20 April. If successful at this stage interviews will take place on the following between Monday 25 April – Wednesday 27 April.
If you would like to discuss the role further or would like more information, please call Heather Russon on 07972 344927 or Tom Cooper on 07972 344735
Note: This post will close once sufficient applications are received.
Chief Executive’s Message – Friday 25 March
It was fantastic to take part in the ceremony on Tuesday to announce the winners and runners up in our annual Quality Improvement Half Day Poster Contest. 76 posters were submitted that all demonstrated quality improvement, many of these using innovative techniques to improve outcomes including patient care, experience and safety. It is clear to see that quality improvement is alive and well in our Trust and I am delighted that we celebrate your achievements in this way. The QIHD Poster Contest is a great way that we share learning across our organisation as part of the welearn programme.
Congratulations to our overall winner, Roanna Burgess from PCCT’s Musculoskeletal Service for her quality improvement project “MSK Equity: Evaluating quality using technology”. The winner of the popular vote was Anita Kaur from the Department of Diabetes and Endocrinology for “Improving Healthcare for People with Diabetes”. Highly Commended were the obstetric team for use of scales and ROTEM to improve maternal outcomes during major obstetric haemorrhage, and the neonatal team for their vital sepsis improvement approach for neonates. £5,000 is awarded to Roanna’s team, with £500 for the other runners up.
A quality improvement philosophy forms a vital part of our new strategy, underpinning the fundamentals of care programme which is the enabler to our first strategic objective – “Patients – to be good or outstanding at everything we do”. This begins with getting the basics right every time, learning from areas that do well, and continuing to develop how we provide care so that the quality of care and patients’ experiences are better today than yesterday. That programme will launch shortly and we need every colleague to engage in it. More of this to come in future Friday Messages.
You can see all of the QIHD posters here and they will be visible as posters across the Trust also. Do take a look and see what you could learn from these excellent examples of quality improvement. And also, take the time to consider what you could enter in this year’s contest!
Have a great weekend.
Richard
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