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October is Speak Up Month

October 16, 2020

October is Speak Up Month, take a few minutes to watch this short video from David Carruthers, Medical Director and Acting Chief Executive regarding the importance of speaking up and how freedom to speak up must become a part of who we are.

This Speak Up Month, the National Guardian’s Office is drawing up an Alphabet of Speak Up. There are 26 letters of the alphabet and 26 days to explore the issues, the people, the values, the challenges – everything which goes into what Freedom to Speak Up means in health. When things go wrong, we need to make sure that lessons are learnt and improvements made.

This year we will be supporting the National Guardian’s Office looking at the alphabet of speak up, with each day identifying a word and what that means to colleagues across the Trust.​ We are encouraging managers to use this as an opportunity for discussion with your colleagues and team. Speaking up is an important part of a culture that focuses on safety and quality, and we would like you and your teams to play a part in encouraging these conversations to be part of who we are and how we work.

Today’s letters are provided by Ian Galligan, Capital Equipping Manager, Medical Engineering and Speak Up Guardian

M is for managers

As Guardians we were instrumental in introducing the ‘Managers Code of Conduct’, please take a look by clicking here. Being able to speak up to your manager is really important, but we realise at times this can’t be done, and as Guardians we are always here to support you.

N is for Networks

As Speak Up Guardians we are part of regional and national networks sharing ideas and experiences, a wealth of experience and information to help you Speak Up. You can contact our staff networks using the details below.

You can see a list of Freedom to Speak up Guardians and their contact details on Connect.