Chief Executive’s Message – Friday 16 April
April 16, 2021
Today, additional COVID-19 testing arrangements are now in place in an area of Birmingham that includes City Hospital, to identify whether there cases of the variant strain first identified in South Africa variant. It doesn’t change anything for us in terms of provision of services, or movement in and out of the area identified but there is a vitally important message that I need you all to understand and act on. Everyone working at our Trust, on our sites, is eligible to take part in LAMP testing. This is a requirement on every NHS Trust but it is especially important that next week, everyone working at City Hospital gets tested via LAMP. Positive cases will then be followed up with a PCR swab. Please ensure that you take part so that our public health colleagues in Birmingham can identify any spread of this variant and ensure that cases are appropriately isolated to protect against wider transmission.
This week, I led an executive team discussion about what our organisational priorities and strategic objectives should be for the next five years. We have started this process now, because the 2020 Vision and associated plans are, quite literally, very “last year”. In a post-COVID or living with COVID world, in an NHS which is expected to integrate and collaborate with other organisations not compete with them or stand-alone from them, this is very pertinent.
In our discussion, we were united in our view that our organisational objectives should be meaningful and easy to understand. We were also of the view that, given our Trust’s proud track record of having gone beyond the traditional boundaries of a healthcare organisation into the realms of wider community partnership, social responsibility, employment and regeneration, we must retain that ambition. We must retain the view that as one of the biggest employers around, and as an organisation which can have such a significant influence on people’s lives, positively and negatively, we have a responsibility to do more than just provide excellent healthcare.
The problem with strategy is that often the broad brushstroke concepts of strategy don’t always neatly transfer into action on “the front line”, where services are provided directly to people. Leadership anoraks like me get very excited when the “golden thread” can be seen running from strategic intent, right through to planning and then service delivery. Yesterday, I got the perfect opportunity to see that golden thread in action. The strategic ambition we have of being socially responsible and extending our positive influence beyond just healthcare provision, is no better exemplified than by the team at The Learning Works, in Smethwick. Lawrence Kelly and his colleague Nav Sharma, introduced me to their inspirational colleagues. Two key achievements under their belt already, are the Live & Work programme and the Healthcare Overseas Professionals (HOP) programme. They have also successfully repurposed the Learning Works building into a staff health and wellbeing sanctuary, which has already clocked up its 2000th client, since COVID began.
Live & Work is an initiative which gives young people, under threat of homelessness and in no employment rhythm, somewhere secure to live and a wide range of employment options with us. A twin win of improving the life chances of vulnerable members of local society and also fulfilling meaningful work in our organisation. HOP is a programme which provides people living here from overseas, with clinical qualifications from their home countries, support to jump through the registration and bureaucratic hoops in the NHS and then secure employment in the NHS locally. By the end of the first year, HOP had placed over 100 people into vacancies which we were struggling to fill – inspirational stuff and another win/win for all. This team are the living embodiment of how our NHS is changing and how you can take strategic intent and make it a reality.
Congratulations to our Star of the Week, Jacqueline Deeming. Jacqueline is a senior ward service officer and was nominated by the weekend ward service officers for the support she has provided to her team throughout the pandemic, providing the latest advice and support in difficult times. The team are truly appreciative of all that she does. Thank you, Jacqueline.
Our HSJ award trophy has arrived in recognition of the work on sustainability that the Trust is doing in partnership with others including Engie who are now the providers of our estates function. It is great to get that recognition for being a leader among healthcare organisations and we will be continuing to progress our plans in this important area.
From next week I will be enjoying a weekly morning coffee, usually on a Wednesday, in one of our retail outlets and I welcome any of you coming to talk to me about anything that is concerning you or you want to highlight. These sessions will be a regular and ongoing commitment to you. Do take the opportunity to pop by. I will be at Arches, City Hospital next Wednesday between 8am and 9am and will move around locations week by week. These will be published in the daily bulletin.
Whether you are working, resting or playing, have a great weekend.
Best wishes
Richard