Chief Executive’s Message – Friday 4 December

December 4, 2020

This week has seen the exciting announcement that the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has approved the Pfizer/BionTech Covid-19 vaccine. We are hearing more each day about the characteristics of the vaccine and the prioritisation phases. We are expecting and planning for a staff vaccination programme and we will keep you informed of how the roll-out of that programme will work and when we might be able to begin staff vaccinations.

There is also good news that Covid-19 cases in the community are indeed reducing, having come down over the last week, likely as a result of the latest lockdown. I know that tier 3 brings its own challenges for us, personally and at work, but it should mean that cases locally remain on the downward track. You will have seen in the Covid-19 bulletin that the numbers of inpatient admissions in hospital has not reduced which has maintained the additional pressure on many of our wards and critical care services. This is not easy and I know just how hard many of you are working, and struggling to keep going. We will be publishing some rules about annual leave in coming days but my main message on leave is that we really want you to take a break and take some time off where and when you can. Holiday planning has been disrupted but we all need rest and time off so that we can continue through the next phase. Please talk to your team and your manager about what can be accommodated in terms of time away from the Trust, using your annual leave allocation. Arrangements for outstanding annual leave will be available shortly.

Thank you to everyone who has embraced the new rapid lateral flow testing. Thousands of you have received a testing kit and are diligently taking a test every few days. My plea is that you record your test results through the form on Connect. We need to know the negative as well as the positive results. This helps us to identify the level of the virus among our workforce and means that people can self-isolate early with a positive result even when there are no symptoms.

I am pleased to say that, although Covid-19 featured in the Trust Board’s discussions during the meeting this week, it wasn’t the sole focus and we talked about some really important initiatives in relation to inclusion and diversity. Dr Sarb Clare talked passionately about the need for the Trust to address gender balance within our organisation, particularly among senior leadership roles. Dr Clare has been a driving force behind some key initiatives within the Trust including the women’s clinician network, workshops and conferences, and the empowerment awards earlier in the year. The Board supported the need for increased investment to enable us to fulfil our equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) commitments. We recognise the work of the staff networks and also the need for those groups to have additional support and commitment from the Trust. I am pleased that we can progress this agenda and welcome the involvement from people right across our workforce who have shaped the EDI action plan. The Trust Board recognised the progress that has been made and also the ambitious plan that has been set out.

The Board also discussed the opportunities to collaborate more closely with our partner Trusts in the Black Country. We will continue to consider which clinical services could benefit from a more joined up approach, but we are clear that our focus is on delivering the Midland Metropolitan University Hospital and supporting the developing integrated care places in Sandwell and Ladywood & Perry Barr.

We have once more picked up the weekly meetings preparing for the UK to leave the European Union as there remains no update on a trade deal. We will begin to share Brexit information through our communications bulletins in coming days. At present we are not expecting disruption in areas such as research trials, medicines and other supplies but we are required to assure ourselves that our arrangements will be unaffected, or we have a contingency plan in place. The role that EU nationals fulfil in our Trust and in the wider NHS is essential and greatly valued. We will be writing shortly to all staff with an EU nationality recorded in ESR to advise them of the need to apply for settled or pre-settled status before 30 June 2021. This means that you can continue to live and work here and your employment with the Trust remains in place. You are a vital part of our SWB family so thank you for your ongoing support and commitment.

Jayne Redfern, Service Manager is this week’s Star of the Week. When her co-worker for running the medicine rota went on maternity leave, Jayne stepped in and has been working round the clock to ensure as many slots as possible are filled in the medical rota. Her resilience has been outstanding. Congratulations Jayne.

Christmas is not cancelled at SWB. Next week we will share some guidance on how we can decorate and celebrate safely. It will be different to previous years but I know that the Christmas spirit will shine through as we continue caring for our patients.

David Carruthers
Acting Chief Executive