InTouch magazine - June-July 2021 by communicationsPAHT

June - July 2021

InTouch Back to better Civic Award for our #PAHTPeople New Extranet New hospital update

Foreword 2

Welcome to InTouch magazine

PAHT people recognised with special award

Back to better Here to hear

Urgent and emergency care

New hospital

New hospital (continued)

Improving our environment

Improving our environment (continued) Healthcare group update

CQC: Focusing on health and safety

Our patients said...

Our charity update

Biomedical scientist highly commended at national awards Catering update

Welcome to InTouch magazine – your insight into the latest news and updates from across PAHT. In this edition, you can read about how you, our amazing #PAHTPeople, have been recognised by our community with a special award. The Civic Award, which was presented to me by the new vice chair of Harlow Council, is a wonderful acknowledgement of your contributions to the community over the last year – thank you all and well done. I am delighted that Harlow Council also selected our dementia care fund as one of their charities of the year, helping us to further improve the experience of our patients. Additionally, we cover the latest updates from our Back to better campaign. Thank you to everyone who engaged with our range of events, webinars, information and updates. We are now continuing moving towards getting Back to better with our Here to hear initiative, focusing on hearing a wide range of feedback from all of our people. This has included an online survey, survey boxes and virtual listening events – look out for further updates and for all the changes that will be implemented as a direct result of your feedback. Our urgent and emergency care team are also committed to getting Back to better as they explore new and adapted ways of working to improve the service we provide to our patients. The programme has progressed considerably over the last month, thanks to the dedication of you all, working together as one team. This month, we also focus on the variety of significant improvements at The Princess Alexandra Hospital with the recent building works. It is great to see the modernisation of the environment we work in ahead of moving to our new hospital. You can also read the latest update on our new hospital programme.

New procurement and finance system

Please take time to read about our new, modern procurement and finance system. It is also vital that you refresh your knowledge of the health and safety guidance we must all follow in relation to COVID-19. This magazine is for and about you, our #PAHTPeople – please contact the communications team if you would like to see your team featured, at paht.communications@nhs. net.

#PAHTPeople

Best wishes

Fracture Clinic opens Have your say on the new Extranet

Lance McCarthy Chief executive

#PAHTPeople recognised with special award at council ceremony

The community have recognised our #PAHTPeople with a special award. Local people nominated us for a Civic Award, which was formally accepted by Lance McCarthy, chief executive, from the new vice chair of Harlow Council, Councillor Maggie Hulcoop, in a socially distanced presentation on Wednesday, 19 May (pictured). Official acknowledgement of the award took place at the Full Council meeting on Thursday, 20 May. The annual recognition programme, usually involving award nominations from a councillor, was extended

to the public this year. The community nominated unsung heroes who they would like to see recognised, resulting in several nominations for staff at PAHT. Lance McCarthy, chief executive, said: “I am proud and humbled to receive this special award on behalf of all my colleagues at The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust. On behalf of all at PAHT, thank you to everyone who took the time to nominate our people. It is wonderful for our people to be acknowledged in this way. “I’d also like to thank the community for their support, including all of their gifts, donations, and kind words over the last year and to thank

the chair, chief executive and all at Harlow Council for their unerring and continued support for the hospital.” Councillor Maggie Hulcoop, new vice chair of Harlow Council, said: “The staff at The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust make such a huge difference to people’s lives on a daily basis - more so as we’ve navigated our way through the coronavirus pandemic. “It is so heart-warming to see that the people of Harlow have chosen PAHT for a Civic Award - they thoroughly deserve it.” Photo: Brian Thomas Photography

Back to better Now is our time to focus on the future and how we move to getting Back to better. Thank you to everyone who hosted or attended our range of virtual events, and engaged with our updates over the last three months. As a reminder, you can take a look at the recordings of the sessions on our Back to better reloaded YouTube playlist (on the PAHT People channel) and you can refer to the information on our Back to better Alex page.

Back to better: Here to hear As part of the Back to better campaign, we are focusing on hearing a wide range of feedback from you. This will inform our continued improvements in response to the Staff Survey results. We encourage you to tell us about your experience of working at PAHT: we are here to hear.

We recently held an anonymous and confidential online survey, with the option to also share your feedback via a series of collection boxes across all three PAHT sites. We are now collating the feedback to show key comments and issues raised. Please look out for more information in future editions of this magazine. Virtual listening events Additionally, we have been holding a series of virtual listening events with our

healthcare groups. This is an opportunity for you to discuss the results of the Staff Survey and what we can work together to improve. This is an open forum where you can share any comments about working at PAHT. The sessions are open to all and you can either simply join at the start of the session, or notify Charlotte Jefferson, head of organisational development, that you plan to

attend in advance at charlotte. jefferson1@nhs.net. The sessions are led by the organisational development and HR business partner teams, together with leaders from the healthcare groups. For more information about the virtual listening events, please contact charlotte.jefferson1@ nhs.net.

Back to better: Urgent and emergency care improvement programme Last month, we introduced our new urgent and emergency care improvement programme as we explore new and adapted ways of working to improve the service we provide to our patients. We recognise that there are many areas for improvement identified in the recent CQC report and subsequent rating. In response to this, the programme and action plans will focus on achieving significant improvements to rapidly enhance patient flow through urgent care and the emergency department (ED). The programme involves five workstreams: y 1) Improve redirection, streaming and entry to the emergency department (ED) y 2) Optimise flow through ED y 3) Use of assessment areas, Same Day Emergency Care (SDEC), and short stay y 4) Supporting the daily rhythm and flow y 5) Delivering Care Quality Commission (CQC) quality and safety recommendations

Each workstream has improvement projects within its remit to enhance our ways of working, ensuring effective escalation and timely decision making. A company called Prism Improvement is working in partnership with us to deliver these improvements. Focuses so far have included: y Documentation improving documentation in the emergency department y Infection prevention and control - highlighting the importance of hand washing and donning and doffing personal protective equipment (PPE) correctly y Improving patient experience - reducing waiting times for our sickest patients and redirecting other patients who may be able to be seen more quickly in another part of our hospital or in the

community y Mental health awareness - Ensuring the safety of our patients who attend our emergency department (ED) in a mental health crisis If you would like to find out more information about the programme, or would like to be involved, please contact Elizabeth Podd, head of performance and planning, (elizabeth. podd@nhs.net) or Sara Tasker, service manager, (sara.tasker@nhs.net).

New hospital update Our patients have their say Capturing the views and wishes of our patients as we plan our new hospital is critical to us getting it right for everyone. One of the ways we are doing this is through regular engagement events with patient groups in East and North Herts and West Essex, organised in partnership with our two local clinical commissioning groups (CCGs). We recently held two events with patients in both areas, and in lively and positive discussions we were able to update them on the new hospital programme and capture their thoughts and ideas. We thought we would share some of the common questions raised at recent meetings.

Our patients are excited about our plans and optimistic about how the new hospital will improve their experience

Patients asked: How are the needs of carers being considered in the design of facilities, such as having somewhere comfortable to sleep?

We answered: Having a majority of single rooms will ensure family members will be cared for, with space for the patient and one family member to stay. There will also be more single rooms in paediatrics, to allow more parents to stay with their children. Patients asked: How are people with dementia and Alzheimer’s being considered in the hospital plans?

Patients asked: How is transport to and from the site going to meet patient needs, encouraging patients to leave their cars at home when possible?

We answered: We are drawing on best practice around the world and talking to other hospitals and transport advisers.

We answered: Specialist members of staff, patients, the hospital’s Patient Panel and Carers’ Forum have been engaged in the design planning and continue to be involved in our plans, ensuring the specific needs of dementia patients are prioritised.

We are working with Essex County Council and our local authorities to get transport services right and deliver a sustainable transport strategy for us all. This is still in the early stages and we are currently mapping where people will be coming from and how they will travel. 6

Patients asked: How are current hospital staff being involved in the design? We answered: Over the past 12 months, over 300 of our people have given feedback on the hospital designs. Our design process has been led by a team of clinicians who’ve spent over 100 hours fine-tuning the layout of each of their departments.

Patients asked: We like the idea of a community space with a focus on wellbeing rather than illness, but how do you marry up the building as a community space with the reality that some people will be at a very low point in their lives? We answered: We have designed this new hospital very carefully. The maternity unit, for example, can be the place for the happiest or saddest time in your life. In our new hospital you can leave the maternity unit through a quiet exit away from the central arrival space. We’re creating quiet spaces away from the hubbub of the main hospital for patients, families and carers. There will be separate quiet spaces for staff too. Our greenfield location means we can create outdoor spaces to decompress, contemplate and recover. Patients asked: The plans are very exciting. During the build there is a need to look after patients that are going through The Princess Alexandra Hospital. What happens to The Princess Alexandra Hospital during this period? Surely we must keep investing in maintaining the current hospital?

We answered: We have to keep the current hospital going and continue to invest to keep it working for our people and our patients for as long as we need it to. A smooth transition for patients and staff is hugely important. We are carefully planning our transition to make sure there is minimal disruption to patients.

Help us reach further We are committed to engaging as many people as we can, so that our entire community can have their say in their new hospital. Are you a member of a local community group or network outside of work? Could we run an engagement session with your group? Share news and updates, join your virtual meetings, or come along to speak at one of your local events? We welcome any opportunity to share our progress and hear what our community have to say. Please get in touch if this sounds like you.You are always welcome to share your views and ideas with us any time at paht.newhospital@nhs.net. 7

Improving our environment In recent months, we have made a number of significant updates to our estate to improve the experience for both our patients and our people. This includes:

Colposcopy Our colposcopy facilities have been renovated to transform the area into a bright and modern space for our patients and our people.

Ward and department refurbishments Penn Ward The 16-bedded bay on Penn Ward has been converted into four bedded bays to support infection prevention and control and increase privacy for our patients. In addition, there is now an additional multidisciplinary team space on Penn Ward, making use of the balcony.

Emergency department We now have a dedicated space for our new emergency department CT scanner that will help to improve patient flow and decision making. There is also a revamped frailty unit behind the emergency department to support the management of our urgent care patients.

Endoscopy department In response to the increasing demand for endoscopy procedures, we are close to completing our third endoscopy clinic room and additional recovery space (pictured right) Maternity department kitchen facilities The delivery suite kitchen facilities (pictured right) have been transformed to a bright and modern facility to create an improved environment for our women in labour.

Training, education and y New electric vehicle charging points development centre y Changing facilities The foundations have y Cycle storage boxes been laid underneath Charnley Ward for our Outdoor space Electric new training, education Vehicle (EV) charging and development centre point – we are committed to improving and investing in There are ten electric our people’s learning and vehicle-charging points with fast charging development. capacity; they are able to charge from 7kw to 22kw. Mortuary department The new charging points We are currently building are located adjacent to an extension to our the new training centre mortuary facilities to underneath Charnley improve our viewing Ward. facilities for families and loved ones. The Green Zone The green zone project is now available for our people to use and includes:

Changing facilities The refurbished changing facilities for cyclists and runners offer two separate toilets, two separate shower rooms, a separate changing area for male and female users and a Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) compliant toilet/ changing area. Cycle rack The 24 secure cycle storage ‘velo’ boxes allow you to lock away your bike with your personal lock. Outdoor space The improved landscape around the changing facilities provides outdoor garden space with curved benching for our people to enjoy the outdoor space.

Healthcare group update: Medicine “As we are well underway with our recovery phase, we have now completed an exciting new refurbishment of the frailty unit. This will support an improved patient experience for our older patients, reduced demand for non-elective acute ward beds and the development of a specialist team that attracts and retains staff and demonstrates high levels of staff satisfaction. “We have completed the building work for the third suite in our endoscopy unit. This will enable the service to have the capacity required to meet the increasing demand for endoscopy services and help reduce waiting times. We are also well underway with our action plan to address the issues raised in the Staff Survey results. We believe that the health and wellbeing of our people needs to be our absolute focus over the next few months. We have already introduced some quick solutions to ease pressure, with the introduction of ‘no meetings Fridays’ to give staff the much-needed time to catch up on administration and email tasks. Thank you for your support." The medicine management team

CQC: Focusing on health and safety The health and safety of our patients and our people is our absolute priority. We can all contribute to ensuring a safe environment to work in. As we gradually emerge from lockdown, we must continue to reduce the risk of transmission of COVID-19 by: y Practising good hand hygiene, washing your hands with soap and water thoroughly, and regularly using the hand gel provided across the hospital. Please also gel your hands before leaving your desk space y Wearing the appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE), including face masks, in line with guidance. This includes ensuring you are wearing fluid resistant surgical face masks (FRSMs) in non-clinical and office areas, at all times. y Maintaining social distancing, keeping two metres apart at all times in all areas of the hospital, both COVID-secure and non-COVID-secure areas. This includes following the restrictions on the numbers of people in lifts. y All areas should have the appropriate quantity of furniture, such as tables and chairs, to support social distancing. Please contact your line manager for advice if you have concerns about social distancing in a particular area.

y Cleaning your desk spaces and communal touch points – door handles, kettle and fridge handles regularly. y To assist you, we are going to place stickers as reminders to clean these frequently used items before and after use. Please also make sure that there is a continued supply of Clinell wipes available in your work areas. For more information, please contact Jo Englefield, health and safety manager, on x 8048 or at j.englefield@nhs.net. Thank you for your support.

Our patients said... “I had to attend your clinic for tests following a routine mammogram. I would like to thank you all for your kindness, care and professionalism. I was extremely anxious, and you were all fantastic. Thank you so much.”

“To everybody that took care of my mummy, thank you so, so much! I would FaceTime my mum every day and she would tell me how amazing you all were to her. “Sending all my love, and thanks so much again!”

“Thank you to anyone who had any part in mum’s life in hospital, even if all you did was make her smile! Mum was a fighter and even if she didn’t show it, she was terrified of hospitals. However, she said so many nice things about you all so I am so grateful you made it easier for her. You are all amazing.”

“The lady I spoke with could not have been more pleasant, professional and kind. She gave the kind of experience one would usually expect at a five star hotel. It was important to me to let you know how fantastic she was. A huge thank you to this lovely staff member from me.”

Our charity update

Dementia care at hospital selected as council’s chosen charity Dementia care at PAHT has been selected as one of Harlow Council’s chosen charities of the year.

fundraising efforts and look forward to helping raise much-needed funding for this important work.”

The official announcement was made at the Full Council meeting on Thursday, 20 May.

The council will also support the Harlow Stroke Support Rehab Centre as the second chosen charity of the year.

The council will support The Princess Alexandra Hospital’s Charity dementia care fund for the next year. Caroline Ashton-Gough, dementia clinical nurse specialist (pictured right), said: community. “This is a much needed boost and very timely for Dementia “We are very grateful to the Action Week. new chair of Harlow Council, Councillor Clive Souter, the “Thank you to Harlow Council new vice chair, Councillor for supporting our patients with Maggie Hulcoop, and all of the dementia – we look forward council for this kind gesture.” to working together to further improve the experience of our Councillor Clive Souter, chair patients.” of Harlow Council, said: “The dementia care team at Mari-Louise White, head of Princess Alexandra carry out fundraising at The Princess extremely valuable work in Alexandra Hospital’s Charity, improving the quality of life for said: “It is fantastic to see that people living with dementia. our charity’s dementia care fund has such support in our “I am proud to support their 12

Biomedical scientist highly commended at national awards A PAHT biomedical scientist has been highly commended at the finals of a prominent national awards ceremony. Cherie Beckett (pictured), who works in the microbiology department at PAHT, was highly commended in the Rising Star category of the 2020 Healthcare Science Awards. The awards are held to recognise and celebrate the contribution of healthcare scientists to the NHS and across the broader healthcare system.

“I am passionate about my work and the impact that microbiology has on patient care – supporting our patients with a diagnosis to guide their treatment.”

on social media.

The ceremony was held online on 12 May, after being delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cherie said: “I am honoured to have been highly commended at the finals of the 2020 Healthcare Science Awards. This is wonderful, after a very challenging year.

She has been recognised in her field for her role in lecturing and mentoring student biomedical scientists and being an advocate of her profession among industry networks and

“However, the biggest reward is inspiring aspiring biomedical scientists into the profession, providing support in our network and professional growth.

Sharon McNally, director of nursing, midwifery and allied health professionals, said: “It is fantastic that Cherie’s dedication has been acknowledged at this prestigious awards ceremony. “Congratulations to Cherie on an outstanding achievement in her career.”

Catering update Our catering team are now offering a refreshed menu for our patients. The menu includes an array of freshly prepared food and a hot meal for both lunch and dinner. The team have received fantastic feedback and a series of compliments so far.

The menu follows clear guidelines, lists allergens advice and special dietary requirements. The team also cater for allergen free meals and meals that are suitable for our patients with dysphasia, gluten-free meals and Halal meals.

Please also be aware that under new guidelines, packaged and in date goods are only allowed to be sold at charity and cake sales on site. This is to ensure the safety of our patients, people and visitors.

Fracture clinic opens for our patients Patients who have been diagnosed with a fracture are now seen in our new, modern fracture clinic facility at The Princess Alexandra Hospital. The fracture clinic was previously based at Herts and Essex Hospital, Bishop’s Stortford. The relocation has been part of the extensive improvements to our hospital site. Patients who have been diagnosed at the emergency department with a suspected fracture and require a subsequent specialist followup will be treated at the new fracture clinic. Ajay Sooknah, head of operations for the surgical and critical care healthcare group said: “A huge thank you

to all those involved with all aspects of the fracture clinic. The purpose-built, improved facilities will make a real difference to our patients and visitors.

The clinic is clearly signposted for patients and visitors to find, with the entrance adjacent to the back of the hospital restaurant, listed as location A33.

“Patients with existing appointments will be notified of the location change via a patient appointment letter or text update.” Michael Meredith, director of strategy and estates added: “We are delighted to have opened the new build fracture clinic. “The modern space is part of our extensive programme of work to significantly improve the experience of our patients and the working environment for our people.”

Have your say on the new Extranet Alex, our current Intranet, is retiring and will be replaced with a new, modern Extranet this summer. It will be fully mobile enabled to access on smartphones and tablets too, wherever you are. Many of you will be aware that we have been reviewing the content across Alex. The communications team have been in contact with all teams with a request for you to refresh the information on the pages you manage - thank you to everyone who has completed this.

It’s now time for you to get involved and help shape the new Extranet. We are establishing an engagement steering group. This will give you an opportunity to feedback about what you would like to see as part of the new Extranet, such as the functionality and the look and feel of the site. Please contact paht.communications@nhs. net to get involved.

New procurement and finance system We are introducing a new procurement and finance system to significantly improve the experience of our people. GHX is a modern ordering system for goods and services and will fully replace EROS during 2021. The integrated system, with improved functionality, will provide a major upgrade. Benefits include: y The design of the system is modern and intuitive y You will be able to see images of items when ordering (pictured right), similar to popular shopping websites y The Supply Chain catalogue will be available in a single combined catalogue, without a separate login y The system will be fully integrated with procurement and finance for a streamlined user experience y Invoices for authorisation will be sent electronically to the budget manager and can be approved with one click y GHX also includes an electronic stock management system, where stock items can be scanned in and out with handheld scanners y Up-to-date information about the volume, value and location of stock will be

y y y

available at all times This removes the need for year-end manual stock takes The stock system will automatically prompt when to reorder new items It will support ‘scan for safety’ and enable us to easily locate items if they are recalled for safety reasons It is fully compliant with best practice procurement and finance standards

We will keep you updated with progress. For more information, please contact Mike Stone, associate director of procurement (michael. stone5@nhs.net), Lisa Barrett, deputy head of procurement (lisa.barrett20@ nhs.net), or Kelda Alleyne, project manager (kelda. alleyne1@nhs.net).

Next steps The new system will be introduced in the following areas as part of a pilot from the end of June: y Main theatres y EBME y IT It will then be rolled-out across the organisation.

PAHT People - 60 second interview with Karen Moore, dietitian Marking Nutrition and Hydration Week Nutrition and Hydration Week (14-20 June) is an annual event with a shared objective to promote and celebrate improvements and the importance of nutrition and hydration. To mark the awareness week, we caught up with Karen Moore, dietitian, during her 60-second interview below: When did you join PAHT? I joined the hospital in October 2020. What is your job title? I am a band 5 acute dietitian. Can you outline your roles? In my role, I assess and review our patients to support and meet their nutritional requirements as part of their treatment. This could be via oral diet, nutrition supplements or enteral feeding. I currently cover respiratory and elderly care wards. How did you get into it? I had lifelong interest in nutrition and I have a background in sports and mental health.

of the role is working with enteral feeding patients. It is a big learning curve and caring for palliative patients is emotionally challenging, but it is rewarding to know you can make a positive difference at that time of someone’s life.

What do you do in your spare time? In my spare time, I am a Netflix binger. I socialise with my friends and family (usually cooking for them) and I am currently training for a half marathon.

What is the most satisfying aspect of your role? The most satisfying aspect of my role is to see patients enjoying food again and overcoming the challenges they faced around eating and drinking. Can you describe standout activities in your team? We are a supportive team who work well together to support our patients by sharing expertise from our areas.

How do you see the career After working with MIND, I development and future of decided five years ago to your role? train to work in a clinical I am interested in progressing environment. further into enteral feeding and neurology and supporting What is the most challenging this patient group to achieve part of your role? adequate nutrition. The most challenging aspect