Health Your
Ambitious Caring Together
News from Rotherham’s hospital and community health services
August - OctoberMarch 2019 Isssue 2 2025
Community appointment day hailed a success Community Appointment Day was a musculoskeletal (MSK) physiotherapy waiting list initiative. 150 patients waiting for a first appointment were invited to attend, with 104 patients attending Park Rehabilitation Centre for the day, which was a ‘one-stop shop’ for those who came along. It provided an initial appointment with an MSK physiotherapist, as well as access to other support services, including mental health and financial support from local services. Almost half of the attendees did not need to access the service further. All attendees had an assessment by an experienced physiotherapist which gave them resources and new knowledge about how to manage their condition. Becky Fletcher is the Clinical Lead for MSK and Orthopaedic Therapies and organised the event: “After the Community Appointment Day, we surveyed our attendees.
Inside this issue Children’s virtual ward pilot pages 3
“94% of responders felt it addressed their needs and 97% felt informed, clear on their next steps and that they had been involved in decisions about their care. 91% of respondents shared that they found our colleagues friendly and helpful. “It pleased us to be able to deliver a much more patient centred assessment during the day. Conversations with patients were broader and covered the aspects that mattered to them. It was good to be able provide an opportunity for patients to access other services they may need as well.
“For our service, it meant we managed to reduce time our remaining patients spend on a waiting list. This fell by 10 days altogether, from 37 to 27 days, following the event. All attendees also came off our waiting list as well.” Future plans for hospital page 4
Becky shared plans for more Community Appointment Days for patients on an MSK physiotherapy waiting list: “We plan to host Community Appointment Days at Park Rehabilitation Centre every quarter. We based this on feedback from patients who responded to the survey.” She added: “In December, new national best practice guidance for Community MSK Services on Getting It Right First Time was released. It included the suggestion of holding community appointment days. We are proud to be ahead of this in Rotherham.”
Who is your healthcare hero? page 6
Free ‘baby packs’ for newborns page 7
JANUARY 2019 ISSUE 1 Page 1