InFocus Magazine 2007 - Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Basingstoke and North Hampshire
NHS Foundation Trust
NHS
Home-from-Home
Birth Suites
Foundation Trust Review
2007 / 2008
Blue Light Cystoscopy
better treatment for bladder cancer
Productive ward
releasing time to care
FREE
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Comments or suggestions?
Please contact the communications
team on (01256) 313062 or
e-mail enquiries@bnhft.nhs.uk
It’s been another great
year for our Trust.
Being authorised as
a Foundation Trust
on 1 December was
testament to the
hard work of our
staff members, who
remain committed to
our overarching aim:
delivering high-quality
services for our patients
and their families.
In this review we’d like to share
some of the year’s achievements
- from our refurbished maternity
department, with more homely
facilities, to the high-tech blue laser
that makes it easier to identify bladder
cancer. You can also read about some
of the ways we’re working to improve
the hospital – like our campaign
to reduce hospital infections, and
improvements to our nationallyacclaimed
stroke service.
But work at the Trust never stands
still and, as we look forward to the
next year, we’re planning exciting new
developments. As a Foundation Trust
we’re now in a stronger position to
develop locally-sensitive services. We’re
relying on our members and governors
to help us shape the future and deliver
the best possible healthcare for the
people of North Hampshire. We’re
also relying on the local community
to keep providing feedback and
suggestions – we want to make
our healthcare truly yours.
Mary Edwards
Chief executive
Home-from-home Birth Suites
even influence whether birth is normal or
requires emergency surgery. Women giving
birth in a homely environment are more
relaxed and in control of their labour, which
is more likely to result in a normal birth.
Sofas, birth mats and en-suite
bathrooms are just some of the
facilities at our new, more homely
maternity suites!
The importance of homely surroundings
In 2005 the National Childbirth Trust survey
showed that comfortable surroundings can
help to improve a woman’s birth experience.
So when we redesigned our maternity units
at Basingstoke and North Hampshire NHS
Foundation Trust, we incorporated two
homely birth suites.
The research showed that women believe
their environment can affect their labour.
The type and quality of birthing facilities could
The new suites
The Oasis and Orchid suites are designed
to emulate a home environment. The large,
en-suite rooms feature sofas, birthing balls
and mats, and the Oasis suite also has a
birthing pool. The philosophy behind the
design focuses on promoting normal, active
birth. The birthing balls and mats help
women to remain active in labour. It has
also been shown that women who choose
to give birth in these environments use
less traditional pain relief. The pool and
additional facilities will provide ‘natural’
pain relief options.
Both rooms are available on a first come
first served basis, and don’t need to be
pre-booked - the decision to use a birthing
suite can be made at any time leading
up to the birth of the baby. For more
information, contact the Maternity Unit or
the community midwives.
Nursing awards 2007
Commitment to care, compassion and
dedication are rewarded at our annual
Director of Nursing awards.
After announcing the award programme
in April, we were inundated with nomination
forms – more than 150 people wanted
to commend nurses who had treated
them with kindness and respect. In every
category we were overwhelmed with the
quality of submissions; individual nurses,
midwives and teams have made a huge
contribution to our hospital this year. In
July Donna Green, our Director of Nursing,
presented the awards at the Sherfield
School in Basingstoke.

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New Cystic Fibrosis Screening
Sexual health on schedule
to meet 48-hour target
Early detection of cystic fibrosis can lessen
the risk of life-threatening complications, so
our new testing will give many parents peace
of mind. The cystic fibrosis test is now part
of routine testing on the blood spot taken by
our midwives on the 5th – 8th day after birth.
This initial test is designed to identify ‘at risk’
children, who can then go on for further testing
and, if diagnosed with cystic fibrosis, can begin
early treatment. Of course most tests will return
with normal results, which are given to parents
by the health visitor or GP. If the result gives
cause for concern, the family will be contacted
directly within two days. It’s important to note
that although the test provides a good early
indication of possible sufferers, it won’t pick
up every case, and GPs are still on the alert for
children with suspicious symptoms in their early
months and years.
Sexual Health Clinic: 01256 313333
Our Sexual Health clinic is now offering 99% of new patients an appointment
within 48 hours. This puts us firmly on-track for the Department of
Health’s latest target. More than 6000 patients were seen at the
clinic last year, of which 448 were diagnosed with Chlamydia
– the more common infection in our area. The clinic is
now working on ways to improve public awareness of
this often-silent infection. Chlamydia doesn’t always
show its symptoms. It can hide in the body for
a number of years before causing any problems.
However, once detected it can be treated
with antibiotics, and it’s easily cleared.
Developments in Cardiology
With angioplasty and angiogram waiting lists
at an all-time low and outpatients waiting less than
7 weeks, our Cardiology division has streamlined
its operations this year. Because of its excellent
performance, the division has been selected to pilot
a review designed to help achieve the government’s
18-week waiting target (referral to treatment). The
team will soon welcome a brand new laser treatment,
to be offered as an alternative to angioplasty, as the
latest addition to their pioneering developments.

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Assessing patient care at the Diagnosis and Treatment Centre
On average our Diagnosis and Treatment
Centre (DTC) sees up to 1000 patients
every month. With such a high volume of
patients coming and going, it would be
easy to focus on the numbers and forget
about the patient’s individual experience.
So we’ve introduced a system of assessing
the quality of care - by consulting directly
with patients.
The DTC sees a wide variety of patients
- requiring a general anaesthetic, sedation
or local anaesthetic – aged between
12 months and 95 years! We cover most
specialties - ear, nose and throat, general
surgery, orthopaedics, gynaecology,
endoscopy and urology, to name a few.
Patient choice and opinion is very important
here. The DTC team follows up every patient
who has been anaesthetised or sedated,
carrying out a telephone questionnaire to
find out how they felt about the service they
received in our care. These questionnaires
are audited and the results used to improve
patient service. If several patients highlight the
same problem or issue, we won’t wait around
- the issue will be immediately investigated
and rectified. These questionnaires are
also used to highlight areas in the DTC
for further audit such as post-operative
pain control. Telephoning the patient the
following day also provides them with the
opportunity to ask questions that may have
arisen since discharge. If patients or their
carers have comments while in our care,
they can also write in the comment books
in discharge areas and wards.
Since introducing the questionnaires we’ve
been able to make some positive changes
that benefit patients. People frequently
told us that they had forgotten the advice
given to them on discharge, so we now
give all patients their wound care advice
in writing, with details about removing
dressings or having sutures removed.
We’ve also been prompted to investigate
the amount of time patients can wait for
certain procedures, particularly endoscopy.
Our team is working out how staggered
admission times can be improved to avoid
patients’ long waits.
For further information on the work of the
DTC please contact Modern Matron, Kathy
Barton or email kathy.barton@bnhft.nhs.uk
Meet The School Nurse
What does a School nurse do?
We send nurses to schools for three important reasons:
For many children, the school nurse is their
first source of information about physical and
emotional health. As well as organising events
and promoting health messages, the school
nurse does something very important: listening
to children’s worries and concerns.
To give confidential advice, care and treatment to children
(and their parents or carers)
To promote physical and emotional health and to help teachers
understand what children need to be healthy
To help protect and safeguard children from significant harm
Why is this role important?
In practice, a school nurse has a very diverse role. School nurses act
as a link between school and other organisations, like children’s
services and the police. They organise immunisation programmes
and help teachers with their personal and social health education
lessons. It’s important that teachers themselves understand how to
deal with health issues such as allergies, epilepsy, and asthma, and
the school nurse can help train teaching staff in this respect.
But the school nurse is also available whenever children need
confidential, independent advice. Children and young people
can see a school nurse in school for lots of different reasons –
for instance:
To talk about their health or worries in confidence
To get emotional support, for example if they have problems
with friends or at home
To assess for any health problems and refer to somebody else
who can help, for example, a doctor
To give advice on smoking, relationships or sexual health

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Advances in stroke care
and rehabilitation
The Oakley Stroke and Rehabilitation Unit is a national centre of excellence,
committed to improving the standards of modern stroke care.
“Gone are the days when a stroke would leave patients and
clinicians alike powerless,” says Consultant Stroke Physician,
Dr Elio Giallombardo. “These days nurses, doctors and therapists
have the evidence and the equipment to save lives and restore
an increasing proportion of patients to their previous lifestyle.”
Reducing waiting times
“By 2008, no one will have to wait longer than
18 weeks from GP referral to hospital treatment”
NHS Improvement Plan, June 2004
The stroke pathway
Every patient admitted with a stroke diagnosis is assessed by
our specialist team. Most patients are transferred to the Oakley
Stroke and Rehabilitation Unit at the earliest opportunity. If there
are any delays in transfer, the team will visit the patient on the
admission ward, ensuring all the correct support is in place.
This year the national audit of stroke care showed that 80%
of our stroke patients are treated in our own stroke and
rehabilitation unit, against a 62% national average. We’d like
to get that figure closer to 100%, and have opened more beds
at Alton Community Hospital for the purposes of rehabilitation.
This ensures that patients with ongoing rehabilitation needs
continue to receive the care they need, and frees up beds for
the acute patients to be cared for in the right place.
A model of good practice
Getting patients treated in a place like our Stroke and
Rehabilitation Unit, where the most experienced clinicians
can work together, is key to success. Our good work did not
escape the attention of the NHS Institute for Innovation and
Improvement and we were one of five acute trusts invited to
share our experience on caring for stroke patients. This led to the
development of a Stroke Care Pathway to be piloted in a number
of hospitals across the country.
Preparing for the future
We plan to maintain our reputation as a centre of excellence.
We’re anticipating an exciting new option – clot-busting
treatment – for certain stroke patients. It’s extremely effective
in preventing disability, but to work must be started within
3 hours of the onset of symptoms. “Stroke will continue to
be a devastating illness for a proportion of patients and their
families,” says Dr Giallombardo, “but the days of general
hopelessness and despair are truly gone.”
Time is Brain
THE 18-WEEK TARGET is one of the most ambitious access
targets the NHS will ever have delivered. For the first time in the
history of the NHS, patient journey time will be measured from
start to finish – including the times between diagnostic and
outpatient appointments, which are mostly unmeasured.
When it’s achieved, the 18-week target will enormously improve
the experience of every patient in NHS care.
Basingstoke and North Hampshire NHS Foundation Trust has
been declared an ‘Early Achiever’ which means that, in certain
departments, we will be meeting the 18-week target one year
early (December 2007). We are currently piloting it in four
specialties: Cardiology, Orthopaedics, Gynaecology and Urology.
By March next year, we will extend the programme to every
specialty in the hospital.
The target demands a united approach from all our staff and
clinical teams. To achieve it, we will be modernising services,
implementing new technology, hiring and allocating new staff,
ensuring faster access to diagnostics, assessing whether there are
enough staff and making sure there are appointments and clinics
available to see, diagnose and treat patients quickly.
We will need to accurately record how long each patient’s
journey takes. We know that, in many cases, patients are already
seen, diagnosed and treated within 18 weeks, but this is not
recorded yet. We are now working with clinicians and admin
staff to monitor and assess every patient journey. By 2008, the
patient journey should be as smooth and efficient as it’s ever
been – and we’ll be right on target.

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Productive ward
releasing time to care
The premise is simple:
To review working practices and give
nursing staff more time to spend with
patients. Using knowledge from the
commercial and business worlds, we can
tighten efficiency to release more time.
In conjunction with the NHS Institute
for Innovation and Improvement, our
hospital has embarked on a project
designed to conserve the time of
nursing staff.
Our nursing team on C3 are closely
involved in the project, helping to
determine areas of need. For example,
the nurses are frequently interrupted
by visitors who are looking for patients.
These interruptions can take nurses’
attention away from important or
urgent tasks. Nurses, medical staff
and patients discussed this problem
and came up with the ‘patient location
board’. This displays the ward layout
with each patient’s name in their
allocated bed space. It enables visitors
to see at a glance where the patient
is and therefore nurses are not
interrupted as frequently.
Stock cupboards on each ward
have also been reorganised. These
cupboards – one per ward – contain
all the frequently-used items that
may be needed when patients
suddenly feel unwell. They were not
regularly stocked and were mostly
in disarray, making it difficult to
quickly access equipment. There was
no consistency in their layout or
contents. Nursing staff agreed to
rationalise the contents, stick to one
layout and designate someone to
top up stock on a daily basis. Now a
cupboard in bay 3 and a cupboard
in bay 5 are arranged in the same
orderly fashion, making them quicker
for nurses to access.
Plenty of other measures have been
identified to free up time: a redesign
of the nurses’ station, rationalisation
of stock in the sub-pharmacy area
(saving almost £1,000), an information
leaflet for patients on the ward
routine and the trial of equipment
that will automate the management
of supplies.
This ongoing project has already
brought many positive outcomes.
Staff members have embraced the
opportunity to foster a culture of
change, nurses and patients have
engaged in decisions affecting their
environment and visitor feedback
has also been positive. As a result of
this project’s success, it will soon be
adapted by other departments in the
Trust, freeing up time and improving
patient care right across the hospital.
Two Week Rule and the Breast Symptomatic Service
When cancer is suspected, early diagnosis and swift treatment
are vital. The government has installed a number of targets to
make sure this happens, and the ‘Two Week Rule’ (TWR)
is one of these. Current guidelines say that patients
referred with suspected breast cancer should be offered
an appointment within two weeks; and all cancer patients
should be offered treatment within 31 days of referral.
To reach these targets this year, our breast cancer team
has continued to make some great improvements to their
service. Patients with suspected breast cancer can take
advantage of our one-stop service, where they will have a
clinical consultation, mammogram, ultrasound and/or needle
and core biopsy at one appointment. As well as being far
more convenient for patients, this speeds up the diagnosis
process. It’s also enabled us to meet all cancer-related targets
This year we have seen:
374 TWR referrals
168 new patients with primary breast cancer
And we have recorded the following average times:
Time from TWR referral to treatment: 35 days
Time from ‘Decision to Treat’ to treatment: 14 days
These figures meet all of our targets, ensuring that all
cancer TWR patients are treated within 62 days of referral
and that all cancer patients receive their first treatment
within 31 days of deciding which treatment is appropriate.
This is down to a dedicated multi-disciplinary team working
hard to ensure all cancer patients receive the best possible
care in a timely manner.

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Blue Light Cystoscopy
better treatment for bladder cancer
Patients from North Hampshire have become
some of the first in the country to be offered
Blue Light Cystoscopy. This brilliant new
technique is reducing the likelihood of cancer
recurrence from 35% to 10%.
12,000 patients a year are diagnosed with
bladder cancer, making it the 5th most
common cancer in the UK. 4,000 of these
patients will die of the disease. In its earliest
stages, bladder cancer is treated by ‘resecting’
the tumour off the bladder wall using a
telescope (Cystoscopy) under anaesthetic.
However, even after this treatment tumours
can recur for 35% of patients. This means
that patients have to come back for frequent
Cystoscopy of their bladder to detect and
treat any tumours at an early stage. This isn’t
just expensive for the health system but very
unsettling for patients too.
One of the main reasons so many patients get
a recurrence is that most tumours are invisible
to the naked eye under normal ‘white light’
(see picture 1). It can be difficult, after surgery,
to be sure that all of the tumour has been removed.
Blue Light Cystoscopy addresses this problem.
1. White Light Cystoscopy
2. Blue Light Cystoscopy
What is Blue Light Cystoscopy?
Used with the fluorescent dye Hexvix, the Blue
Light Cystoscopy reveals tumours with better
clarity. Hexvix is instilled into the bladder an
hour before Cystoscopy, where it is selectively
taken up (absorbed) by the bladder tumours.
When blue light is shone onto the area, these
tumours reflect fluorescent light (see picture 2
- same as picture 1 but with ‘blue light’). This
technique is called photodynamic diagnosis,
or PDD.
Better results
This new technique is exciting because it
makes removal and detection of bladder
tumours much easier. A medical trial showed
that Blue Light Cystoscopy reduces the
recurrence rate of bladder cancer from 35%
to just 10%. Last year, about 100 bladder
resections were carried out at Basingstoke
and North Hampshire Hospital. With current
techniques, we would expect about 35 of
these to recur. With Blue Light Cystoscopy, we
can expect just 10 recurrences – that means
25 more patients would be permanently
cancer-free.
Liver Surgery at Basingstoke
More than 100 patients had liver surgery at Basingstoke and
North Hampshire Hospital last year – referred from all over south
England and Wales. Although their condition is relatively rare, new
treatments and techniques are developing all the time, and our
team is at the forefront of modern science.
The current surgical team – Myrddin Rees, Tim John and Fenella
Welsh – carries out liver surgery for malignant disease, removing
either primary or metastatic (secondary) liver cancers. Before
booking patients in for surgery, an MRI scan is used to make sure
the tumours are removable in a way that will preserve enough
functioning liver. Surgery – which at Basingstoke is usually keyhole
surgery – offers 30% of patients a long-term cure.
For many patients, though, surgery isn’t appropriate, and other
options will be suggested. Radio Frequency Ablution is often
recommended. This is a method of “cooking” small tumours
which is carried out in the x-ray department. Fenella Welsh is also
developing intraoperative microwave ablation, an exciting new
technique that we hope to offer in the near future. The increased
capacity for chemotherapy at our hospital gives many more patients
the opportunity to receive effective treatment.

flat and a multifunctional ‘quiet room’ that opens onto a patio
garden with table, chairs and a water feature.
Who Works here?
The Neonatal Unit requires the input of many professionals,
ranging from paediatric consultants to nursery nurses.
The nursing team is specially trained in the intensive
care of newborns, with individual specialisms like infant
feeding. Other team members who attend the unit
include physiotherapy staff, an ophthalmologist, health
visitors, midwives, social workers and staff from the
Drug Advisory Centre.
How are you making a difference?
Sick or premature babies have a wide and diverse range of
healthcare needs. It’s crucial that we keep our equipment
maintained and replaced, and this year we’ve had two new
incubators, which have been a great asset for the babies.
Parents at the Neonatal Unit receive plenty of support, too.
Many babies can spend several weeks in the unit until they have
established feeding, gained weight and are able to maintain their
temperature. Our nursing and support staff offer parentcraft
training to help parents manage their newborn.
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What happens here?
The Neonatal Unit is part of the Maternal and Child Health Division,
and is situated on the ground floor of the Sherborne building.
Here we care for newborn babies who are ill or premature.
As well as fourteen cots (divided between intensive and high
care) there are also parents’ facilities – an expressing room for
breastfeeding mothers, a milk kitchen, a pay-phone, a self-contained
We think a comfortable environment is important – and this year we
commissioned several bright, nursery-style murals all around the unit.
How many admissions?
Last year we admitted 248 babies (from 2,592 total deliveries).
Reasons for admission include prematurity, difficult birth, congenital
abnormalities, neonatal abstinence syndrome and jaundice. We also
admit babies for adoption or whose parents are unable to care for
them and infants who may have child protection issues.
Orthopaedic Trauma Ward
If you are injured in a Road
Traffic Accident (RTA),
have a fall, a significant
sports injury or require
complex surgery to
realign bones you may
find yourself in our
Orthopaedic Trauma Unit.
Our dedicated team of surgeons,
doctors, nurses, physiotherapists
and occupational therapists are
supported by many other health
professionals to deliver the
optimum care to our patients
on the ward.
They will also ensure that the
follow-up rehabilitation is
carried out in the most suitable
manner liaising with any
outside agencies to facilitate
this happening. Our team of
domestics and housekeeping
staff are responsible for
delivering a clean and safe
environment, supporting health
professionals to maintain
our low infection rates. For
example in the recently reported
‘National Site Surveillance’
statistics, which reviews wound
infections; the Orthopaedic
Trauma Unit had a rate of 0%
compared to a national
rate of 4.3%.
Last year there were 1,350
admissions to the ward and
the injuries varied from broken
ankles and wrists to serious neck
and back injuries with a length
of stay ranging from a few hours
to many months.

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Rachael Hartley, Occupational Therapist
Working jointly with other members of the team (doctors,
nurses, physiotherapists, speech and language therapists and
social workers), attending meetings and case conferences.
Completing projects such as audits, service development and
presenting at groups (like the pulmonary rehabilitation group).
Why did you decide to become an Occupational Therapist?
I first discovered occupational therapy when a family member
became ill and received input from an occupational therapist (OT).
Seeing the positive outcomes made me interested to explore the
profession further, but it was later that I realised it fulfilled all of
my criteria. We help people realise functional independence and
promote a better quality of life. They can work in a variety of
settings including mental health the community or paediatrics.
In the hospital there is the opportunity to work in a number of
specialist areas depending on your interests.
What does your job entail?
The main aim of occupational therapy at the hospital is to
provide a safe and rapid discharge. We work closely with
medics, nurses, physiotherapists and social workers to achieve
this. I’m called on to provide:
Assessments of daily living (washing and dressing, meal
preparation) and transfer assessments (getting from A to B)
Cognitive assessments (assessing the functions of the brain)
Wheelchair and seating assessments
Assessment for and provision of equipment
Assessment for minor house adaptation – rails, raising
chairs/beds etc
Home assessments
Education and advice to family and carers about things
like hoisting patients who are no longer able to transfer
independently or safely.
What is the best part of your job?
It’s difficult to pick just one thing as there are so many aspects
of the job that I enjoy! The most rewarding part of the job
is contributing to an individual’s progress or achievement. It
takes time but your time, patience and effort as a therapist
allows many patients to achieve their goal(s). These goals might
be things like walking again, being able to prepare a meal
independently, or returning home safely. I also enjoy spending
time with the patient to find out what difficulties they are
experiencing, discuss any concerns, and try to understand how
this impacts on their life. I do a lot of problem-solving, which
keeps me on my feet!
What is the most challenging part of your job?
The most challenging part of the job is often the pace and
constant demand for hospital beds which can become quite
tiring! I think it’s important to have a healthy work/life balance
and remember why you initially became an OT.
What are your plans for the future?
I want to develop my knowledge on a specific interest area of
multiple sclerosis. I also hope to become accredited as a practice
educator for students. Long-term, I want to take a more senior
role within OT, which would involve greater responsibilities
within the team, taking on a more managerial and operational
role whilst continuing with a clinical caseload. OT is becoming
more and more recognised and I would encourage people to
consider it as a career path that can present many opportunities
and be very rewarding.
Occupational Therapist
What is a typical day like?
There is no typical day in acute medicine! I enjoy the
challenge of prioritising my day, which can often change
quite rapidly, so you have to remain quite flexible. Jobs
on my daily schedule might include:
Patient contact – completing assessments, carrying
out treatment interventions, monitoring progress,
providing training, information and advice and
facilitating a safe discharge from hospital.

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Haematology
Nurse Practitioner -
Loraine Lloyd
What’s your job description?
My remit is to improve outcomes for haematology patients in line
with the recently published NICE guidance ‘Improving outcomes
in Haematological Cancers.’ [2003]. One of the key features of
my role is to simply ‘be there’ to provide information, advice and
support for all patients with a haematological condition, from their
initial visit to see the haematologist and then throughout their
cancer treatment.
So how do you achieve this?
All patients, and their relatives or carers, are encouraged to phone
or call in and see me if they have any worries or concerns related
to their disease or treatment. As a nurse practitioner much of my
working day is spent undertaking clinical procedures. I perform
most of the bone marrow procedures, venesections and specialist
PICC [peripherally inserted central venous catheter] line insertions.
I also provide support, leadership and education to other healthcare
professionals, including our community-based nurses. Behind the
scenes, I help facilitate change, develop new services and set
evidence-based standards, policies and protocols with colleagues.
As a senior nurse within the Haematology team I can help to focus
clinical decision-making on the needs, values and priorities of
individual patients, giving them a voice where it counts.
How has your role improved the service?
Setting up nurse-led clinics to handle most of the procedures means
that patients can now choose a date and time convenient for them
to come in. The new PICC line insertion service has dramatically
improved the patient’s experience and outcome. Patients no longer
have to go to theatre or radiology but can stay on the ward for
this much less invasive procedure. Removal of the line is relatively
quick and painless, and the lines are associated with a far lower
complication rate, reduced chance of infection and lower expense.
What do you most enjoy about your role?
I am passionate about nursing research and audit as a means of
improving the patient’s experience. In July 2007 I won Basingstoke
and North Hampshire NHS Foundation Trust ‘Researcher of the year’
prize for research into the pain experienced by patients during their
bone marrow procedure. My study looked at how we could help to
reduce the pain experienced by our patients when they were having
this diagnostic test performed. As a result of the study patients
are now offered an innovative way to help relieve the pain they
experience during this procedure.
Instant x-rays save time and money
Since purchasing PACS – our Picture Archive Computer
System, for digital x-rays – and all the work it involved
to set up, our investment has been more than
repaid. Today doctors can view x-rays before their
patient has walked back from the department.
Every single x-ray image is stored safely and is
easy to access (no more film archives). The new
system has saved all the expenses of processing,
printing and transporting x-ray images. Even
more importantly, it has supported us to
reduce waiting lists. We don’t know how
we ever managed without it!

11
Increasing the chemotherapy capacity
More beds, better treatment options, and more hours of care: after a thorough
assessment of the Basing Unit, we’ve made some changes to improve the patient
experience. With improved chemotherapy drugs, more patients are being offered
chemotherapy as a treatment option. As a result we had to assess the capacity in
the Unit, making sure that patients get enough time with nursing staff and – equally
important – that staff aren’t overworked. We’ve also reviewed the booking and
administrative processes to make them more efficient, as well as increasing bed
capacity and keeping a bed free every day for unplanned inpatients. This is just one
example of where we have reviewed our processes to give patients a quicker, more
efficient route from diagnosis to discharge.
Questions, comments, or complaints?
PALS is the patient advice and liaison service. It’s
available to:
Help resolve concerns
Provide information
You can contact PALS:
At Basingstoke and North Hampshire Hospital
Tel: 01256 486766 / Email: pals@bnhft.nhs.uk
FIRVALE, our respite unit for children with special needs, is a
warm and friendly place where parents and children interact,
get out and about and generally have a great time!
Children with special needs require long-term, permanent
care solutions, and Firvale is the perfect way for children to
receive special attention and learn social skills at the same
time. Staff members from the unit liaise with families,
school and healthcare professionals to ensure the best
care and continuity at all times.
Gaining confidence and independence is an
important part of Firvale, so the older children
often go on organised trips to the cinema,
bowling, seaside and the Watercress Line - always
lots of fun. During the summer holidays we
organised trips to Longleat, Chessington and
Paultons Park.
For younger children, Firvale hosts ‘Treetots’ – a
mother and toddler group for ages 0-5. This weekly
group allows families to meet and discuss issues
around their special needs.
Firvale - our respite unit for children

12
Our Infection Control team is stepping up work
on its ‘Clean your Hands’ campaign. The team
has already met government targets to reduce
hospital infections, and is now planning the
next stages of its campaign.
The Trust has worked hard over the last
year to reduce the rate of MRSA infections.
Government targets required the Trust to
report less than 12 bacteraemias by March
2008. From April 06 to March 07 the Trust
only had 6 MRSA bacteraemias. This great
result is largely due to the hard work of
all our staff to reduce infections – but we
cannot become complacent and must work
hard to stay on target.
Better hand-washing
This year, the Infection Control team is overseeing
a more hard-hitting campaign. Their aim is for every
single person who enters the hospital to understand the
importance of hand-washing to patient safety. All staff, patients
and visitors are asked to decontaminate their hands on entry and
before entering any clinical area. We’ve introduced the latest alcohol gel
(Spirigel), which is designed to safely disinfect skin. It’s available at all hospital
and ward entrances and beside all bed spaces.
Communicating
with your Trust
New targets
Another government target (April 2007) has been set for Clostridium difficile
infections – no more than 10 infections per month. To achieve this, clinical staff
members must ensure that they isolate any patient with unexplained diarrhoea
until a diagnosis can be found or the patient has no further symptoms for
48 hours. Staff must also ensure that the correct antibiotics are prescribed to
try to reduce occurrence of this infection.
Are you a member yet?
As a Foundation Trust we are answerable to the
local community. If you have a voice, we want to
hear it – and membership is one of the best ways
to become involved in shaping your health service.
Membership is completely free and you can do as
much or as little as you want to participate.
We currently have around 4,500 members – but
we’re looking for more! As a member you’ll receive
free newsletters and invitations to members’ events.
For an application form:
Telephone 01256 313601
print the form from
www.northhampshire.nhs.uk
Contacting Governors
Our Council of Governors is 27 strong. 14 are elected from constituencies in
and around Basingstoke, North and East Hampshire and West Berkshire and the
rest represent our business partners – local authorities, the business community
and the voluntary sector. The Council of Governors has three main areas of
responsibility:
Advising the Trust to make sure its business decisions match the needs of
members and the wider community.
Guardianship of the Trust, ensuring it operates in a way that fits with its
statement of purpose.
Strategic direction for the Trust’s planning so that the Board of Directors can
effectively determine its policies.
If you want to find out about the next public meeting or see who your local
Governor is, just visit our website at www.northhampshire.nhs.uk. To contact
your Governor, e-mail Foundation@bnhft.nhs.uk or telephone 01256 313601.