Annual Report 2006/07 - Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital

Royal Devon & Exeter NHS Foundation Trust Annual Report 2006/07
Human Resources
Consultation & Involvement
There have been several major consultation
exercises over the past year, including the
introduction of a new patient meals service and
the redesign of midwifery services.
Changes to the patient meals service (described
on page 7) involved catering and housekeeping
staff, managers and the HR lead working
closely with trade unions to ensure that full
and appropriate consultation with staff was
undertaken. Despite being a complex service
redesign involving large numbers of staff over
several months, no redundancies were made;
some staff were successfully re-deployed into
alternative vacancies within the Trust.
In the maternity unit a service redesign was
undertaken to implement a new integrated
model of care, aiming to provide antenatal
continuity and one-to-one care in labour.
“Staff in the maternity, neonatal and
gynaecological services have taken ownership of their
own areas within the Centre for Women’s Health, from
the design of the building and their workplaces to the
planning and packing for a seamless move from
Heavitree to Wonford.
A house move is pretty stressful; multiply that by a
million and that’s how complex and challenging it has
been to prepare for the transfer of services, ensuring that
patient safety and wellbeing are top of the agenda.
It’s been a magnificent team effort!”
Liz Trevelyan, Phase 4 Project Manager
Managers and the HR lead consulted with unions
and staff through this process to ensure that
staff were fully informed and understood the
reasons for the change. The new model of care
was successfully implemented on 1 April 2007.
Staff are also involved in planning capital
developments from an early stage. Staff were
involved in decisions about the design, colour
schemes and facilities in the Centre for Women’s
Health, for example, and the new pathology
laboratory layout and design, ensuring that
facilities make best use of space, and are
comfortable and pleasant to work in.
Employment of the Disabled
The Trust’s Equal Opportunities policy ensures
that job applications from disabled people are
given the same professional consideration as any
other candidates who apply to work for us. Our
policy states clearly that anyone who declares
that they have a disability on their initial
application form is guaranteed an interview for
the position which is of interest to them, subject
to them meeting the minimum essential criteria.
Prior to the interview taking place, applicants
are asked to advise us if they have any special
needs we should be aware of, to ensure the
interview process goes smoothly. If offered a
position, individual needs or adjustments are
discussed on a one-to-one basis with the line
manager, supported by Human Resources and
Occupational Health departments.
We have procedures in place, reviewed annually,
which satisfy all Government legislation and
best-practice relating to the employment of
disabled people. Our Trust website gives further
details of all such policies.
In the unfortunate event that someone becomes
disabled during their time of employment with us,
we ensure that, from the outset, all relevant and
necessary support is offered by the Occupational
Health Department and Human Resources,
working in conjunction with the individual’s line
manager. If the individual is unable to return to
their substantive job, our re-deployment policy
is instigated to enable them to be redeployed
elsewhere within the Trust. An initial assessment
provides information about the individual
capabilities, reflecting personal preferences
where possible. Over the past year we have had
two such cases, both of which have successfully
resulted in re-deployment within the Trust.
Each year the Trust offers extensive learning and
development opportunities for all staff, given
that both the retention and skills development
of all our people is fundamental to the continued
success of the Trust in delivering excellent
patient care. Specific initiatives relating
to disabled staff include the following: an
annual performance appraisal; review of any
special needs in relation to carrying out their
work; identification of any key learning and
development needs as part of ongoing career
development.
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