Linking up for first anniversary! - Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS ...

2 TrustNews November 2008
News in brief
Infection Control news
Generous gift
Televisions, an X-Box 360
console and a table football game
were among the donations to
the paediatric assessment unit at
Huddersfield Royal Infirmary by
the Huddersfield Pendragons.
The money was raised by a
collection at the funeral of the
Pendragons’ former chairman David
Gillibrand at the family’s request.
His wife Pat attended the
presentation. Also pictured
are, from the left, patients Joe
Eastwood and Alexander Forsyth,
play nurse Stephanie Dunn,
chairman of the Pendragons
Richard Foster, Mrs Pat Gillibrand,
Craig Williams of the Pendragons
and play nurse Karen Foster.
Handing over the cheque for £336 are
James Watson and pub landlady Lynn
Morrison to Sister Karen Lockwood
(left) and staff nurse Sarah Croft (right)
Chest wax for
charity!
A sponsored chest and leg wax has
raised hundreds of pounds for the
intensive care unit at HRI. James
Watson, of Longwood, Huddersfield,
had his chest waxed at the Spotted
Cow pub in Salendine Nook,
Huddersfield, and encouraged his
friend Tom Pearson to have his
legs done – all in a good cause.
James wanted to raise the money
in memory of his father who died
at the unit nearly two years ago.
A helping hand
The Halifax-based charity the
Cancer Laryngectomee Trust has
donated funds for a specialist
storage trolley for Ward 8c at
Calderdale Royal Hospital.
The £450 trolley will be used
to store equipment and supplies
which can be transported to the
patients who have undergone
laryngectomy operations and
throat surgery and will replace
a central storage cupboard.
Carole Stainton, one of the
trustees, said: “We offer grants
to our members and to care
providers for specific equipment
and we are particularly pleased to
be able to support the Trust.”
One of the major steps to battle
infection this year has been the
introduction of a new team
to help with central lines.
The Central Venous Access
Device team is currently ninestrong
and works across site
helping care for central lines.
A central line is used for
a whole variety of things,
including giving antibiotics,
blood and blood products and
various medications. The tip of
the line or tube sits in a vein
just above the patient’s heart.
Because the line breaks the skin
hygiene is extremely important to
protect against infection and the
Patients and visitors at Calderdale Royal Hospital
and Huddersfield Royal Infirmary were reminded
about the importance of washing their hands as the
simplest yet most effective means of infection control.
Information and advice stands
were in place in the foyers
at both hospitals
throughout
National Infection
Prevention and
Control Week
last month.
Wash
them
properly
SPECIAL COMMENDATION
A DIETITIAN based at Calderdale Royal
Hospital has been given a special
commendation for her work with
coeliac patients.
Lisa Green was nominated by one of her
patients for Dietician of the Year and learned
last month she had been given a special
commendation award from Coeliac UK.
She said: “I am very flattered to have
been nominated for this award and
proud that my enthusiasm and hard
work has been given recognition.”
Coeliac disease is an allergy to gluten
and affects the absorption of nutrients in
the small bowel. Symptoms include severe
Jennie
Dunkerley
and medical
technical
officer
Andy Gale
Meet the team
Who do you call – the CVAD team!
chance of MRSA bacteraemias
(bloodstream infections).
Liz Park, a nurse on the team,
said: “As soon as a line is inserted
we are informed by either the
ward staff or theatre staff and
from that moment we take care
of the line and the area around it.
However in an emergency others
may access the line, for example
if life-saving drugs are needed.”
The team covers all areas
except intensive care, coronary
care, oncology and paediatrics.
To find out more please contact
team leader Carol Gallacher on
07733 380934 or CVAD Sister
Liz Park on 07748 920439.
anaemia and other nutritional deficiencies.
Lisa has worked as a dietician for
11 years and is currently on maternity
leave following the birth of her
daughter Elena Mae this year.
Conference USA
The Poison IV
team – winners of
Celebrating Success
08 – have been in
America attending
a worldwide
conference about
invasive devices.
Sian Bloomfield, Beverley Waller
and Bernie Coll, our invasive devices
clinical nurse specialists, were among
750 delegates from all over America,
Canada, Australia and Europe at
the Association for Vascular Access
conference in Savannah, Georgia.
Sian, said: “The conference was
a great opportunity to network
with colleagues from throughout
the world, sharing our experiences
and learning from each other.
“The theme of the conference
was the ‘Prevention Of Catheter
Related Bloodstream Infections’ and
it was packed with presentations
supporting current and future clinical
practice, research and technology.
We arrived home with lots of plans,
ideas and worldwide contacts.”
The team - dubbed the cannulae
police - collected the Gordon McLean
£5,000 bursary at Celebrating Success
this year. They won the award for their
work creating new documentation,
standardising equipment and setting
up a dedicated IV trolley specifically to
target cannula use and bring down the
number of infections linked to them.
New matron role
leads the way
A couple’s campaign to improve
hospital care for people with
special needs or learning disabilities
has led to a new role.
We were urged by Roy and Barbara
Morgan to look again at how we could
improve care for people with special
needs following the death of their
son Nik, aged 22, at Huddersfield
Royal Infirmary in 2005.
As a result we have appointed a
matron dedicated to co-ordinating
the care of people with complex care
needs – and the couple are urging
other hospitals to do the same.
Nik’s parents were concerned
that adult services for people with
special needs were not properly
co-ordinated and very different to
the service they experienced when
Nik was still under paediatric care.
Our medical director and consultant
paediatrician Yvette Oade said: “Mr
and Mrs Morgan have helped us to
look again at the way we care for
people who have learning disabilities
and special needs and take steps to
improve the way we co-ordinate that
care. The appointment of our new
matron, Amanda McKie, is a direct
result of working closely with them.”
Amanda has joined us from Marie
Curie Cancer Care where she managed
Marie Curie Nurses working in
the community providing end of
life care. She has been a learning
disability nurse for the past 12 years.
She started her career has a nurse
at the Lindley Special Care Unit
in Huddersfield. In her new role
she will help adults with special
needs and learning disabilities who
need to access hospital services.
Amanda said: “My role will see me
talking to many different people in
other organisations to make sure that
the patient’s care is as smooth as possible
and planned carefully. A major part of
the job is working with families and
carers too, being an advocate for them.
“It can be very scary for
someone with learning disabilities
or special needs having to come
into hospital and I hope to help
them through it.” Amanda can
be contacted on HRI 7111
There is now a new, single computer
system in our accident and emergency
departments. It went live in August at
HRI and was installed at CRH in June.
Project lead David Armitage, said:
“Numerous people were involved
in ensuring the project was a success
particularly from within the Health
Informatics Service (tHIS) but
considerable credit should also go to
the A&E clinical staff at both sites
for the effort and determination
they showed to make this work.
“On several days in the first week
following ‘go-live’ staff dealt successfully
with almost double the daily average of
patient attendances whilst contending
with the new system and processes.”
The work was scrutinised by the
Strategic Health Authority to make
sure contractual obligations were being
realised. The benefits in data sharing and
audit reporting are already emerging.
A&E clinical director Andy Lockey said:
“It is difficult to understand how we were
managing before this new system. It allows
us to keep a closer track on patient care
as well as minimising risk due to doctors’
handwriting instantly becoming legible!
The new system has also been warmly
embraced by local GPs for the improved
discharge letters they now receive.”
Amanda, centre with
Roy and Barbara Morgan