Homerton Life May-June 2008 v5 - Homerton University Hospital

VIEW FROM THE TOPNEWSfrom the BoardIt’s fair to say that the last fewmonths of the financial year saw theBoard of Directors focus on the yearendfinancial position, balancing thebooks and making sure we closed theyear having met the key performanceand quality targets. On a positivenote, we were able to report that weachieved all key targets, a strongfinancial performance and a surplus.This means that this year we will havea small amount of money to invest inpatient services.The Board have discussed andsupported the proposals to investover £10m to take forward excitingplans to build our new perinatalcentre and develop fertility services.The corporate objectives were signedoff and they were asked to considerfinancial plans for 2008/9. The Boardwas also advised on the Healthcarefor London consultation and havesubmitted a response on behalf ofthe Trust, which is available to viewon www.homerton.nhs.uk.The Board was updated on a numberof projects and initiatives thatillustrate how the Trust participates inthe life of the local community. Theyalso received updates on a range ofquality and patient experience issuesincluding the Patient Survey results,the Hygiene Code and HealthcareCommission Maternity Review. InFebruary, the Board met with theCouncil of Governors to review thenew Patient and Public Involvementstrategy, Visitors Policy and issuesaround mixed sex accommodation.At the end of March, the Board saidgoodbye to two long standing nonexecutivedirectors, Professor KateCosteloe and Jessica Crowe.The Board of Directors meet on thefourth Wednesday of every month.Minutes are posted onwww.homerton.nhs.uk.Look out for news from the Board inall future editions of Homerton Life.4Directors report: a wordfrom the chief executiveAnother financial year has come to aclose and I am pleased that we finishedhaving met all our key performancetargets (cancer, emergency and electivecare waits, and MRSA and c.diff rates)and balanced the books. A big thankyou to you all for your continued hardwork and support – it really does makea difference.Looking towards the new financial year andthere are some exciting opportunitiesahead – in particular we will start ourlargest building programme for ten years,which will see the realisation of a state-ofthe-artperinatal centre and the muchanticipated relocation of the fertility unit.You can read more about our plans for thecoming year in this issue of Homerton life,where we detail our corporate objectives.You can speak to your departmentalmanager to find out more about theseplans – also feel free to get in contact withyour general manager, director lead ormyself with any comments or suggestionsyou have in relation to the coming year.Last month we launched our newcorporate style, which included a visualidentity for the way our materials look andfeel and a ‘house style guide’ detailing ourvision for good communications withpatients, the public and each other.Providing clear and consistent informationto others is of the utmost importance andour new style will allow us to do that. Allstaff are advised to visit the resourcessection on Homertonlife online and makesure that their own communicationmaterials (letterheads, memos, emailsignatures, presentations, patientinformation leaflets etc) are in the correctformat. Help is available from thecommunications department if needed.I hope you are enjoying this revampedHomerton life; this is part of a programmeof changes we are making to the way wecommunicate with staff, you can find outmore on pg5. We have also launched anew intranet site (see feature on pg8),which I encourage you all to take some timeto look at. This column is a newintroduction to Homerton life and in eachissue a different director will feed back toyou on the work in their area – we hope thisway you will get a sense of what ishappening throughout the hospital. Wealways welcome your feedback andsuggestions about the way we communicatewith you, please let us know your thoughts.Corporate objectives 2008/091. To meet the requirements for the toprating in the Healthcare Commission’sAnnual Health Check, with a particularemphasis on reducing the time patientswait.2. To have solid evidence of increasingpatient satisfaction.3. To foster a skilled and productiveworkforce, which has pride in its workand its organisation.4. To continue our focus on cleanliness,ensuring full compliance with theHealthcare Commission’s Hygiene Code.Nancy HallettChief ExecutiveTo help us focus our work for the year, the following corporate objectives havebeen set. Please take some time to read them and discuss with your manager howyour work plan for the coming year will contribute to achieving these objectives.5. To consolidate and further build financialand business acumen in the organisation.6. To promote the clinical services we provide,expanding these and developing newservices as appropriate to integrate into thefuture shape of London’s health services.7. To operate the hospital effectively duringthe biggest building programmeundertaken on site in a decade – thenew Perinatal and Fertility centres.8. To ensure that Homerton is fullyprepared for its role as Olympic Hospitalfor the London 2012 Olympic Park.

HAPPENING AT HOMERTONA&E staff visit AuschwitzFour A&E staff members were privileged to be able to participate in a visit to theconcentration camps in Auschwitz recently as a mark of appreciation from Jewishambulance service Hatzola.Anne Sellick, Debbie Wallis, Paul Wallman and Ben Teasdale were given the opportunity tofind out more about Jewish history and culture along with representatives from the policeand London Ambulance Service.Debbie Wallis said: “The trip has really allowed us to develop a better understanding of theOrthodox Jewish community and their needs.”Volunteer scheme pilotBY LEE NATHANIEL-WURIELast year, Homerton began what became a flourishing volunteer programmeaimed at utilising local members of the community. The importance of volunteerservices can’t be overlooked as it is extra help to staff – and best of all, it’s free!The programme was initially targeted atthe Acute Care Unit a ward that is “alwaysvery busy taking admissions from A&E”says Jackie Bines, Lead Nurse. It wasdesigned to help friends and relativeslocate the beds of their loved ones;volunteering takes place on the unit fivedays a week for two hours in and aroundthe evening rush hour. There are eighteenpeople who vary in age, ethnicity and sexwho collectively echo the diversity of thesurrounding boroughs. “The differencesbetween the volunteers is immense” saysChris Currell, cofounder of the programme,with some volunteers joining to gain workexperience, some to give back to a hospitalthat has served them well and otherssimply willing to help in any way they can.Now that the pilot scheme seems to beflying high, talk of expanding has alreadybegun, perhaps in different wards or indifferent capacities. Considering theNHS and the fact that it’s free, one feelsthat although we’re not obliged to payfor it we are still obliged to say ‘thankyou’ – at least that’s the way I feel aboutit as one of Homerton’s eighteenvolunteers myself.More information about volunteering isavailable on www.homerton.nhs.ukAs a volunteer wecan really make adifference even for the shorttime we are there.Fizle Sagar(Homerton Volunteer)Internalcommunicationssurvey resultsThank you to everyone whocompleted the internalcommunications survey, sent to allstaff last year. We had 460responses to the survey, whichfocussed on how staff find outinformation about the Trust andwhat they thought about ourmethods of communication.As a result we have made a number ofchanges – some of which you may havealready noticed.One key change is the relaunch andexpansion of the Homerton life format– you are currently reading the newstyleHomerton life magazine, whichhas more of the things that you askedfor including staff stories, what’shappening at a corporate level, as wellas social news and competitions.We’ve also recently introducedHomerton life online (see ‘specialfeature’ for more details) and Homertonlife extra, a fortnightly e-newsletter sentto every Homerton email account.In addition, we have developed afeedback mechanism for chief executiveTeam Brief allowing you to feed yourthoughts and comments back directly.Over the coming months we will alsobe looking to start a series of breakfastbriefings with the chief executive sostaff can find out what’s happening ina more informal setting.The survey results and furtherinformation aboutchanges to internalcommunicationsare available onHomerton lifeonline.Congratulationsto Mona Nathanfrom DoSH whowas randomlyMona Nathanselected from allthose who completed the survey andwere entered into a prize draw. Monawon a brand new iPod.HomertonLife May 2008 5

Nursery retains‘good’ OfstedrankingBY CHARLENE BRADEHomerton’s Roundabout Nurserycan certainly be confident when itcomes to proving maintaininggood standards for all children andparents using the service.Lord Clinton Davis unveils the plaqueExchanges celebratedHomerton joined forces with friends of Rambam Hospital in Haifa, Israel and StGeorge’s Hospital in Grenada in February to celebrate the long-standing clinicalexchange programmes that occur between the hospitals.Lord Clinton-Davis unveiled a commemorative plaque in the presence of their Excellencies theAmbassador of Israel and the High Commissioner of Grenada, as well as staff and a number ofinvited guests.Since the late 1990s, Homerton has been involved in over seven exchange visits, which hasincluded allowing clinical teams from the two overseas hospitals to shadow at Homerton andfor some of our staff to go abroad and observe how the different hospitals work.Homerton passeshygiene codeBY MONIQUE LABERINTOThe Healthcare Commission carried out aninspection at Homerton last year to check ourcompliance with the Hygiene Code. Theyassessed us against various duties, including:whether we had appropriate managementsystems for infection control; if we assessed andreduced the risk of patients acquiring infection; and if weprovided adequate isolation facilities for infected patients.The infection control team, led by director for infection prevention andcontrol Dr Alleyna Claxton, was able to demonstrate that we are performing against allelements, including: having an effective surveillance and audit system to ensure that anyshortfall in practice can be identified and acted upon; making guidelines and policies onthe prevention and control of infections, including an isolation policy, available to staffvia Homerton life online; and having isolation facilities.We were pleased that we passed our inspection, with the Healthcare Commissionagreeing that we had the necessary systems in place to help protect patients, the publicand staff from hospital acquired infections.The nursery, which is situated inHackney Hospital and has been runningsince 1991, has recently undergone itsunannounced Ofsted inspection withconsistent results. The nursery hasmaintained an overall ‘good’ ratingfrom three years ago and only hadminor recommendations from theOfsted inspector. ‘Good’ is the secondhighest rating that can be achieved.The nursery’s ‘good’ standard, basedon the standard of care and nurseryeducation, includes areas such as:helping children to be healthy;protecting children from harm andkeeping them safe; helping childrenachieve and enjoy what they do; andhelping children make a positivecontribution. The report also coversimprovements from the last inspection,which showed positive actions towardsachieving the goals previouslyset.Nursery servicesmanager MargaretBingham-Crisp said:“This proves how hardall the staff work tomaintain this grading sowe can provide a goodservice to all the childrenand parents”. As a previoususer of the service, I couldn’tagree more.Homerton Roundabout Nurseryis situated at 14 KenworthyRoad E9 (approximately a 5 – 10walk from the hospital) and is openfrom 7am to 6.30pm, 52 weeks a year.For further information contactchildcare development manager HelinTaylor-Greenfield on ext 7282.To read the full report visit www.healthcarecommission.org.uk.HomertonLife May 2008 7

SPOTLIGHT ON…Homertonlife onlineThe new intranet site for Homerton staff is nowlive. Developed following consultation withstaff, Homerton life online aims to provideinformation that is useful to everyone at theTrust. For latest news, information anddocumentation such as policies and procedures,staff should use Homerton life online as theirfirst port of call. Here we give you thebreakdown on what to expect:We have established a clear navigation forHomerton life online to make it easier forstaff to find the information they require.The sections have been designed to suit theneeds of staff and ease navigation ratherthan follow the organisational structure.You can easily link touseful applicationsfrom the hompage.We found that staff were gettingconfused between the internet(aimed at patients and the public)and the intranet, so we’ve brandedthe new site Homerton life online.This way you will know that anyinformation you see with‘Homerton life’ on is aimed at you.New and useful information isflagged up on the homepageso you can see what ishappening at a glance.Time out is the socialspace for staff. It includesa noticeboard facility,events, discounts andinformation about clubsand societies.Homertonlife online is accessible on any networked computer at8

The A-Z provides information for you by you.This is the main section, allowing departmentsand services to create their own working spacerelevant to staff who are based within orfrequently come into contact with them.Departments have included local policies andprocedures, patient information, clinicalgovernance and risk management info, practicedevelopment and research or audit information,as well as staff news and information.Downloadable templatesand information to allowstaff to communicate inline with the corporatestyle are available in theresources section.Letterheads, powerpointpresentations, leaflettemplates etc areavailable as well asguidance to use them.Other highlightsEye-catching design – Homerton lifeonline has been designed in our newcorporate style and complements ourpublic websiteSearch – staff have the option tosearch the whole site or, by using thedrop-down box, can concentrate thesearch in a specific areaPolls – can be serious or frivolous butstill a great way to find out what staffthink about things.Launching our corporate styleOver the past few months the Trusthas been developing a new corporatestyle to allow any communicationmaterials produced by the Trust tohave a clear identity, which staff,patients and other stakeholders willrecognise as Homerton’s. This newstyle will allow us to communicatemore clearly and professionally. Wehave also developed a ‘goodcommunications guide’ which sets outour house style and gives useful tipsand advice for producing clear,consistent and ‘plain English’communications. A full guide to ourcorporate design and house style, aswell as templates for staff to use isavailable on Homerton life online.Move your department onlineIf you don’t already have a section onHomerton life online, why not?Moving your department online willmake life simpler and will save youtime. There is a wealth of informationonline, which is being added to everyday – make sure you don’t miss out.It’s easy to get started. Just identifysomeone in your department who willbe happy to take the lead ondeveloping and maintaining yoursection. We will provide training andsupport.If you are interested in gettinginvolved contact Tonya Chalker on ext5154 or via email.Homerton by clicking the ‘internet explorer’ button on your desktop.HomertonLife May 2008 9

HOMERTON PEOPLETwominuteswith…Michael Lessani,senior house officer, oral andmaxillo facial surgery1. What was your first job?Bartender at Level nightclubin Bristol.2. What did you want to bewhen you were growing up?An astronaut – maybe oneday…3. Who is the person you mostadmire? My mum, she’sbeen an independentwoman, ahead of her time.She’s an inspiration for me,today and forever.4. What was your mostembarrassing moment?Walking around Homertonafter a theatre list, havingforgotten my loosespectacles were still taped tomy forehead.5. What is your biggestindulgence? Trying toimpress those damsels indistress.6. What would you do if youwon the national lottery?I don’t gamble.7. What was the last:book you read?“Bloody Foreigners.” It talksabout all the differentpeople coming to settle onthe British Isles since theRoman times.cd you bought?Lionel Ritchie – “Back toFront”, for theaforementioned damsels.film you watched?Gladiator – and apparently Ilook like Russell Croweaccording to Lydia fromTheatres!8. What dish would you like tosee in the hospital canteen?Chelo Kabab Makhsous –A Persian barbeque feast.A day in the life of…legal servicesBY GILLIAN WARDMeeting with Homerton’s internal lawyerAsha Kaur to talk about the work of legal services,highlighted the vital and wide ranging work thatlegal departments undertake within the NHS.Asha, who has been working at Homerton since2002, is the sole member of legal services(although external solicitors are used if specialistguidance is required). The department providesadvice and representation for the Trust and staffregarding personal injury and clinical negligenceclaims. Within the NHS, claims can range fromstolen property to more serious cases such asinjury sustained during treatment. NHS lawyersare also involved in Coroner’s cases, which arehearings held to establish the events leading upto, and surrounding, a death in hospital. Inaddition, with the introduction of the mentalcapacity act last year, the department can supportclinicians who are dealing with capacity issues.Asha comments: “I would advise any memberof staff who is dealing with anything of a legalnature at work - whether it is providingstatements to the police, negotiating sectionorders, or writing reports for the coroner – toget in contact with me first so I can make sureyou get the right support at the right time.”Asha is keen to convey that she is an NHSdefendinglawyer whose concern is to act onthe side of Homerton and its staff. She givessupport as soon as a case is identified, which isongoing until a process is complete.Depending on the case, Asha’s input canAsha Kaurinvolve guidance on how to communicate withthe police, questions to expect should a caseget to court, how the hearing will be structuredand how to feedback sensitive issues to patientsand relatives. The lifespan of a case, regardlessof whether it relates to personal injury or clinicalnegligence, depends on the circumstances – butsome can go on for years. Most cases areresolved before they reach court.Legal services is also involved in reviewingexternal contracts to ensure Homerton receivesthe best deal for its money. Asha providestraining, which can be tailored to adepartment’s needs, and is also on hand tooffer advice or support on any legal matter.And Asha’s top tip is: “Make sure you write asmuch as you possibly can in patient notes.Legal cases can be bought against the hospitalmany years after a patient has been treated, soit is important that we can go back andaccurately state what happened at the time.There have been times where decisions don’t goin our favour because we couldn’t completelyevidence what happened. It also means thatstaff don’t have to rely on their memories.”The legal services department is based inthe Education Centre. You can call AshaKaur on ext 5321 or via email.Congratulations to consultant colorectalsurgeon Miss Helen Pardoe who won aprestigious Draper’s Award for educationand learning from Queen Mary UniversityLondon. The Draper’s award is a prizegiven annually in recognition ofexcellence in the teaching of medicalstudents. She was nominated byUniversity of London medical students.10

Flowers in bloom –who looks after our gardens? BY ROBERT DUKE‘Roses are red, violets are blue,’ may be allthe horticultural knowledge required tocompose a Valentine’s message, but thoseresponsible for the Trust’s plants, flowerbeds and gardens need to know a greatdeal more than that.Fortunately, the Trust’s gardeners, MauriceEmbley and David Buckingham, know theironions. They can be seen trimming andpruning, watering and weeding, in all weathers.New staff governors electedBY MEREL REININKIn February, three new staff governorswere elected to fill vacancies on theCouncil of Governors: David Griffith(KSF lead), Jamie Mcfetters (AGMQuality DSO) and Dr Swee Fang(consultant neonatologist).Homerton staff elect six members of the 27-strong council; four clinical staff and twonon-clinical staff, reflecting the overall ratioof clinical staff and other staff employed inthe hospital.The council of governors, headed by chairMichael Cassidy, link the Board of Directorsto the Trust membership and the community.They hold regular meetings withmanagement, which members can attend.Governors have a number of roles. Amongstothers, they provide feedback from and tomembers; provide views to the Board onplans for future developments; appoint theAt this time of the year they are busy tidying upand preparing for spring. This involves a varietyof odd jobs, preparing the flower beds andedging the lawns. What will they be planting?That all depends on what is available. Mauriceand David explain that daffodils, tulips andspring bedding are all flowering in the Trust atthe moment, with the mild weather leading toearly flowering.Maurice and David explain the most rewardingaspects of their roles are being outdoors andmaking things look nice. They describe theirwork as therapeutic and are proud of theMemorial Garden, which they built.But it is not only Homerton’s flora with whichthey have to contend; they regularly comeacross hedgehogs and squirrels, and they claimthe blackbirds take a keen interest in their work.What’s the worst aspect of their work? Theysay there isn’t one, though when Maurice isdistracted by the weeding, David will admit thatgritting and clearing snow is perhaps lesstherapeutic than watering the window boxes.Trust chair and non-executive directors; andreceive the Trust’s annual report andaccounts. Governors are not involved inmatters of day-to-day management, such assetting budgets and staff pay.David Griffith commented: “Staff-electedgovernors act as a bridge between staff andthe hospital board and it is a privilege torepresent staff opinions and concerns. I lookforward to getting into my role more in thecoming months.”Didn’t cast your vote in this election? Pleasenote that all staff are eligible in principle tovote in staff governor elections, but you doneed to be registered as a Trust member. Allstaff who joined the Trust since 2005 areautomatically registered as members. If youjoined the Trust before this date and haven’tjoined yet, contact the membership office onext 5221.What staff say…Last month the results of thenational annual staff surveywere released. At Homerton,the survey was sent to 800randomly selected staff, with34% completing it.Following analysis by theHealthcare Commission thefollowing themes emerged:Staff returning the survey ratedHomerton as significantly betterthan other trusts in the followingareas: care of patients is the Trust’stop priority communication at Homerton isgood staff are satisfied with the waymanagers value their work staff feel involved in decisionsregarding work the Trust takes effective actionwhere staff are bullied orharassed by other staff equalities and IT training isavailable counselling services are available staff would stay in the NHS ifthey left the Trust.We were rated significantly worsethan other trusts in the followingareas: appraisal and PDP in the last12 months health and safety training issues with meeting conflictingdemands at work accessibility of hot water, soapetc for patients and visitors provision of advice aboutexercise/assisting with the costof gym membership considering leaving current rolefor more pay.We are in the process of lookingat how we address the issuesraised by staff as part of thesurvey. Part of this is to gathermore information about theindicators, however, at an earlystage we are looking to takeaction on appraisal and PDP rates,mandatory training, accessibilityof hot water and soap forpatients and visitors as wellimproving the staff healthoffering with our partner Vie Life.HomertonLife May 2008 11

TIMEOUTYour reviewsGeorge Bernard Shaw’s ‘Major Barbara’(Directed by Nicholas Hytner)REVIEWED BY MONIQUE LABERINTOPLOT: Major Barbara works tirelessly forthe poor at a Salvation Army shelter untila large but morally dubious donation iswelcomed from her estranged fatherAndrew Undershaft, a millionaireweapons manufacturer. But when shevisits the factory itself, the well-fedworkers in their thriving model townmake a devastating case for arms tradeprofits and a whole new set of ideals.The National’s recent production of SaintJoan suggested that Shaw may be ourmost provocative contemporaryplaywright. Simon Russell Beale playsthe millionaire, Undershaft, in this radicalstate-of-the-nation play which confrontsthe big questions with brutal panache:“The greatest of evils and the worst ofcrimes is poverty… our first duty – a dutyto which every other consideration shouldbe sacrificed – is not to be poor.”Simon Russell Beale (Persuasion, A Dance tothe Music of Time) is truly larger than lifeand I can now comprehend as to why he isdubbed, now let me get this right, by TheIndependent as “the greatest stage actor ofhis generation”, and in a recent article fromthe Times Online, is garnering the mostbrownie points as “the perfect actor tohave ever played Hamlet”.Shaw wrote this in 1905, just before theFirst World War. Fast forward to 2008and the play is still relevant in ourpresent times, what with war stilllooming and poverty still lingering. Itsthought provoking that can spark a gooddebate long after you’ve left the theatre.My scoreMajor Barbara is on until 3 July atthe National Theatre.Do u suduko?1 95 8 1 4 77 1 84 2 64 6 2 1 76 9 38 3 77 2 6 5 82 3This is just for fun. If you want to check your answers,visit homertonlife/timeout.Latest DISCOUNTSVisit homertonlife/timeout for the latest staffoffers and discounts. Current offers include:• discount on monthly membership forenergis fitness club in Hackney• trips to Amsterdam• free preview tickets for the Hackney Empire.We are also trying to arrange cycling classesand blood donation sessions for staff – if youare interested contact Tonya Chalker on ext5154 or via email.WIN A CDof your choiceTo enter the competition, simply send youranswer to the question below in an emailto tonya.chalker@homerton.nhs.uk. Thecompetition is only available to Homertonstaff and it closes on 30 May 2008.Where can you find templates for thenew corporate style?Sponsored by12