Making Waves June 2011 - James Paget University Hospitals

Page 8 Making Waves Newsletter June 2011
Thoughts on the values
I was asked to write my views on our hospital values, which is good
because I am not the world’s most politically correct person and its
important to question a few things we often take for granted.
Do we need hospital values and are they worthwhile?
We should not need hospital values but in my mind we do. We are all incredibly busy
and in the rush of our hospital and home lives we need to remind ourselves of why
we do the job and what we are trying to achieve and for whom. The hospital values
do this very well.
Businesses spend a large amount of money on customer care and our values really help us to
remember the importance of “customer care”, remembering that our colleagues with whom we
deal are also “customers”. As healthcare professionals we should all treat our patients exactly as
we would like to be treated. The values are a gentle reminder as to how and when to do this.
Do hospitals need customer care standards?
Yes they absolutely do. From the age of 10, I regularly worked in my father’s shop and was
brought up with “customer care” although in those days I did not know what that was. I did
know that it was vital we were helpful and courteous to our customers, without them we would
have no business. The customers loved the old fashioned care and treatment and they were
certainly put first. It was important that they were acknowledged and not kept waiting if at all
possible. We aimed to get it right and worked hard to make things move smoothly. If we made
mistakes, we were sure we would not make them again. Everybody counted in the team and we
would all pull together throughout the day and at closing time to ensure we all got home happy
and on time. We acted openly and honestly – there was no other way, there was absolutely no
point in doing anything differently.
So now I understand that actually I have tried to work to these standards my whole life – it just
never had a name before. So how do I see the values in my present post?
Putting patients first
For the last four years I have been Divisional Director of the Women and Child Health Division but
I am afraid that if I am looking after women on delivery floor or needing to finish a clinic them
I may be late for managerial meetings – you just can’t leave patients who need their problems
attended to. I will always try to fit extra patients into clinic if they require to be seen, as if I were
in their shoes. I would be really delighted if doctors did that for me. I try to treat everyone as
though they were a member of my family.
Aiming to get it right
It is very important that we can be as good as we can get at our job and teaching is one of
the areas of my job that I feel very strongly is so important and can make a difference for our
patients. By teaching correct methods to our teams and juniors and by setting examples of
how to work well, particularly working to methods based on research evidence (evidence based
medicine) we can also adhere to the first set of values of putting patients first. Attention to
detail is so important in getting things right, and whilst I can be irritating in this aspect requiring
attention to detail from others as well as myself, I do feel that where details are not noticed,
mistakes can be made.
Everybody counts
Without my NHS team I am no one. I value the members of the team and thoroughly enjoy the
teamwork, for example on the delivery suite. When busy we cannot manage without everyone
pulling together to enable safe deliveries for the women with us at that particular time. When
problems arise you really see the importance of the team in sorting things out. Everyone from the
consultants to the volunteers in the hospital are a vital cog in the wheel which is why the James
Paget University Hospital is such a great place to work.
Openly and honestly
I was bought up very strongly to never lie, and I do hope that my patients feel I am open with
them. Whilst I am sure that my honesty may well have landed me in trouble occasionally, I
personally feel that if we are all open and honest then we can have a good relationship with our
patients and be able to help them as much as possible. The aim is to strive to be open and
honest - with tact!
Dr Jane Preston
Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist, Honorary Senior Lecturer, UEA Medical School,
Divisional Director Women and Child Health Division
www.jpaget.nhs.uk