You can’t have failed to have seen the NHS coverage in the local and national media. The talk of ‘crisis’ and the predicted surge in demand, along with increased flu reports has affected the NHS up and down the country. Every Trust is doing their best to respond and to put patients first. You have all risen to the challenge, going the extra mile and then some, to make sure we continue to deliver safe, effective, personal care to each of our patients during a very difficult and demanding time.
Naturally, the media focuses on A&E and the front-line staff working there, as well as the Urgent Care Centres. There is no doubt that these teams do an amazing job, under extreme pressures, and I thank them for that. But every area of the Trust has been affected by the surge and each ward, department and service have all played their part superbly. Our front line nursing, medical, clinical and allied health professional staff have done a terrific job and so too have the house keepers, the porters, our admin teams, our catering teams and many more. Each day you are living the ‘call to action’ and you have responded brilliantly; As always, remember, Every Minute Matters, Every Person Plays a Part! We can all have an impact on the important 4 hour standard, and we must always strive to achieve it, even though 95% seems elusive at the moment.
The Christmas bubble (or rather, bauble!) has well and truly burst. The festive period is over and we’re all back to work at our busiest time, so it’s not surprising that some of us are touched by the January Blues. We can lose sight of all the positivity when January is presented as being so grim. But it doesn’t have to be that way. New Year is traditionally a time for fresh starts and is a good time to reflect and think about everything that has been achieved both personally and as a Trust. To help to combat the down in the dumps feeling, the Communications Team have launched a #ReasonsToBeCheerful campaign to remind us all of the great things that are going on around the Trust. It’s supposedly ‘Blue Monday’ on 15 January but let’s turn that on its head and all think about what makes us happy; what makes us proud; what do we love about our job and the Trust??
And what a great way to start than with the Long Service Awards that gave me enormous pleasure to attend this week. The event shone the spotlight on staff who have dedicated 25 years’ service to the Trust and its patients. In total, 280 staff reached the 25-year milestone in the past couple of years. Between them they have given a staggering 7,000 years’ service to the NHS! Many of the staff who received a the award have devoted the majority of their working lives to their local hospitals, so the ceremony was a wonderful opportunity to celebrate this great achievement together and to be able to personally thank them for their continuous service. My particular #ReasonsToBeCheerful taken from the awards is the loyalty, commitments and high level of skill brought by these long serving individuals. It is a key factor to our success and how we meet the challenges that face us. Congratulations to all!
Here are another four #ReasonsToBeCheerful. Wards C5, C8 and B20 at Royal Blackburn Teaching Hospital, and Ward 15 at Burnley General Teaching Hospital, have each achieved the Trust’s Safe Personal and Effective Care (SPEC) Silver Award from Director of Nursing, Christine Pearson. The care given on these four wards by nurses, doctors, healthcare assistants, AHPs and support staff has been recognised as ‘Outstanding’. To earn a SPEC Silver Award, each ward needed to achieve a ‘Good’ rating during three, separate unannounced inspections. Earning a SPEC Silver Award means not only setting high standards but maintaining those standards every day.
So what are your #ReasonsToBeCheerful? Let our Communications Team know via communications@elht.nhs.uk and they will share them on social media and throughout the Trust.
I will end this week’s blog with an invitation to a focus group on the development of a new website for ELHT. The website is our ‘shop window’. Attending the focus group will provide you with a unique opportunity to explore the initial designs of the new look website and for you to offer your valuable options on what works well, and how we can further improve it. We’d like to hear from you as a member of staff, patient, relative or as someone interested in making our website better! There are three sessions across two days. The first session is on Monday 15 January, 2-4pm on the Blackburn site. The second session is on Wednesday 17 January, 2-4pm on the Burnley site and the final session is on Wednesday 17 January, 6-8pm back on the Blackburn site. If you would like to attend please email communications@elht.nhs.uk with your preferred date and time.
Until next time…..
Best wishes, Kevin