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FEBRUARY 2017 | University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust
Clinicians develop life-saving app A new app to help members of the public save lives in the event of a terrorist attack has been launched by two leading clinicians based at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham. citizenAID – available now to download free – uses knowledge gained by military and civilian medics who have created systems in use nationally and internationally to treat multiple casualties in both civilian and military environments. The app empowers the public to help themselves, their family and others around them to stay safe and offers improvised life-saving treatment before emergency services arrive at the scene of a major incident. Sir Keith Porter, Professor of Clinical Traumatology at University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust and Brigadier Tim Hodgetts CBE, Medical Director of the Defence Medical Services, are co-authors of citizenAID, along with Andrew Thurgood, Consultant Nurse in Pre-Hospital Care & Senior Advanced Clinical Practitioner (Emergency Medicine) and Colonel Peter Mahoney CBE TD QHS, Immediate past Defence Professor of Anaesthesia and Critical Care. Their combined experience demonstrates that immediate action by bystanders can save lives following serious injury from blast or gunshot. This experience is used within the app and corresponding paper Pocket Guide. Wide cross-government consultation has taken place to ensure that citizenAID complements existing emergency service procedures and is supported by key stakeholders. citizenAID specifically reinforces the national ‘Run, Hide, Tell’ message to create ‘Run, Hide, Tell, Treat’. citizenAID is also
The new app will help the public in the event of a terrorist attack
supported by the National Counter Terrorism Security Office and the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh. Brig Hodgetts said: “We believe citizenAID can realistically prevent avoidable deaths in mass casualty events through decisive, pre-determined actions and life-saving interventions, using military knowledge from recent campaigns to improve wider civilian healthcare outcomes.” Prof Porter added: “Events in Europe in the past year have shown there is a realistic threat to public safety in the UK from shooting, stabbing
and bombing incidents. The app demonstrates what the public can do when caught up in deliberate incidents causing multiple casualties.” The choice of an app or Pocket Guide for the public to use during an incident is dependent on user preference. On-line familiarisation materials are also free to access at www.citizenaid.org and through related social media: @thecitizenaid thecitizenaid
Guide dog George’s arrival promises fresh lease of life Michael Tomlinson, who has been visually impaired for most of his life and registered blind for 30 years, now has specially-trained guide dog George by his side. Michael, who has worked at the Trust for 14 years, shares how George has made such a difference to his life at home and at work. “My sight is still deteriorating but I still have some sight left. My eye condition affects the central vision which means I don’t see detail very well. For example, I see most things as outlines (shadows): the degree of detail depends on the lighting at the time. “I started work at the Trust through the Activate Course which is now the Learning Hub. I had been in engineering when my eyesight started to deteriorate and was told basically that I would have to retrain in another field other than engineering. I went to various colleges including the RNIB Loughborough to retrain in admin/clerical. “Once I had what I thought were enough qualifications I started applying for jobs in administration and clerical. This is the time when I found out to my horror how hard it was for a disabled person to get credible work. “After more knockbacks than any one person should have to suffer my disabled employment officer forced me into the Activate Course telling me that this one was different: how
right she was. At the end of the course I did a six month work experience which ran into 18 months, which then led to me getting a full time job in the Liver Department where I still am nearly 14 years later, made possible by the Trust purchasing special magnifying software that I use on my PC. “The decision to apply for a guide dog did not come easy. I thought they were for blind people and I did not consider myself blind. I have always managed to hide the fact that I could not see and have managed to find coping strategies to hide my disability. “After nearly being run over three times in a week, the last being as close as you would ever want to get, I decided to look into the process
of applying for a guide dog. The application was easy, just a phone call. The ramifications of owning a guide dog while still working were more complicated and were hampering my final decision. “It was only made easy by a chance meeting with the union representative Sharon Otto who put me in touch with Antony Cobley, the Trust’s Head of Inclusion, who between them made the final decision so much easier. “For example, I would need to take quite a bit of time off for training; where would the dog go to use the toilet? Was my office space big enough to keep a dog there all day? The best thing at this time that anybody could say to me was there are no problems, let us know what we need to do and we will do it. “And then there was George who has completely turned my life around. I think the strangest thing is the amount of people who did not know that I had a disability. Obviously the coping strategies that I have been using were working. “Finally, I would like to thank team leader Louise Cooper, divisional manager Sally Austin and Antony Cobley who have made the decision so easy for me. If I could pass a message onto anybody in the Trust that do not advertise they have a disability, it would be: ‘Do not suffer in silence; the Trust actually care.”
Bank shift update Do you book bank shifts in any department with QEHB+ (Locate)? Then you need to know that the way you book shifts with us is changing. In the coming weeks, QEHB+ will start using a new system that will give you the ability to book shifts simply and quickly using your internet browser – this could be on your personal computer, tablet or smartphone. The new system, called Employee Online, will give you the freedom to register your availability for shifts in advance, book bank shifts from anywhere, or view and amend any shifts you already have booked taking place from April onwards. Another part of this system is called PrimeTime, which will allow you to clock-in and out from any Trust PC. To ensure the switchover to Employee Online is as smooth as possible, and to allow you to continue booking bank shifts, you will need to follow a quick two-step process. Vicky Cooke, Head of Temporary Staffing at QEHB+, said: “The Employee Online system will be the only way that you will be able to book shifts with us in the future, so it is important that you register for PrimeTime, and familiarise yourself with Employee Online by watching the short video. “Employee Online is incredibly simple to use and has the ability to book a bank shift in as little as four clicks. The new system will help to save lots of time as it is a convenient system that is straightforward to use.” If you have any questions about the new system or would like more guidance, email: QEHBPlusRegistration@uhb.nhs.uk You will not be able to book any further shifts with QEHB+ if you do not follow these two short steps (below).
QEHB Additional staffing on demand
Step 1 Register with PrimeTime by visiting the Trust’s intranet page: uhbhome/allocate-system and selecting ‘Access PrimeTime’. To register, you will need your assignment/ employee number. This is the long number you use to clock-in using the hand reader for bank shifts; you can also find this on your QEHB+ (Locate) payslip if you are unsure. You will also need your Trust PC login details and, when selecting your manager, choose ‘Bank Staff’. This sets your manager as QEHB+. Step 2 Watch the short training video by visiting the Trust’s intranet page uhbhome/allocatesystem and selecting training resources underneath the Employee Online option. There are also short guides on how to use Employee Online and PrimeTime available. All training materials have been designed to ensure you can get the most out of the new system, which will be the only way you will be able to book bank shifts after April.
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