Newsletter FEB 2025 by ncncommunications

MESSAGE FROM THE CEO

Many thanks to staff who took part in the Open Day at Numurkah on Friday March 7, especially our community health team who organised engaging health promotion activities. The Open Day included the unveiling of a Memorial Wall, BBQ lunch, campus tours, raffles and activities together with the promotion of our services.

COBRAM WORKS

The final stages of the Cobram Campus redevelopment started on March 3. The work will be in the main reception area and split into 2 stages to maintain access for all visitors, clients and staff. Additionally, external rectification works will be undertaken to some parts of the concrete at the front of the health service This is to ensure ramps meet specification and support suitable accessibility into the main reception and urgent care centre. Thank you to all staff for your patience as these important works take place and for supporting our community around the redevelopment

PIONEER LODGE REDEVELOPMENT

The Victorian Health Building Authority has finalised some land acquisition that was needed to move forward on the development of the ‘new Lodge’ This project will now move into the detailed design phase.

Members of the Lodge Advisory Committee met at the end of February to review draft plans for the development. The Advisory Committee includes clinical and non clinical staff , volunteers and Lodge Auxiliary representatives. The group continue to provide feedback to the architects and will head to Melbourne in March to attend a virtual walk through of the current floor plan. This exciting technology allows committee members to experience the design in 3D and make suggestions on work flow and the space in general.

HEALTH SERVICES PLAN AND VICTORIAN PUBLIC HEALTH BUDGET CUTS

In keeping with our commitment to provide transparent communication to staff around the Victorian Public Health Budget Restrictions and Health Services Plan we will hold another round of Staff Forums in the coming weeks. This is an opportunity to provide any updates and also review and discuss the results from the People Matter Survey. Broadly, from a budget perspective, I want to thank staff for the contribution you have made individually and as a team to cost savings across the organisation.

I understand the impact this has had on staff is real and challenging and during the staff forums I encourage you to provide any feedback or concerns you have, particularly around training and development. Please also keep these conversations going with your managers and we can take your concerns to The Department of Health (Vic) as we work through forward budget planning.

GUIDELINES FOR PUBLIC HEALTH EMPLOYEES

A reminder that as public health employees, we have a responsibility to remain apolitical, avoid conflicts of interest, and uphold the trust of our community This extends to our professional conduct, including interactions on social media Please ensure your online activity aligns with the guidelines in our Social Media Policy, including respecting confidentiality of staff, patients and residents, not posting or commenting on behalf of NCN Health, not supporting, commenting or sharing defamatory information or opinions. The Social Media Policy can be found on Prompt Thank you for your commitment to maintaining the integrity of our health service

Mark Ashcroft CEO, NCN HEALTH

HybridHero

What is HybridHero?

HybridHero is our desk booking system which enables staff who work across campuses to make sure they always have somewhere to sit

How do I book a desk?

Booking a desk has never been easier - simply jump onto the Intranet and select Desk Booking from the front page You will need to enter your username (staff email) and password

Once you have logged in and set up your profile you have access to the desks to book what you need.

Watch the video below to see how to book your desk and check in.

How often do I need to book a desk?

You only need to book a desk if you are working at a campus that you don’t normally work from and need to sit in a new location.

How do I know if a desk is available?

When booking in the desks that are available will be able to be selected If you can’t select a desk, it has already been booked by someone else.

What if my work plans change?

If you are no longer in need of a booking, please adjust your bookings as soon as you know. This allows someone else to use that desk

Miya Platform @ NCN

Hume Access to Care will deliver a new patient flow, access and bed management system known as Miya.

The project is called Access to Care as it will be broader than an Access and Flow tool - it will also offer a virtual care platform that allows patients in our region to receive care in their homes.

Implementation of the Miya Platform at NCN includes the following modules:

Miya Flow – Provides Electronic Patient Journey Boards (ePJB) to support patient flow management including and a digital internal referral system Used by the entire care team

Miya Access – Digital bed management system. Used to manage beds in real time within Benalla health as well as inter-hospital transfers across the region This ensures that patients are allocated to the most appropriate bed, assists with the provision of care and promotes efficiency with the health service Miya Access also provides visibility of beds and resources across the health service. Miya Access is used by Bed Managers and hospital administrators/leaders.

Miya benefits

Regional visibility and opportunity to manage and optimise flow and capacity across aged care, mental health, inpatient and virtual care 'beds’

An Electronic Patient Journey Board for all acute wards, emergency departments and urgent care centres and HITH

Digital internal referrals

An easily accessible and transparent regional approach to supporting step down care Streamlining of inter-hospital patient transfers by formalising patient pathways

Supporting compliance with NSQHS Standards and in particular Standard 5Comprehensive Care and Standard 6 - Communicating for Safety

Improved access to services for people in rural and remote communities through virtual care resulting in equitable access to healthcare

Improved hospital flow with the opportunity for earlier discharge through virtual models of care thus supporting reduction in length of stay

For further information on the Hume Access to care Project just click on the link below where you will find videos, FAQ and other resources:

https://hrhacloud.sharepoint.com/sites/hrha-intranet/SitePages/Hume-Access-to-Care.aspx

For further information please reach out to us via email

ICT REQUESTS

TO SUBMIT AN ICT REQUEST TO HRHA PLEASE USE THESE DETAILS:

Email: Service.Desk@hrha.org.au

Phone: (Internal) *4742

Phone: (External) (03) 5825 9990

Please alert your direct manager if you feel the request needs escalating. They will escalate to the Business Services Manager if required for escalation with HRHA. In this instance you will need to give your manager and the Business Services Manager the job number associated with your IT issue.

REWARD AND RECOGNITION

KATIE MACDONALD - ENROLLED NURSE / NUMURKAH

Katie continually provides exceptional patient centred care and nursing leadership. Katie is always accountable for her actions and shows deep caring for the patients entrusted to her care.

BARB CRAWFORD - WARD CLERK / NUMURKAH ACUTE

I believe that Barb goes out of her way to incorporate partnership into her role. She is approachable and happy to assist another departments with questions they have and assist with problem solving for solutions She recently gave assistance to a quality project and excelled in her forward thinking and incorporated this with her previous experience was able to provide suitable solutions for the project.

KAREN MCNEILL - ADMINISTRATION COORDINATOR / COBRAM

Karen consistently embodies the NCN Health values of respect, partnership, and accountability in her everyday interactions Her approach to respect is shown in the thoughtful way she listens to and value others. Karen creates a positive, collaborative environment by building strong partnerships and encouraging open communication Her sense of accountability inspires a supportive and shared sense of responsibility within the team. Karen’s commitment to these values makes a difference to both the team and the organisation culture.

RACHELLE DODD - REGISTERED NURSE / COBRAM ACUTE

In the past month I have witnessed Rachelle's ongoing great care; not only for her patients but her coworkers and students She continually goes beyond to show her care for everyone and the little 1%'s she does adds up well past 100 every shift.

VICKI WILSON - ENROLLED NURSE / IRVIN HOUSE

Her attentive resident care. Always puts the resident’s first and looks for ways to improve their day.

HELEN SIMPSON - ENROLLED NURSE / IRVIN HOUSE

Displays exceptional resident focused care to all Residents love having her take care of them and her attitude is pleasant to work with.

MERCY MATTHEW - SOCIAL WORKER / NUMURKAH CH&W

Practices the organisations values and standards each and every day She invests totally to support her clients to achieve their best outcomes. She is always available to support her colleagues and staff wherever possible when they ask.

MAIGAN KNEEBONE - HITH NURSE CO-ORDINATOR / COBRAM

Maigan is a very dedicated Nurse. She often will help out the DN team and go and do extra visits Today she suggested a punch Biopsy on a client that has been on the DNS client load for some months with a non healing wound. She spoke to the LMO, suggested a wound biopsy- which she is educated to perform. The result was a BCC skin cancer underlying the non healing wound. The client is now scheduled for a lesion removal and will then be on the path to healing this wound area She is very dedicated and well educated

STEPHEN PITTMAN - CLINICAL PRACTICIONER MPCS / NUMURKAH

Consumer feedback from clients of Moira Palliate Care Service, consistently speak of the respect and thoughtful consideration along with a high degree of expertise when speaking of the support he provides both the client and their family. They speak of Steve as a person they can rely on, they trust and have gratitude for the quality of care and support he provides.

INTRODUCING THE NEW LOOK P&C TEAM

The P&C team have undergone a recent change process, which has aligned our people, roles and responsibilities to our functions and delivery.

Nicole Cason continues to head up the team in her role as Director People and Culture. Nicole oversees the functions of the broader People and Culture team including P&C, Payroll, OH&S, Administration, Communications and Volunteers Nicole works closely with the Executive team to ensure that the outcomes of the teams align to the NCN Health Strategic and Operational objectives.

Donna Holmes has diversified from her previous role of Talent Acquisition & Employment Services Manager, with her new role as People and Culture Manager. This role directly oversees the functions of the P&C team, and is responsible for some of the functions previously attached to the Employee Relations Manager role, including Performance Management and Discipline, with a particular emphasis on coaching, supporting and mentoring managers in these areas.

Bridgette Robertson’s role has been revamped and is now the People and Culture Advisor. This role supports the daily work within the P&C team, and is the first point of contact for managers and staff in regard to Parental Leave, Transition to Retirement, Flexible Work Arrangements and Support for Placement applications Bridgette is also able to provide advice and interpretation of enterprise agreements, and support employees to understand their entitlements Bridgette is also the point of contact for Agency recruitment.

Febin George joined our team in November 2024, as the People and Culture Officer Febin is the first point of contact for advertising, contracts of employment/Variations/Exits and oversees the mandatory compliance checks for current staff, including Police, WWC, NDIS Worker Screening and Visa and Aged Care Banning Register. Febin also supports the new staff Orientation program, and the monitoring workplace culture via reporting and surveys, and will soon be taking on the IT access function, previously supported by Bridgette.

Sarah Fothergill also joined our team in November 2024, as the People and Culture Administration Assistant Sarah is the first point of contact for the P&C team, and is responsible for supporting the onboarding function for new staff to NCN Health. Sarah is also the first point of contact in regard to uniforms, swipe cards for Numurkah and Cobram and ID cards Sarah triages the People and Culture email to ensure that your emails are sent to the most appropriate person in the team, assists Febin to support the new staff Orientation program, and assists Mitch with Kineo updates.

Kylie Jackson joined our team in December 2024, as People and Culture Administration Officer. Kylie’s role support the Director of People and Culture, and currently supports the Workcover Administration and Numurkah Accommodation.

The P&C team work across all sites, and are available by phone or email. General enquiries are welcome to NCNPeopleculture@ncnhealth.org.au

From Left, Sarah, Bridgette, Donna, Kylie and Febin

Occupational Health and Safety Team

With the realignment of responsibilities in the People & Culture team, Julie Vella’s role as OH&S Manager has also diversified, with her now working closely with Nicole Cason on Workers Compensation and Return to Work (both work related and non-work related) All emails relating to Workers Compensation and Return to Work are now to be directed to NCNWorkCoverRTW@ncnhealth.org.au, all other standard OHS enquires are still directed to NCNOHS@ncnhalthorgau

In addition, Mitch Heaton’s role of Workplace Trainer & Careers Advisor has joined the OH&S team, which will strengthen the focus on Mandatory Training, both online and in person. All Kineo or training enquiries are to be sent to NCNPeopleculture@ncnhealth.org.au

Administration team

The Administration Coordinator now report direct to Nicole Cason This role retains daily oversight of the team, coordinating rosters, training and Cobram Accommodation.

Payroll team

With the realignment of responsibilities in the People & Culture team, Karen Ford’s role of Payroll Manager has also taken on a component of the Workers Compensation portfolio, assisting Nicole and Julie with remittances and payments associate with this Due to the recent departure of Sandra Simpson from the team, they are currently a team of 3, always working to ensure that our pays and entitlements are processed! Enquiries for payroll are to be directed to NCNPayroll@ncnhealth.org.au

There has been no impact to the Communications team or to the Volunteer Coordinator role during this change. Emails for these areas are to be sent to NCNCommunications@ncnhealthorgau and NCNVolunteer@ncnhealthorgau

PEOPLE AND CULTURE

Best of luck for the future to staff leaving us, and a warm welcome to all our new staff across NCN Health The following report reflects staff movement for February

Litty Thomas AfterHoursManagerNathalia

Siji Varghese

Taylah Farrow Charnjeet Kaur Pelpetua Omwoyo

Jessica Power Christine Tillema

Nikhil Tojo

Michelle Towe Lubna Yassin Marley Gardner Ashli Thomas

Alice Barker

Sana Shaikh, Margaret Templeton, Kimberly Fitzgerald, Debbie Langshaw, Nadene Lucas

Respiratory Fit Test

Is your N95 Mask the correct one?

Did you know that you need a new fit test done at least every few years? You may need one sooner if you have had any changes.

WHEN DO I NEED A NEW TEST?

You can request a Respiratory Fit Test at any time - particularly is you have:

Significant weight loss or gain

Facial trauma/surgery

Scarring or cosmetic surgery/cosmetic procedures such as fillers

Extensive dental work including extractions and new dentures

Any concerns about the respirator you were previously fitted

HOW DO I BOOK A TEST

Appointments can be scheduled via the Intranet under the People and Culture tab

Dietetics Students

We are a group of four dietetics students from Monash University. We have recently completed our clinical placement and are now very excited to get involved in the community over the next 8 weeks! Our focus for this placement is the Growing healthy Habits project, focusing on children and families in the community, as well as participating in Active April.

Dental v Nurses Tennis Match

Recently our Cobram Dental Clinic staff took on the Cobram Nurses at the Cobram Tennis Club Corporate Night.

A fun, intense game was had - but we can’t reveal the winnersyou’ll have to ask the players.

Thanks to Cobram Tennis Club for putting on a great event

Parkinsons Group

The NCN Health Parkinson’s Peer Support Group recently gathered to hear from Dr Kelly Bertram, to learn more about clinical trials available for movement disorders, how to access them and the potential benefits for patients. It was an incredibly interesting afternoon, thanks to all those who supported the event. The Parkinson’s Peer Support Group meet monthly in Cobram and Nathalia. There are a number of spaces available currently in Nathalia and new members are always welcome from across the region.

This is a non clinical get together to connect community members with similar lived experience, share afternoon tea and join in with an activity or education session.

Karinya Events

Throughout February Karinya has been a hive of activity.

The residents have been involved in making Lavender Bags and repotting plants with the FOK Volunteers - Friends of Karinya sold these along with the cake stall during the Open Day!

Residents also spent some time repotting Peace Lillys

Numurkah Open Day

NCN Health Numurkah hosted an Open Day on Friday March 7 as part of the Numurkah Historical Society’s 150th anniversary celebrations of Numurkah and Wunghnu happening throughout 2025. The event was an opportunity to unveil a memorial wall, updated signage to mark Coombs Memorial Drive and to acknowledge 10 years since the re-opening of the acute, urgent care and community health services following the floods of 2012.

Friends of Karinya Ladies Auxiliary and The Numurkah Pioneers Memorial Lodge Auxiliary held a cake stall and raffle respectively, and community health staff were on hand for health promotion activities.

NCN Health CEO Dr Mark Ashcroft welcomed the crowd and reflected on the community connection to the hospital and the importance of acknowledging the foundations of local health

“We are proud to host this event today as part of Numurkah and Wunghnu 150th anniversary celebrations happening throughout 2025 and would like to extend our thanks to the Numurkah Historical Society for inviting us to participate. The Health Service at Numurkah has a rich history, a strong connection to the community and has continued to evolve throughout the years, facing many changes and challenges. “

He said during the times of “growth and expansion” a number of dedicated bronzed plaques and donor boards were placed into storage

“The 150 Celebrations offered an excellent opportunity to undertake a small but significant project to have these on display as a Memorial Wall, central to our services for all to see.

Together with the Memorial Wall, we have also recreated signage to mark Coombs Memorial Drive, which is located on the Numurkah Katamatite Road in front of the health service Coombs Memorial Drive was named for Dr Francis Syndal Coombs This signage will be put in place in the coming weeks.”

Attendees enjoyed a trip down memory lane with photos and artifacts from the 1950s onwards on display and joined together for a BBQ lunch followed by cake.

Numurkah Open Day

Dental Discount for NCN Health staff located at Nathalia and Numurkah

10%

Staff must be in uniform or show their Staff ID Photo Card at the time of the appointment to receive the discount. Can only be used at the Numurkah practice. No discounts will be given post appointment

FEATURED VACANCIES MORE ROLES

Nurse Unit Manager - Theatre

EN and RN Nurses

Graduate Dentist

For these and more, visit the NCN Health website.

ncnhealthorgau/work-or-volunteer-at-ncn-health/current-vacancies/

Every Tuesday and Thursday

Join Chelsey and Angela for free fitness classes at the NCN

Health Numurkah CH&W Gym

Our Programs

Cardio & Strength Circuit

Les Mills Body Balance

HIIT Tabata

Les Mills Body Combat

Metafit Boxing

MetaPWR

HIITSTEP

Numurkah Community

Health and Wellbeing Gym

Chelsey.Thorne@ncnhealth.org.au

Angela.Thorne@ncnhealth.org.au Angela.Thorne@ncnhealth.org.au

Meryula Clinic @ Numurkah

SERVICES

The Meryula Clinic is a free and confidential service run by GV Health and supported by NCN Health. The clinic is for all individuals within the region and is run by experienced nurses who specialise in sexual and reproductive health