Staff Newsletter - July 2023 by ncncommunications

July 2023

MESSAGE FROM THE CEO

STAFF RAPID ANTIGEN TESTING

Due to low levels of COVID-19 transmission in the community, all NCN Health campuses will move to no daily Rapid Antigen Testing for staff. Staff must still test if they have any respiratory infection symptoms and must also report to their manager if they have been in contact with a COVID positive case. Visitors to the acute and residential aged care areas will still be asked to RAT prior to entry. A reminder to all staff to stay home if you are unwell, even if you have a negative RAT. For more information see page 6 of the newsletter.

AGED CARE EMPLOYEE DAY

On Monday August 7 we say ‘Thanks for Caring’ to all our Aged Care staff for Aged Care Employee Day. We acknowledge the many roles across NCN Health that support our residential aged care service, from nurses and diversional therapists to food and environmental services, maintenance and administration. Your hard work and dedication makes a difference in the lives of our residents every day. Thank you.

NCN HEALTH SOCIAL MEDIA

The NCN Health Communications Team have recently amalgamated the Nathalia, Cobram and Numurkah Facebook pages into one streamlined social media account.

You can follow all the events and happenings around each campus There is also an NCN Health Instagram page (ncnhealth) Linkedin page and You Tube account There is lots of videos and up to date information If you have any feedback or need help accessing the pages contact ncncommunications@ncnhealtho rgau

KARINYA GP

We are pleased to announce that Wyndham House Clinic has taken over the medical care of the Residents in Karinya Aged Care as of July 24 The lead GP managing Karinya Residents will be Dr Ahmed Rajeed Wyndham House Clinic also has a dedicated Aged Care Nurse, Jacinta Kennedy, supporting the GP role who will provide additional support to the residents of Karinya.

VHIMS UPDATE

As of August 3, our VHIMS system will be upgraded so that incidents are automatically transmitted to the Department of Health. There will be no significant changes for general users, what you will notice is that the initial incident entry screen will look quite different. Staff will be required to complete all the fields on this log in screen first.

If you have any questions or concerns about the updated system, or need further assistance please contact Director of Quality michellebutler@ncnhealthorgau

TIK TOK BAN

The Federal and Victorian Governments have banned access to the TikTok social media app following recent security advice. This app is now prohibited on all government devices and networks. In line with this ban NCN Health has agreed to prohibit the use of TikTok on their workstations, mobile devices and on the health service IT network.

Staff cannot use TikTok on their personal devices if connected to the Health Service’s Wi-Fi. Please ensure you do not use the TikTok app on your personal device whilst at work and especially if your device is connected to the Wi-Fi. Staff are also encouraged to consider the security risk of using the TikTok app on their personal devices.

The ban will be effective from 1st August 2023.

If you have any queries please contact the IT helpdesk on NCNICT@ncnhealth.org.au

Have a great month,

Jacque Phillips CEO, NCN Health.

NCN HEALTH STAFF NEWS

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 July

Brant Doyle

Peter Guy

Hayley Alison Benson

Litha Elizabeth Ulahannan

Marilyn Ann Parsons

Shikha Mahajan

Paula Maree Williams

Mitchel Heaton - Workplace Trainer and Careers Advisor

Mitch Heaton has commenced work with us as the new Workplace Trainer and Careers Advisor (WT&CA), within the People and Culture Team His working days are Tues to Fri inc The role will continue to manage Kineo, in particular mandatory training, across NCN Health but the other focus for Mitch will be assisting non-clinical staff with training and development (clinical staff will continue to receive support via the Clinical Education Team), so he will be out and about, across all 3 sites very soon, so if you see him, please do take the opportunity to introduce yourself

PAYROLL

National Payroll Day - July 21st

Gail Grinter

Lynda Walker

Gareth Adams

Kiarna Mckinnon

Montana Hill

Roslyn Bruce

National Payroll Day was July 21st and we couldn't let it pass without celebrating our fabulous payroll team Without them none of us would get paid!

PEOPLE AND CULTURE

Did you know that NCN Health has a talent community? Talented people are the core of our business and we are always keen to identify people that are highly skilled and potential aspiring employees We invite you to be part of our talent community and create a web resume so you can be the first in line to be considered when a new opportunity comes up at NCN Health

Already a Member?

If you have applied for a role within NCN Health through LiveHire, you are automatically a member of the NCN Talent Pool

What does it mean?

When a role is advertised in LiveHire, the hiring manager has access to a list of names within the NCN Talent Pool that have a skillset that aligns with the advertised role The hiring manager can use this list to invite the suggested candidates to apply for the role If you have been invited to apply, you will receive an SMS notification!

How do I join if not already a member?

Go to https://ncnhealth.org.au/work-or-volunteer-at-ncn-health/current-vacancies/

At the end of the current vacancy list you will see the below prompt

Hit Join our Talent Community and the sign up page will open

The Talent Acquisition team are always excited to see who is new into our Talent Community and encourage all staff to join Please pass this information to friends and family who may also like to be notified of any vacancies that align to their skillset It could be the start of an exciting new employment opportunity

REWARD AND RECOGNITION

Peter - Maintenance, Numurkah

Peter has been nominated for the time and effort he puts in to ensure that the gardens are maintained beautifully and pruned to precision.

Tanya Bell - Community Midwife

Tanya has gone above and beyond in her approach to support the Community Midwife program across both the Numurkah and Cobram sites, particularly in recent months to ensure that our clients continue to receive timely access to antenatal and postnatal care. Her flexibility and commitment to providing a seamless service for our communities is very much appreciated. Thank you Tanya.

Pam Smith - Administration Assistant, Nathalia

Pam is very forward thinking and always looking at ways to improve how jobs are done, improving efficiency and accuracy. She has created several documents that have made improvements to our patient review and recall system.

Jess Bowden - Kitchen Numurkah

Jess Provided Karinya residents beautiful pasta salad and potato salad that she use different recipe, she also baked scones. The scones were so delicious, staff and residents both enjoyed. A great, heartfelt job.

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Thank you to everyone who entered our naming competition - we received 67 name suggestions!

The winning name is Staff Wellbeing (SWELL) Congratulations to Sophie Scottt - Director of Clinical Services Numurkah

Sophie won a great hamper for her efforts

In the coming weeks we will be launching SWELL and looking for staff feedback on how you think we should launch the newly named committee and program

STAFF STORIES - Stephanie Veal

In June Cobram Dental Clinic Manager Steph Veal was fortunate to be a recipient of the Colin Riley Scholarship 10-day study tour with Dental Health Services Victoria Team to the Kingdom of Tonga Steph has written about her trip to share some insights into her experiences

This scholarship facilitated a tour in the South Pacific with the key objectives to explore opportunities for DHSV to partner with the Tonga Ministry of Health Dental Clinic based at Vaiola Hospital in Nuku’alofa. Liz (fellow recipient) and I also undertook a range of activities including networking, visiting schools, attending dinners, setting up a dental van and engaging with dental clinic staff.

DHSV had donated a fully equipped dental van as well as $10,000 worth of instruments and consumables to set up the van This will be used to take dental care to wherever it is needed, whether that be remote villages, schools or outlying health clinics that do not have dental services

The dental van was commissioned in an opening ceremony by the Minister of Health for Tonga and Vaiola Hospital dental staff

Part of my role was to prepare and train staff to use this dental truck, as well as stocking, organising and doing odd repairs to the truck that were required after its long international journey.

I also had the opportunity to join in with the departments Mali Mali Health Promotion program, visiting schools to provide a oral health program to the children The children were very excited to have Australian visitors and receive a special Victorian Smile Squad sticker for their excellent brushing efforts

During our stay we invited to be part of many feasts and able to network and discuss DHSV future support to Tonga with dignitaries including the Minister of Health and the Prime Minister, and even meet the Prince and Princesses of the Royal Family

During our very busy stay we did manage to find some time for recreation activities, touring the Island to sightsee, swim in underground caves and day trip to the beautiful outlying Island of Pangaimotu

This was an incredibly rewarding experience and I’m very grateful for the opportunity from DHSV and also the support from NCN to allow me to attend

In view of the current community levels of COVID, NCN Health will now move to NO RAT Testing for staff, unless you have symptoms

RAT Testing of visitors to the wards and aged care facilities will remain in place, as this group is difficult to monitor and are typically spending a significant amount of time ‘one on one’ with residents/patients

Staff are still required to do a RAT test if you have symptoms, and must report to your Manager/AHHM if you have been exposed to COVID If exposed, an appropriate High Risk Individual plan will be put in place

Staff are not to come to work if they have any newly developed respiratory symptoms even if they have a negative RAT test We are seeing very high levels of Influenza A and other viral respiratory illnesses (RSV) in the community and need to continue to protect our patients, residents and other staff

Please refer to the link from PROMT on Respiratory Illness in the work place Exclusion Periods for Healthcare Workers with Infectious Conditions NCN

Some of the key points within the procedure are;

Viral respiratory tract infection (other; not including influenza and SARS-CoV-2, e.g. common colds) :

Must not come to work while symptomatic; can return to work when feeling well with no uncontrollable symptoms i.e. uncontrollable cough or runny nose. If confirmed other respiratory virus; e.g. rhinovirus, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) refer to relevant national, state or territory guidelines for further detail for specific infectious agents or consult with NCN Health Infection Control Team or Director of Medical Services.

Influenza or influenza-like illness Case definition for:

Influenza-like illness Rapid onset of illness, with measured fever ≥38°C and cough. Other criteria may include chills or rigors, myalgia, fatigue, headache, sore throat and coryza B. Confirmed case of influenza Case of influenza-like illness with laboratory test positive for influenza Healthcare workers should remain off work until at least 24 hours since the resolution of fever, provided: they have received 72 hours of anti-influenza medication; or five days have elapsed since onset of respiratory symptoms. If healthcare workers are involved in the care of patients who are more susceptible to infection (such as hematopoietic stem cell transplant patients) then exclusion from those patients/areas should be for 7 days from the onset of symptoms or until symptoms have completely resolved, whichever is longer. If symptoms do not meet the above case definition criteria please refer to the section below on Viral respiratory tract infection

If you have any questions or concerns please contact Carolyn Hargreaves

UPDATE

COVID-19

Avoid TheFlu!

Fluseasonisstillwithus.Almosthalf ofthecasesoccurinchildrenand adolescentsundertheageof15.

Fluratesmayincreasewiththereturn toschoolpostWinterholidays.

Inmostcasesillnesswillbemoderate withfeverandcough,howeversome childrencandevelopsevereillness. Vaccinationiskeytoprotecting childrenfromseverefluandis recommendedyearly.

2023Fluvaxisavailableatyour GPclinicandlocalPharmacies.

OHS Officer

Lisa Aquilina has been appointed to the role of OHS Officer and will commence in this role from 31 July 2023 Lisa is also on our team as a Respiratory Fit Tester and OVA Trainer Please join us in congratulating her and welcome her to our team

WorkSafe Inspection

WorkSafe have conducted inspections of each campus with no notices issued Some recommendations for follow up are being addressed with relevant departments but overall the inspector was very pleased with his findings and commended staff for compliance with safety regulations Well Done everyone

Safety Month

Safe Work Australia has released the theme and campaign kit for National Safe Work Month to be held in October 2023. The overarching theme for 2023 is For everyone's safety, work safely - encouraging everyone to make health and safety in the workplace a priority. Our OHS Committee are working on activities and celebrations so watch this space for further details

Lone Worker Safety

We currently have a number of 3G MePAC devices across NCN Health and plan to transition alarms to the 4G network in order to maintain the reliability of the service supporting our Lone Workers. HSR’s in DWG’s across NCN Health are working with our team to transition to the upgraded devices and can assist with any queries

Emergency Role Training

If you are assigned practical emergency role [Chief Warden, Warden and Area Warden] training via your Kineo profile please discuss attendance at this training with your manager or contact OHS directly on NCNOHS@ncnhealthorgau

Respiratory Fit Test

Please schedule an appointment at your earliest convenience for this mandatory test, the link to make an appointment is on the intranet page Please note –

Do not eat [including gum], drink or smoke 30 minutes prior to your appointment Present clean shaven

OVA Training

Links to register your attendance can be found on the intranet page If you are registered to attend and need to alter a booking please contact our team at your earliest convenience at NCNOHS@ncnhealthorgau

If you have recently completed this training or you are booked into training, no action is required The information will be updated to reflect your attendance in the monthly report to Managers and your Kineo profile will be updated once training is completed

Dates for the remainder of the year:

Thursday August 10 09:30 - 11:30

Thursday August 10 14:30 - 16:30

Monday August 21 10:30 - 12:30

Thursday September 14 10:30 - 12:30

Thursday September 14 14:30 - 16:30

Thursday September 21 09:00 - 11:00

Monday September 25 10:30 - 12:30

Thursday October 12 14:30 - 16:30

Monday October 23 13:30 - 15:30

Thursday November 9 14:30 - 16:30

Wednesday November 22 13:30 - 15:30

Thursday December 14 09:30 - 11:30

Thursday December 14 14:30 - 16:30