Newsletter - Issue 3
DEAR COLLEAGUE
It has, without doubt, been an incredibly challenging few weeks, so a huge thank you from myself and the Senior Leadership Team for all that you are doing for our patients and their families.
We also want to share our thanks for your ongoing commitment to the improvement programme despite the pressures the organisation is experiencing. We recognise that this work is being done on top of your current role, and we are extremely
grateful for your support.
We are just over 12 months into the programme, and we are starting to see your collective hard work making a difference for both patients and colleagues. In this edition, we highlight the fantastic work undertaken at PRH as part of a ‘Perfect Week’ to improve our initial assessment performance as part of Workstream 1. You can also keep updated on the highlights from the four further workstreams below – which include how we are identifying new
ways to improve flow and the working environment for you.
We will continue to keep you fully updated through this newsletter on the progress we are making together. Please, as always, continue to share your valued feedback with me, the senior leadership team or your line manager.
Thank you.
CLINICAL QUALITY, OUTCOMES & CO-ORDINATION OF CARE
• Perfect Week for Initial Assessment undertaken across both sites – Initial Assessment peaked at 68.8% of patients through within 15 minutes
• An audit for paediatric initial assessment has demonstrated that checks required to be undertaken during that process are being completed
• A SOP has been approved to ensure that patients arrive by ambulance and are delayed in offloading are clinically reviewed
• Plans are underway for a Perfect Week for Paediatric Initial Assessment
STAFF CULTURE, RESILIENCE AND HEALTH &WELLBEING
• “Stay Conversations” are to be launched in ED to improve staff retention
• Leadership development training is being investigated by the workstream, this is to be promoted in both departments
• Neutral Evaluations recommendations have been incorporated into the workstream
GOVERNANCE AND RISK
• Risk register training has been delivered to colleagues who are required to maintain it.
• The risk register is now updated and being regularly maintained
• The backlog of outstanding clinical incident reports has shown a further reduction
• The workstream is updating the SOPs, guidelines and policies on the intranet
• New actions are being scoped following implementation of PSIRF
• Ten certificates have issued to colleagues have submitted improvement ideas which have been successfully implemented
• The workstream is reviewing the current intranet with a view to a refresh
• Communication related Neutral Evaluations recommendations have been incorporated into workstream
COMMUNICATIONS AND ENGAGING WITH COMMUNITIES OUR WORKSTREAMS
Sara Biffen, Executive SponsorOur initial assessment performance is now better than the national and regional averages – and this is thanks to the improvements that have you been making.
In November colleagues at PRH, led by Matron Debbie Archer and Sister Laura Wild, launched a focused ‘Perfect Week’ event to test a different way of working with great results. 61.2% of patients arriving in our Emergency Departments were assessed within 15 minutes, against a regional average of 53.3% and national average of 51.5%. In
COMMUNICATIONS
ENGAGING
COMMUNITIES
have been who improvement been implemented reviewing content refresh related have into this
January 2022, the average was 41.7%.
The progress we are making is down to your contribution and hard work and has meant we have been able to embed and sustain these results since the end of November last year. This is a fantastic achievement, and we are incredibly proud of everything that you are doing for our patients.
We updated members of the Emergency Care Transformation
ENVIRONMENT, PATHWAYS AND FLOW
• Workstream has been split into 5 focus groups: UTC, Criteria to Admit, SDEC Utilisation, Acute Medicine SaTH and General Medicine Hot Clinics
• The SDEC group are working with external consultancy KPMG to develop ways to improve processes and flow
• A UTC/SaTH workshop has taken place focussing on process review and criteria for referral
• The Acute Medicine SaTH group is working on improving flow through the area, project briefs have been developed with the support of the Improvement Hub
Programme Assurance Committee, which includes colleagues from NHSE and the Integrated Care System, on the progress we are making earlier this month, and they have passed on their thanks and appreciation.
Initial assessment within 15 minutes will ensure the sickest patients are identified so they can be seen as quickly as possible by the right clinician, in the right place. Through Workstream 1, focused work is being undertaken to improve our performance in this critical areaoverseen by a task and finish group.
In November colleagues launched a focused ‘Perfect Week’ event at PRH to test a different way of working with great results.
The test of change included:
• The creation of a second triage room with computer and printer access
• An additional triage nurse working in the triage room
• The support of an additional healthcare assistant
• Converting the old children’s waiting area was converted so ECGs and bloods could be taken by an emergency care technician
• Ambulance navigators triaging patients live on to the system on arrival
• Using visual controls to flag patients needing treatment within notes
The new processes remain in place and are being regularly monitored and reviewed. Thank you for your ideas and suggestions, and ongoing hard work, which have driven this piece of work.
Laura Graham, Divisional Director of Operations
Dr Saskia Jones-Perrott, Divisional Medical Director
Donna Hadley, Divisional Director of Nursing
Graph showing improvement to Initial Assessment at PRH and RSH
PRH Team supporting Initial Assessment Improvement Work
