Keeping In Touch 17 December 2021
Welcome to the last edition of Keeping in Touch for 2021. It’s hard to believe we are at the end of another year, and what a year it has been! At the end of 2020 we didn’t think a year like that could be replicated, but it was. We had a whole range of different challenges thrown at us and we are super proud of the way in which each and every caregiver has responded. We appreciate the hospital has been busy, particularly these last few weeks in the lead up to Christmas. We have played a key part in supporting Barwon Health in their role as a designated streaming hospital, ensuring all COVID positive patients could be cared for in the one hospital. In January we introduced a Respiratory Protection Program and we complied with the mandatory vaccination health order to ensure we protect ourselves, our patients and our community. We endured a number of lock downs, surgery was on then it was off and back on, volunteers returned for but a few short weeks, visitors were allowed and now they are not, what has been a constant is your flexibility and ability to adapt to change sometimes at short notice. Thank you everyone for the part you have played in these changes. Today we launched our Kindness Kart. This is an initiative supported by the St John of God Foundation and Kane Constructions. The Kindness Kart is a wellness initiative and will be circulated around the hospital from time to time. The Kindness Kart will have healthy snacks and refreshments available for caregivers during busy times. We extend our thoughts to those who remain separated from loved ones due to the border restrictions. Fingers crossed that 2022 brings greater freedom to travel to be with family and friends across the country. Special thanks to those who are working over the Christmas period to ensure our patients continue to receive the very best of care. For those fortunate to have time off we hope you are able to relax, refresh and charge the batteries after such a busy year. Have a very Merry Christmas and a happy and safe New Year. Taanya
Christmas Decoration Competition
The Christmas Decoration Competition brings such joy and highlights the wonderful culture at our hospital. Caregivers displayed great artistic effort, attention to detail, and clever use of recycled products! Thank you to all caregivers who have gone to so much creative and committed effort to decorate your departments, corridors, wall space, and bring such pleasure to our caregivers, patients and any visiting family members. The HMC had the most wonderful time walking through the festive corridors and admiring the hardwork our caregivers put into their Christmas decorations, and they have decided that this year 3 East is deserving of the top place. Congratulations to the entire 3 East team!! Honorable mentions: • • • •
3West - most aligns to the work of the departments CCU - for their creativity and inclusion Quality and Risk team - for wonderful team effort ICU - for clever use of sustainable materials
Well done and brilliant effort! Please take some time to view all department images in the next two pages.
Patient Welcome Packs To acknowledge and improve the patient experience for those in shared rooms, we are trialling a new initiative giving patients a ‘welcome pack’ containing: • • • • • • •
Eye mask Ear phones Ear plugs Notepad and pen SJG branded shopping tote NPS flyer Feedback form for patients to review the pack
We have 50 wlecome packs currently being distributed to patients in shared rooms on 2 South and 2 East. We are also offering these patients a ‘concierge’ phone number to be able to help with nonclinical hospitality and comfort needs. Concierge caregivers can help with things like fresh water jugs, tea & coffee, attending to flowers, offering extra blankets, pillows or tissues, assistance with accessing the hospital wifi, assist with packing/unpacking or moving belongings. If successful, it is hoped we will be able to roll this out to patients in all shared rooms in 2022.
Green Group: Swapportunities It is not difficult or expensive to be eco-friendly. It just takes a lifestyle change, breaking old habits and practice. By making small changes we can make a difference to the environment. Swap printing paper for reading on the screen. Australia consumes around 4 million tonnes of paper and cardboard each year which equates to 200kg per person each year.
Sharing some Christmas joy with those in need..
All caregivers are invited to contribute to this year’s Christmas collection for the vulnerable in our community. Every contribution is an act of kindness that will remind someone that they are not forgotten. This year we will be supporting the Salvation Army and The Orange Door. The Orange Door is a free service for adults, children and young people who are experiencing or have experienced family violence and families who need extra support with the care of children. Baskets and boxes have been provided to your respective wards and departments. These will be collected week commencing 20 December 2021. The food and items collected will be distributed through our Doorways program at 26-28 Bellarine Street Geelong.
Children’s Christmas coloring competition Receive a free family pass (2 adults, 3 children) for the following City of Greater Geelong Swim Sport and Leisure facilities: • • • •
Waterworld Splashdown Leisurelink Bellarine Aquatic & Sports Centre
One pass per caregiver, Passes are limited, so first in best dressed. How can I get this pass? It’s easy! Download this coloring page, encourage your child to color/decorate the page as they see fit, submit the page to Exec Admin (or Main Reception for night shift caregivers) and take home this pass for a day of fun under the sun!
Microsoft Edge is now our default web browser Microsoft’s Internet Explorer web browser is now very old, so we have just completed an organisation-wide switch to the newer Microsoft Edge. Our default web browser is now set to Microsoft Edge for all St John of God Health Care computers. This means that when you click on a web link, for example within emails or files, it will automatically open in Edge. All web-based ZENworks applications (apps) now open in Edge.
Please use Edge for your day-to-day web browsing! Edge is faster and more secure, with better features and performance. You can open Edge through ZENworks or your Windows search function. Below are quick steps to instantly copy your Internet Explorer (or Google Chrome) browser information into Edge, including your favourites, bookmarks, saved passwords and browsing history:
Please contact the Service Desk should you have any questions.
Do Good December
Back pats
Elle said: 5 stars
Huge thank you to our wonderful OB Karl Najjar, all of our amazing midwives, anaesthetist Damien, paediatrician Philippa, the special care team, ICU team, and the rest of the staff at SJOG. We couldn’t have asked for a better experience and felt extremely well looked after. We look forward to seeing everyone again for baby #2!
What our patients had to say about us this week... CCU
Patient feedback
Excellent staff especially Amy!
ED
Patient feedback
Dr Rory was great and nurse Lucy was amazing! She is the sweetest young lady and is very good at her job!
NPS 2 South
Patient feedback
Staff goes above and beyond to help.
3 North
Patient feedback
I felt very cared for by the nurses and all other staff, cleaners, meal staff etc were all so friendly and made for a very pleasant stay.