Relocation, relocation, relocation!

in hospital moves and will guide us on all the significant elements of our move plan, including defining our operational readiness, mock patient moves, and a recovery plan to ensure we have the most robust measures for our programme. Recently, colleagues observed HCR do what they do best as they moved patients to Zealand University Hospital in Denmark from three hospitals. The new hospital is now the largest in northern Europe, expanding the organisation to 830 beds from 296.

Jayne Dunn, Director of Commissioning and Equipping, who visited Denmark, said: “I was impressed by our visit to see HCR in action and to have the opportunity to bring back some learnings and best practices to SWB. The process was incredibly smooth, considering the detail that went into the relocation of patients, which instilled confidence in our team.

“We witnessed the process from the final planning phase to services fully relocated and everything in between. The strong relationship between the HCR team and hospital staff was evident, as was the high level of trust, respect, and control.

“A key takeaway for me was the focus on everyone having a role to play on the day and not moving away from that role at any point. Team members were easily identifiable via coloured t-shirts, so everyone knew who was responsible for what, such as IT, patient registration and the transport team.

Jayne added: “Another highlight was the focus on patient safety with the patient census meetings led by an anaesthetist, as well as the mock rehearsals and the upbeat nature of the move day. They moved 80 patients in four hours – one every three minutes and patients had medical staff take the journey with them in case of emergencies.

“Overall, it was a positive visit with some valuable learnings. The HCR team will be here again in June, and we will visit departments, establish our patient transfer committee, and speak to key stakeholders such as West Midlands Ambulance Service.”