Issue 104 • June 2012
Pennine News
TO
PROV
IDE TH
E VERY
B E S T C A R E F O R E A C H PAT I E N T O N E V E R Y O C C A S I O N
• Midwives educating on
baby car safety issues
• TV presenter Fiona
Phillips to host staff
awards
• Pennine’s breast care
team win national award
• Vehicle parking policy –
important changes
£2.25M INVESTMENT
TO EXPAND FAIRFIELD’S A&E
2
News - Trust stories
Contents
Construction work
ahead of schedule . . . . . . . . . . . Pg 4
Vehicle parking policy . . . . . . . Pg 5
Diary dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pg 5
£1.7m investment brings
sparkling results . . . . . . . . . . . . Pg 6
Breastfeeding peer support . . . Pg 7
NMGH baby peace garden . . . . Pg 7
Core brief . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pg 8
Team focus on post room . . . . . Pg 9
Treatments with
compliments from Anja . . . . . . Pg 10
Top of the class for
library service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pg 10
Looking to ease the pain PAT first European recruiter . . Pg 11
Uniform to work day . . . . . . . . Pg 11
£2.25m investment to
expand FGH’s A&E . . . . . . . . . . Pg 12
Rochdale Mayor impressed
with services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pg 12
Pennine’s breast cancer team . win national award . . . . . . . . . . Pg 13
On top of the world for
children’s charity . . . . . . . . . . . . Pg 14
Thought for the month . . . . . . Pg 15
Fiona Phillips to host PAT
staff awards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pg 15
Staff noticeboard . . . . . . . . . . . Pg 16
Inside News
The Trust has several communication
tools to help keep staff up to date:
n C
ore brief is sent round monthly,
for use in all team briefings.
n W
eekly bulletins are emailed on
Mondays and contain a range of
operational and site information.
n A
medical director/nursing director
bulletin is circulated monthly.
n O
nline copies of all the bulletins
and core brief, plus more, can be
found on the Trust intranet at
nww.pat.nhs.uk/communications
You can send your stories for either
Pennine News or for local media to
Trust communications at trust.communications @pat.nhs.uk, or
call Nicola Berry on 44284.
If you have any ideas, views or suggestions regarding communications
across the Trust, please email staff.
[email protected]
Please recycle this magazine
June 2012
Volunteers helping along
the patient pathway
The 520 patients who pass through North
Manchester General Hospital’s theatres
every week are helped along their patient
journey by four special people who have
joined the theatre team.
Yassett Abraham, Rossette Chiza, Pelina
Layisi and Katrina Chatburn are all
volunteers who give up their
time each week to help out
in the busy department.
In a new initiative
which started last
year, the volunteers
assist in the
department
in various
roles. This
can include
helping
out in the
department’s
store room,
preparing
patients’
admission
packs and
helping to
move items
between the
eight theatre
suites.
Sr Jackie Aziz was
instrumental in setting
up the new scheme with volunteer co-ordinator,
Mary Sunderland. Jackie said:
“I realised that there were some duties
in our department which a volunteer
could undertake. There are points in the
patient pathway in which they can really
help and this has been demonstrated to
great effect with Katrina, who has been
in our step-down recovery area and has
been reassuring anxious patients under
the tuition of full time theatre staff.
”They are also
proving to be
invaluable in our
store/pack room
where Harriet
Nowak, the materials management
assistant is getting
help in sorting out
the daily deliveries
of instruments,
swabs, needles
and anaesthetic
equipment.
“Staff on the main theatre desk which is
the hub of the department have had help
with general administration duties and
patients in the admissions department
are meeting the volunteers when they
call them through and escort them to the
unit’s waiting area.”
Bringing different strengths
to the department, the
volunteers are gaining
worthwhile experience on their
routes to and
through access
nursing courses
and degrees.
Yassett
Abraham
has been
working one
full day each
week in the
department
for five
weeks. He
said: “I’m
enjoying my
time at North
Manchester as
a volunteer. I’m
currently studying
at Salford University
and hope to be a
biomedical scientist.
The chance to actually
work in a hospital is ideal for
me and I am finding the staff very
friendly and helpful.
“Everything about the experience is good
and it is helping me with my communication
skills by interacting with staff. I’d say that
my favourite task is helping out in the
store/pack room.”
Jackie explained:
“I can’t thank the volunteers enough.
They have
brought a great
new element
to our whole department and
have fitted in really well.”
… the volunteers are
gaining worthwhile
experience on their
routes to and through
access nursing courses Pictured
Rossette Chiza
helping out in the
and degrees.
store room.
3
In the news
Midwives join
forces to educate
on baby car safety issues
MIDWIVES from the Trust have linked up
with Oldham Road Safety officers from
Unity Partnership to launch a local campaign to help educate and remind
parents of in-car safety issues particularly
when bringing home a new-born baby
from hospital for the first time.
The campaign will involve newly produced leaflets and posters with the
strap-line ‘Is your baby sitting safely?’.
Viv Dickinson, patient liaison midwife
at The Royal Oldham Hospital, said:
“Bringing a new born baby home from
hospital can be a very exciting yet daunting
experience for most new parents especially when it’s their first baby. Most
parents plan for weeks what outfit to
dress their new baby in, but unfortunately
some parents do not think about or even
have a car seat to transport their baby
home. We often find some new parents
do not know how to fix the car seat correctly for their baby’s first journey
home. This is a real concern for us as midwives which is why we have been
working closely with the road safety officers to educate and raise awareness
of car safety.”
Unity Partnership’s road safety team
works and interacts with local schools,
community groups and the general public to improve road safety
through education.
Julie Williams, road safety officer at
Unity Partnership, added: “Every day in
Great Britain a child is killed or seriously
injured in a car crash. We need to make
sure a child’s first and every other journey
is a safe one.”
The Trust has enlisted the help of new
mum Victoria Wylie-Harrison and baby
Jasmine Ava-Grace from Stockton
Park, Oldham to help to promote the
initiative with her photograph used
on the campaign material. She said:
“We wouldn’t have dreamt of bringing
Jasmine home from hospital without a
car seat and once we had learnt how to
fix the car seat in to the car it became
easier every time, now its second nature
to put her in the seat and the seat into
the car.”
in cars; about 250 are seriously injured
and around 6,000 slightly injured. The
correct use of child car restraints would
prevent many of these deaths and
injuries.
Pictured below - Mum Victoria WylieHarrison and daughter Jasmine are safely
strapped in with Julie Williams (next to
Victoria) and Viv Dickinson.
Key information for
new parents
n Always purchase a new car seat
from a reputable retailer and ask
for a fitting demonstration.
The campaign will be promoted across all
the Trust’s maternity units with posters
and flyers and reminder cards for all new
mums. Julie Williams and her colleagues
at Unity Partnership will also be making
regular visits to the Trust’s antenatal clinics to talk to new parents.
n Practice fitting the car seat in
your car before you take baby
home. You will be expected to
do this yourself when you leave
hospital.
According to Road Safety GB, every year
around 25 children between the ages of
0 and 11 years are killed while travelling
n It is very dangerous to carry a
baby in your arms or to share a
seatbelt.
n The safest place for the car seat is
in the back of the car.
n Failing to transport your baby
appropriately could cost you a
£2,500 fine and 3 penalty points
on your licence.
n When cars crash, the speeds
involved usually mean severe
impacts, which all too often cause
death and injury to people inside
and outside the car.
n Even in a minor crash, an
unrestrained child would be
thrown about inside the vehicle,
injuring themselves and others.
They could be thrown from the
car through one of the windows.
n The law requires all children
travelling in cars to use the
correct child restraint www.
childcarseats.org.uk until they are
either 135 cm in height or the age
of 12, which ever they reach first.
4
In the news
June 2012
Construction work
ahead of schedule
on new build
CONSTRUCTION work on the new £44m
Women and Children’s Development at
The Royal Oldham Hospital is ahead of
schedule.
Contractors and the department of
estate development at the Trust, are
making steady progress on the development
which is due to open in two phases,
the first phase being in November 2012
when the lower and upper ground floor
levels will be occupied and the second
phase which is the remainder of the
building will be occupied in December
2012. The new unit will provide services
for women, babies, children and young
people from Oldham, Rochdale and surrounding districts.
The building structure and external
cladding are now in place. Internal fit
out, which includes partitioning and
engineering services infrastructure, are
now being installed and are approximately
90% complete. Internal doors, frames,
floor coverings, suspended ceilings and
light fittings etc are currently being
installed to the upper and lower ground
floor levels.
The next construction activities within
the new building will be to continue the
installation of the internal finishes and
electrical/mechanical services.
Refurbishment of
the main hospital
corridor at
ground, first and
second floor levels has now
commenced adjacent to the
new building,
this work will
include new
suspended
ceilings, flooring,
internal doors
and frames,
decoration and
lighting.
External landscaping around the new
building and the reconfiguration of the
road surfaces at the front of the hospital
will commence shortly as will the construction of a new glazed link corridor
and ambulance drop off point adjacent to
Outpatients A.
The design team have continued to hold
meetings with patient user groups and
staff, resulting in finalising detailed internal
room plans/spatial layouts, enabling the
go ahead being given to fit out the building
including installing all mechanical and
electrical services.
Graham Lord, head of estate development
at Pennine Acute, said: “Significant construction progress has been made over
the past few months and the installation
of the external cladding to the building
has now given people a sense of how
large this new facility will be. We continue
to be slightly ahead of schedule and are
pleased with the progress made so far.”
Vinci Construction, who is the lead building
contractor for the new development, is
supporting the In Your Hands fundraising
appeal through raising money in
conjunction with MedEquip4Kids.
Best foot forward in
Manchester 10K
Staff from the Trust swapped their hospital scrubs and suits to take part in the
BUPA Manchester 10K run on Sunday 20 May.
Six staff in total took part to raise money for the In Your Hands Appeal. Included within the
group were chief executive John Saxby, director of strategic planning Tom Wilders, head of
communication Andrew Lynn, community midwifery matron for Rochdale/Oldham Diane
Chadderton, deputy management accountant Matt Sharples and Jane Nelson, technical
manager in haematology.
John Saxby and Tom Wilders in their
In Your Hands T-shirts
They each raced around the centre of Manchester to support the charity appeal which is looking to buy equipment for the new purpose
built women and children’s ‘super centre’ at The Royal Oldham Hospital, which will include a new level three neonatal intensive care unit.
Andrew Lynn said: “By the time this edition of Pennine News is printed, I hope I can say I reached the finish line in a reasonable time and
enjoyed the occasion. I’m not a runner but I wanted to do something a bit different. To run the Manchester 10k along with 40,000 other
people sounded like a fun way to spend a Sunday. I wanted to do my small bit to help raise money and publicity for our appeal, whilst
at the same time it has given me a goal to get fit. It’s a great appeal for a good cause.”
Diane Chadderton said: “I run for enjoyment with a local running club and supporting families is close to my heart. I ran last year for the Trust
and feel that any small contribution from me and other colleagues running will enable the appeal to offer comfort and support to families.”
To find out more about how you can help raise money for the In Your Hands Appeal, or to make a donation, go online at www.nhs.uk/
inyourhands, text hand12 to 70070 or ring 0161 918 4497.
5
News - Trust stories
Vehicle parking policy - important
changes
Following the consultation on proposed
changes to the Trust’s vehicle parking
policy earlier this year, the new policy has
now been approved and will come into full
effect on Monday 2 July.
You will begin to see new parking signage
and site maps installed over the coming
weeks which will identify the new parking
areas and guide users around the hospital
site.
The changes will include the following:
n P
arking on our hospital sites will now
be designated between differing types
of user, e.g. patient and visitor, staff
and drop off/ pick up areas.
n S
taff who have a parking permit can
only park in the designated staff areas.
n D
esignated parking areas for patients
and visitors will be closer to entrances.
n P
riority clinical parking is available for
staff who work regularly between sites.
These staff can park on any designated
area but must not park on yellow lines
and restrict access. More information
can be found on the intranet.
n T
he current drop off /pick up free parking
period in any parking space or drop off/
pick up area will be extended from 15
minutes to 30 minutes maximum.
n T
o ensure the effective operation of
the designated parking areas, parking
enforcement will be strengthened
and a new external contractor will be
employed to undertake all aspects of
parking enforcement.
n M
ore robust and effective parking
enforcement will include the patrolling
and security of parking areas, the issue
of parking enforcement notices, payments and appeals relating to
notices and the recovery of any unpaid
notices.
n A
number of minor changes are also
being made to the permit application
process and payment options for parking to allow improved flexibility.
It is estimated that 80% people park their
cars responsibly, but those who park indiscriminately create hazards for emergency access and risks to the safety of
patients and staff. With support and cooperation from both patients and staff,
the new policy should help to make vehicle
parking on our hospital sites safer, more
accessible and amenable for all.
Updates will be included in Trust bulletins.
In the meantime, please be aware and
observe any new parking signage as this
becomes installed. You may also wish
to check that your parking permit is up
to date with the correct details, valid
and clearly readable to the car parking contractor’s staff who will be patrolling
our car parks soon. Details on how to
update permits are available on the
intranet or by contacting the parking permit issuing office at your hospital site.
More information is available on the ‘New
Car Parking Policy’ page on the Trust’s
intranet via the homepage or under the
facilities division section.
Have you parked responsibly?
The majority of people using our
parking areas park considerately
and responsibly. But, around 5% of
users park indiscriminately creating
obstructions, hazards for emergency
access and risks to the safety of
patients and staff.
Our new car parking arrangements
will help. These changes will come
into full effect from Monday 2 July
2012.
For more information on travelling to
our hospitals and car parking visit the
Trust website at www.pat.nhs.uk or
link on the intranet homepage.
Diary dates
4 and 5 June - Queen’s Diamond
Jubilee Bank Holidays
12 June - Orthopaedic presentation
by Dr Raj Parikh, consultant
ortho-geriatrician, including the
new new TASU. 2-4pm, education
centre, The Royal Oldham
Hospital
19 June - Drop-in at NMGH carers’ centre 12.30pm to 4pm
21 June - Drop-in at FGH carers’
information point 12.30pm to
4pm
25 June - Rochdale staff briefing.
12.30pm in the Lecture Theatre,
education centre, Rochdale
Infirmary
26 June - Children’s unit tour
including inpatient unit, wards
and KOALA. 2-4pm, North
Manchester General Hospital
3 July - Endoscopy tour. 1pm,
ward G3, The Royal Oldham
Hospital
4 July - Official Opening of
Pennine Rheumatology Centre
Rochdale Infirmary.
9 July - Cancer and you event at
NMGH for staff. Ring 45244 for
details
6
Features
Louise Martin receives a scope from
Paul Taylor
June 2012
£1.7m investment
brings sparkling
results
Zoe Stansfield washing a scope
Six new members of staff have been
appointed to oversee the new system –
reprocessing technicians Andrea Wild,
Tania Harrop, Zoe Stansfield, Louise Martin,
Joanne Marsden and a porter Paul Taylor.
A £1.7m investment has seen a
new state-of-the-art endoscopy decontamination unit built at The
Royal Oldham Hospital.
Andrea said: “We have all been redeployed
from other areas within the Trust, and
although we were apprehensive at first,
we are all enjoying our new jobs using
the fantastic high tech equipment. It has
been a challenge learning how to use
the machines but we feel that we have
built this service up ourselves. We have
been welcomed into the team and have
pulled together to provide an improved decontamination process.”
Initially commissioned as part of the
Joint Advisory Group (JAG) national
accreditation programme of endoscopy
units, the 12m by 6m purpose-built
annexe has now opened at the back
of the hospital’s sterilisation and
disinfection unit.
Sister Yvonne Kevins, who manages the
endoscopy unit on ward G3 and the
decontamination unit is delighted at
the new extension which houses eight
brand new Lancer automated endoscope
reprocessors (AERs), four drying cabinets
and a vac-a-scope system.
Decontaminating around 120 endoscopes
a week, the old decontamination facilities
on the ward were deemed too small to
house the new equipment. Sr Kevins said:
“We used to have a decontamination
room contained within the ward but as
we looked to replace our old labcaire
machines which were ten years old, we
realised that we needed a much bigger
space.
“The new annexe was built specifically
for us and we now have the added
bonus that the old room used for
decontamination has been converted for
use as an additional endoscopy treatment
room, which means that we can see
around another 100 patients per week
on the ward.”
decontaminated they come out of the
‘clean’ end of the machine with a print-out
of which cleaning process each piece of
equipment has been through. These are
then attached to the patient’s notes.”
machine. The equipment is washed thoroughly with detergent, then a disinfectant solution, rinsed and then air
is blown through it to dry it out. It is then
transferred to the special drying cabinet
where it can be stored for up to 72 hours.
“We have a digital display which tracks
what is happening in the machine at all
times. If there are any faults the staff
know exactly what is wrong and when.
Once the endoscopes have been The endoscopy unit is currently undergoing
accreditation by the JAG. With an initial
assessment in January, the unit will be re-assessed in July following the completion
of an action plan.
Dr Bashir Rameh, consultant gastroenterologist and Oldham’s endoscopic site
lead, and Yvonne have been busy meeting
the accreditation body’s standards and are
confident that all the hard work which the
staff have put in will soon be recognised.
Dr Rameh said: “We are aiming to be a
centre of excellence for the decontamination
of endoscopes at The Royal Oldham
Decontaminating two endoscopes at
once, the new machines fully comply
with all health and safety regulations
and take around 45 minutes to complete
their cleaning process.
Sr Kevins explained: “All endoscopes are
initially wiped down in the department
and then put into sealed trays which
are transported in a closed truck to the
decontamination unit. Each scope has a
unique identification number. Following
an initial manual clean by a reprocessing
technician, they are then put into the
‘dirty’ end of the reprocessor, which
is basically a state-of-the-art washing
Zoe Stansfield, Tanya Harrop, Yvonne Kevins, Louise Martin and Joanne Marsden.
Not pictured Andrea Wild.
7
News - Trut stories
Hospital. It will be fantastic if we can
achieve this, as patients will be reassured
that they are being treated in an accredited
unit which has had to meet a very high
standard in order to pass.”
Pictured below Joanne Marsden putting
a scope into the autowasher. Bottom Tanya Harrop putting a scope into the
drying cabinet.
Successful
ort
p
p
u
s
r
e
e
p
g
in
d
breastfee
The first breastfeeding peer support
accredited programme has been hailed a
success.
Devised by Val Finigan, consultant midwife infant feeding, the Open College
Network North West modular, accredited,
peer breastfeeding training programme
supports 30 hours of learning.
The infant feeding team, Tina Hughes
and Tracey Lake, have successfully used
the programme to train 12 local community
mothers to level 2, as volunteer breastfeeding support workers. The volunteers will support breastfeeding
practices in the maternity units that will
build on the quality of current services.
Val said: “The modular framework
enables community mothers to work at
their own pace to achieve either level 1 or
level 2 of the course. The credited learning
points can be built on to enable local
community members who may or may not
have qualifications to gain future access
to a career.
“The course took place part time over a
two week period and involved theoretical
and practical learning. The course was
well evaluated with learners suggesting it
was paced at the right level and was fun.
It was internally and externally evaluated
and the feedback from the Open College
Network was extremely positive.”
Val is pictured above right with Natalie
Morley who has completed the course.
Raising money for baby peace garden
With over 17 babies stillborn or dying shortly after birth every
day in the UK, the North Manchester group of Sands (the stillbirth
and neonatal death charity) is on a mission to raise funds to create a baby peace garden in the grounds of North Manchester
General Hospital, which will provide a place
of quiet and reflection for bereaved parents,
family and friends.
Michelle Morgan, a healthcare assistant on
the maternity ward at North Manchester
General Hospital and secretary of the group
takes up the story. “We launched our group
only last year and already we have so many
bereaved parents getting in touch with us
and coming to our support meetings.
“Our aim is to create a peace garden that we can landscape and
maintain ourselves. We want the garden to become a peaceful
place where parents whose baby has died, or who have received
bad news, can go to be with their thoughts and away from the
conventional hospital setting. The hospital is currently working with contractors to identify the
best site within the hospital grounds. We are
confident that we will be able to start work on
the garden this summer.”
If you would like to know more about plans for
the memorial garden or the work of Sands please
contact Michelle Morgan or Collette Riley on
077900 53309 or email [email protected]
8
Core brief - team talk
June 2012
Have
you been
briefed?
Core brief takes place once
a month and is a way of
updating you about the latest news from the Trust.
Core Brief
Decommissioning
The Trust continues discussions with Trade Unions about the effect of decommissioning
on services and the measures the Trust is taking to avoid job losses. The 90 day consultation started on 2 March. Every effort will be made to ensure the necessary
reductions in staffing, where possible, will be achieved through voluntary means but
compulsory redundancies cannot be ruled out.
Regular updates and notes following Local Joint Negotiating Committee sub group
meetings are available on the decommissioning pages of the intranet.
The Trust has met with the LNC on 23rd March, 3rd, 10th, 16th, 24th April, and 1st
May. Further dates will be held on 11th, 18th, 22nd and 29th May. During this consultation the Trust has given presentations on the impact on medical staff in
ENT, medicine, pathology, general surgery, urology, gynaecology, gastroenterology,
ophthalmology, oral & maxillofacial, and orthopaedics.
The Trust has met with the Joint Negotiating Consultation Committee (JNCC) on
30th March, 2nd, 11th, 16th and 23rd April. Further meetings are scheduled for 2nd,
9th, 16th, 22nd and 30th May. During this consultation the Trust has given presentations
on the impact on staff in surgery, medicine, general surgery, urology, outpatients
and radiology. Others services planned to give presentations include:- theatres,
gynaecology, pathology, finance, HR, learning & organisational development, clinical
audit, clinical professions, medical secretaries, estates & facilities and pharmacy.
Agreement has been reached that the Trust should seek volunteers from outpatients, medical secretaries and current staff on redeployment.
Trust management has also shared draft selection criteria with the JNCC, if the Trust
has to resort to compulsory redundancies. These draft criteria are available on the
Trust intranet.
Healthcare acquired infections
The focus to reduce the number of patients with Health Acquired Infections, such as MRSA
bacteraemia and Clostridium Difficile infections (CDT), continues to be a top priority for the
Trust. The Trust successfully achieved both its MRSA and CDT targets for 2011/12. Last year
(between April 2011 and March 2012) the Trust reported 7 MRSA hospital attributed cases
(threshold was no more than 12). In the same period the Trust reported 125 C Diff cases
(threshold was no more than 149).
For 2012/13 the threshold is much tougher. For 2012/13 the Trust’s MRSA threshold is no
more than 4 hospital-attributed (post 48hr) cases across all sites. The CDT target is no more
than 100 hospital-attributed cases (post 72hr) across all sites. The Trust will be penalised
£900,000 per case for any CDT case above 100. Divisional targets for hospital-acquired CDT
have been set based on previous data as follows:
Women & Children’s - 6, Diagnostics - 9, Surgery - 30, Medicine - 55. TOTAL - 100
Appointment of deputy
chief executive and director of finance
Brian Steven has been appointed as
deputy chief executive and director of
finance. Brian is currently director of
business development and performance delivery at the Leeds
Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust. He
was director of finance and information technology firstly at the
Glasgow Royal Infirmary University
NHS Trust and then at the North
Glasgow University Hospitals NHS
Trust between 1994 and 2005 before
moving to become director of finance
at the Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals
FT from 2005 and 2008.
4 hour emergency
access standard
The Trust continues to improve
patient flow and performance
against the 4 hour emergency
access standard. The national target
remains that 95% of patients must
be seen, treated and discharged,
admitted or transferred as promptly
as possible within four hours of
arrival. The Trust achieved 97.3%
in the last quarter of the year
(Jan – March 2012). By the end of
April, the Trust figure was 96.53%.
Following the significant improvements
in performance and commitment
by staff, not only in the emergency
departments but across all teams,
the Trust is now one of the best
performing Trusts in Greater
Manchester and in the region with
regards to this important quality
standard.
Cancelled operations
NHS trusts are required to meet the national standard of no more than 0.8% of all elective admissions cancelled on or after the date of
admission for non-clinical reasons. Non-clinical reasons can include staff, bed or equipment unavailability, list overruns, administrative
errors, etc. The Trust has improved patient experience by meeting the 0.8% cancelled operations standard for the first time. The
cumulative rate for 2011/12 was 0.73%. There were 696 cancelled operations for the year, down from 825 in the previous year.
9
Team focus - a day in the life of
Team focus on
post room
The 60 second interview
Stephen Stanner works in the post room at North Manchester General Hospital as a
post room porter.
What are the highlights of
your job service?
The main highlight of my job is knowing
that all the mail is sorted and delivered
to all the correct departments I personally
deliver to. As an ex-Royal Mail employee
for over 10 years, I regard this as a high
priority job and believe that the team in
the post room form part of the backbone
within North Manchester General
Hospital. Knowing a patient is getting
their hospital appointment on time and
doctors, nurses and office employees are
also receiving important documents in
a timely fashion, is really satisfying as I
know that we are doing our job correctly.
What would make your
job/service better?
I do believe that hospital staff are
unaware of the problems caused by
incorrectly addressed mail. The amount
of such mail received incorrectly
addressed or abbreviated has astonished
me. A few examples of the letters I am
expected to deliver have included Mary
at NMGH and Dr Ahmed at NMGH. We
have many Dr Ahmeds on site! Or Jane,
Trust Headquarters. It is imperative that
all mail received has a full name and a
department written or printed legibly on
it. If anyone is ever unsure or has a query
regarding their mail, the post room is
only a telephone call away.
What don’t you like about
your job/service?
I’ve been working with mail for a very
long time and my main dislike is that
mail is NOT being addressed correctly.
I know I mentioned this earlier, but it
really winds us up in the post room! The
amount of mail not being delivered is
amazing, we just don’t have the time or
the facilities to open and read every letter.
It would really help, if the departments
take it in turn to come and spend some
time with us in the post room to actually
see the problems that we encounter on a
daily basis.
What is the one thing you
would change about your
job/service?
The main thing I would change within
the post room is to stop it being used as
a drop off point for medical records coming into the hospital. These records
tend not to be collected promptly by
the requesting department, resulting in
a constant build up. This concerns me,
as there could be an issue if the records
are required after the post room is
closed. I know that my manager is trying
to resolve this issue, but until then it
remains a concern.
How would you best
describe your job/service?
We are the post room. We deliver, sort
and send out internal and external mail
using TNT and Royal Mail. We deliver
post, parcels and also secure registered
and recorded mail. I regard it as a very important job, and get on with it the best I
can, with a smile on my face.
What aspects of your
job/service are the most
rewarding?
The most rewarding part of my job is
when all mail is delivered correctly and
on time to all departments. I love meeting
staff and seeing their happy smiling faces
really brightens up my day.
A typical
day
A typical day for me starts at 7am,
when I begin to sort out all the mail
and distribute it into the required
delivery frames ready for the day’s dispatch.
I work exclusively in the middle section, as we call it, the heart of the
post room. It’s my job to read and
sort out every letter that arrives in the
post room, be it external mail from
Royal Mail or internal mail from all departments and the transport drivers.
Once the sorting is completed, I then
band it together and depart on my
first delivery round which is called
Phase 1. On my return I begin sorting
again before going out on my second
afternoon delivery. The day passes
quite quickly as we hardly have time
to breathe which in my eyes is good,
I’d rather be busy than bored!
10
News - Trust stories
June 2012
Treatments with
compliments
from Anja
A patient who left a huge impact on the
staff of ward J5 at North Manchester
General Hospital, is now helping to
‘touch’ patients through the funding of
complementary therapies.
Four thousand pounds has been received
from the Anja Barnacott Memorial
Foundation to provide complementary therapies including massage, Indian head
massage, reiki, and creative visualisation and
relaxation techniques to patients undergoing
treatment for Hodgkin’s lymphoma, Non
Hodgkin’s lymphomas, chronic leukaemia
and haematological disorders.
Anja Barnacott was treated on J5 PIU
between March 2008 and June 2009 whilst
receiving chemotherapy for Hodgkin’s
Lymphoma.
Described by the staff as “a courageous,
determined, beautiful, talented and unique
young woman,” 19-year-old Anja tragically
died following complications from a stem
cell transplant at The Christie Hospital in
2009. The memorial foundation was set
up following her death and her family
and friends decided to donate the money
to Ward J5 at North Manchester General
Hospital with the specific request that a
complementary therapy service be set up for
patients going through similar experiences which Anja endured.
Anja’s father, John Barnacott, said:
“Throughout Anja’s time at The Christie,
she found the complementary therapies on
offer there very relaxing and a pleasant distraction during her treatment. It gave her
a feeling of well being at a very bad time for
her and it seemed to us that it gave her the
strength to carry on.”
The generous donation
from the Anja Barnacott
Memorial fund will pay for
18 months of weekly complementary therapy sessions on ward J5. The
soothing and relaxing treatments are provided by
complementary therapist
Margaret MaCaskill who
has a wealth of experience
with patients in oncology
settings, having worked at
The Christie Hospital and
with community based
charities.
Liz Eccleston, ward manager
on J5, said: “Anja made a
huge and lasting impression
on all the staff here on J5
and it is thanks to the generosity of Anja’s
family, friends and all the people who knew
and loved her that we can now offer this
service to others here on J5. We would like
to thank her family and friends for donating
this money to us as complementary therapies are beneficial to
patients on so many levels.”
“ Receiving chemotherapy can be a very
stressful experience, patients find that the
therapies help them to relax prior to having
the treatment and as the day of treatment
can be quite long and drawn out, the
therapies provide a distraction and help to
pass the time. It also gives
patients the opportunity
to have a chat and express
any concerns or worries.”
John Moorhead a patient
on J5 says that the
massage therapy “really
helps me to relax prior to
my treatment which ultimately makes the day
of treatment much easier
to endure, it enables me
to focus and feel positive.”
Around 20 months
following Anja’s death
her younger sister
Malgosia now 19, was also
diagnosed with Hodgkins
Lymphoma just as she
was about to start her degree at Leeds
Metropolitan University. She has recently
finished a course of chemotherapy and
doctors are positive about her prognosis as
she continues her studies at Leeds Met.
Malgosia is pictured receiving a massage
from Margaret MaCaskill with the cheque
for £4000. Also in the picture is Laura,
Anja’s older sister, John her father and Liz
Eccleston, ward manager on J5. Anja is pictured above.
If anyone is interested in donating or raising
money for Anja’s fund, details can be found
at www.anjabarnacott.org
Top of the class for library service
Library staff at Pennine Acute were
delighted with the news of their recent
accreditation results.
After the Health Care Library Unit NW
(HCLU) had conducted several recounts
it transpired that, with a score of 99%,
the Pennine Acute Library Service had
achieved the highest rating in the
North West in the 2011 Library Quality
Accreditation Framework (LQAF).
The framework consists of 47 different criteria, including ones as diverse as the
quality of the website presence, the provision of critical appraisal training, and
the production and implementation of a
detailed library strategy.
Along with a summary of its current position, detailed evidence had to be presented to show how the service met
each criterion.
John Addison, librarian at Oldham, said:
“This builds on our success last year in
being national winners of the inaugural
Sally Hernando Award for Innovation in
Library Services, and commendations this
year for our submissions on Innovation
and Good Practice.
“More traditional library users may be surprised to learn that the wearing of
twinsets and pearls and the ability to
say shush fiercely have been dropped
from the list
of essential
requirements!”
The library service aims
to support
all Trust staff,
both clinical and administrative in their
learning and practice, and their general information needs. Planned
future developments of the service
include the provision of tablet PCs - purchased after a successful funding bid
to HCLU - which can be used to take the
library service out to clinical areas.
11
In the news
Liz Johnson, DeNDRoN research nurse; Dr Jason
Raw and Dr Ansari, speciality grade physician,
with a patient taking part in the study.
Reservists’ Uniform to
Work Day 27th June
Uniform to Work Day will be held this year on
Wednesday, 27 June 2012, organised as part of the
build up to the fourth annual Armed Forces Day.
The Trust is proud of all its Reservists and is
encouraging them to swap their Trust uniforms and
workwear on the day for their military uniforms.
Looking to ease the pain PAT first recruiter in Europe
The Pennine Acute Trust has led the
way and recruited the first three
patients in Europe to a randomised
placebo-controlled clinical pain relief
disease study.
As the first major international study targeting patients with Parkinson’s
Disease, the trial is assessing the
effectiveness of a medication for pain
associated with Parkinson’s Disease.
Dr Jason Raw, consultant physician
at Fairfield enrolled the first three
patients earlier in the year. As the
research director of Parkinson’s Disease
for the north west region, representing
DeNDRoN (The Dementia and
Neurodegenerative Diseases Research
Network), he gets to find out what
studies are being planned nationally
and internationally.
He said: “Parkinson’s Disease is a
progressive neurological condition
which affects about 127,000 people
in the UK. The disease is associated
with all manner of physical
symptoms, including pain. This may
be musculoskeletal or neuropathic,
but it’s known to be one of the worst
symptoms from the patient’s point
of view. People also find that their
movements become slower, they have
tremors and rigidity.”
Patients who volunteer to take
part in the trial must have severe
pain according to a seven day pain
diary which they fill in during their
screening period. If they are suitable
to be included on the trial they are
randomly chosen to receive a placebo
or study drug painkiller. They are
then monitored at the programmed
investigations unit (PIU) at Fairfield
General Hospital over a period of
months and assessed for their levels
of pain experienced. Other symptoms
of their Parkinson’s Disease are also
evaluated.
Dr Raw is thrilled that Pennine
was the first recruiter to the study
within Europe. He said: “As this is a
competitive study it is excellent that
Pennine was quick off the mark to put
the first patients forward. We have
a target of 32 patients in the UK and
as we have been so proactive in the
recruitment stage, we expect to exceed
our target.
“The patients have been recruited
through movement disorder clinics
within the Trust. We started it initially
at Fairfield and then branched out to
Rochdale and Oldham.
“Hopefully if the study shows a benefit
of the drug in treating pain associated
with Parkinson’s Disease, this can be
disseminated through conferences
and publications and so influence the
treatment practice for the benefit of
patients with Parkinson’s globally.”
Instrumental in achieving the Trust
taking up the research study was the
work of the research and development
team. Dr Raw said: “Dr Steve Woby
and his team organised everything for
us in a very timely way which allowed
us to commence so early on the study.
“As a Trust, this is of huge benefit as
we enhance our reputation as being
able to recruit to studies, both on time
and to target in terms of the number
of patients recruited. Hopefully this
will make Pennine Acute attractive to
pharmaceutical companies looking for
sites to study their new treatments.”
Dr Steve Woby, head of research
and development at Pennine Acute,
said: “The Trust is actively involved in
clinical research and this participation
is essential to the continual quest
for improvement in treatments and
therapies for patients.
”The fact that Dr. Raw is the research
director for Parkinson’s Disease for
the north west region is brilliant for
the Trust. Dr. Raw and his team, with
excellent support from DeNDRoN, have
really helped to establish the Trust as a
place to conduct high quality research
into Parkinson’s Disease. Only by
conducting high quality research will
we find out what treatments are most
effective for patients.”
Patients with Parkinson’s Disease
can take part in the trial at Fairfield
General Hospital by talking to Dr Raw
at Fairfield, Dr Vassallo at The Royal
Oldham Hospital and Dr Namushi at
Rochdale Infirmary.
Several members of the Trust’s hospital staff
including doctors, nurses and other health
professionals, volunteer as reservist medics with the
Territorial Army Medical Services Unit. Reservist
volunteers may be deployed to staff Territorial
Army (TA) medic units, such as Camp Bastion in
Afghanistan.
John Jesky, Trust Chairman said, “The Pennine
Acute Trust fully supports our brave, dedicated and
highly skilled staff who choose to volunteer with
207 (Manchester) Field Hospital (Volunteers) Medical
Services Unit in the Territorial Army. We recognise
and applaud the vitally important role that our
staff bring to the unit. And, in turn, the experience,
skills and qualities that our staff develop from
their involvement with the TA can be offered and
transferred to colleagues to develop the services we
provide to patients here.”
Janet Mills, Heart Failure Specialist Nurse said, “As a
heart failure specialist nurse working for PAT I find
the work challenging and rewarding. I am also a
Captain with 207 Field Hospital Manchester and have
undertaken tours of duty in Afghanistan working on
the wards at Bastion. As part of the nursing team
in 207 I have been given the opportunity to further
develop my leadership and nursing skills working as a
nurse and also training as a soldier.”
“I am also currently working with the 207 Field
Hospital in arrangements for the Pennine Acute Trust
Hospital Challenge to be held later this year and
will be involved both as a participant and with the
directing team. The aim of the hospital challenge,
involving teams of staff at the Trust, is to learn
new skills presented in the command tasks which
each team works through. The command tasks are
challenging but at the same time great fun and allow
individuals the opportunity to develop and enhance
problem solving and leadership skills. Camaraderie
and building confidence are important components
and each team work together to solve the problems.”
“I shall be proud to wear my military uniform on
Uniform to Work Day on 27th June”.
Staff wishing to wear their military uniform should
check with their manager for control of infection
approval.
12
In the news
June 2012
£2.25m
investment
to expand
Fairfield’s
A&E
THE Trust Board has approved the investment of £2.25 million to expand
and improve facilities at the accident &
emergency department at Fairfield.
facilities for children, including waiting areas
and treatment areas; this will help ease the
stress children face when they have to come
to hospital.
The investment will see the development of
separate dedicated A&E facilities for children
and young people, and the expansion of the
department to separate ‘minor’ and ‘major’
cases which will improve waiting times and
the patient experience.
“We are a fully functioning A&E department.
The staff in the emergency department
continue to provide high standards of care
to acutely ill and injured patients. We are
also the gateway to a range of non-elective
medical services at the hospital such as the
primary centre for receiving stroke patients
for the whole of the Trust.
The decision confirms the long-term future
of the hospital which provides a full range of
medical inpatient services, planned day case
surgery and full outpatient and
diagnostic services.
Fairfield’s A&E was originally designed to
accommodate 45,000 patients. Last year, the
department saw over 65,000 patients.
Dr Kassim Ali, consultant in emergency
medicine and clinical lead at Fairfield, said:
“This is excellent news for the patients we
serve and for the staff. The expansion will
mean that we will have separate dedicated
“Our major cases take priority and this
development will mean we will be able
to stream patients more effectively, for
example, so that those with minor injuries
are separated from our more critically ill
patients who are brought in by ambulance.
We will also have an extra fifth resuscitation
bay. The expansion of clinical treatment
spaces and the improved physical layout of
the whole department will also help improve
patient flow and have a positive impact on
patients’ experience.”
Penny Yates, clinical nurse matron at the
A&E department, said: “This is very welcome news for the department and will
help boost and make a big difference to the
services we provide. It is fundamental that
children can be cared for and treated by
trained staff in an appropriate child-friendly
environment, separate from adults. We
continue to be a fully functioning emergency
department. This investment will help
reassure our staff and the general public that
the A&E here will remain a viable service
for the population of Bury, Heywood and
surrounding areas.”
The building work is expected to begin
within the next few months and be
complete by Summer 2013.
Pictured above: Chairman John Jesky
chatting to Stuart Greenwood, practice
educator at Fairfield’s A&E.
Pictured on the front page: Some of
Fairfield’s A&E staff with Trust chairman,
John Jesky.
Rochdale Mayor ‘impressed’ by services
The Mayor of Rochdale said he
was ‘very impressed’ with the
range and quality of services
still being provided at Rochdale
Infirmary during a recent visit.
The Mayor, Councillor Alan
Godson, and Mayoress, Gillian
Brown, were shown around
a number of the Infirmary’s
clinical services where they met
patients and staff.
Their visit included the
Infirmary’s Urgent Care Centre
(UCC), Clinical Assessment Unit,
the newly opened Pennine
Rheumatology Centre, and the
day surgery unit.
During their tour of the Clinical
Assessment Unit (CAU), the
Mayor and Mayoress met
patient Gladys Wolfenden, 89,
from Rochdale.
The Mayor of Rochdale,
Councillor Alan Godson, said:
“The people of Rochdale are
very lucky to have the facilities
here. People should recognise
and talk positively about what
services we have got here and
the ways in which the staff here
are developing new services
and treating local residents.
“I am very impressed with
what I have seen. The new
Rheumatology Unit that has
just opened is fantastic and the
day surgery unit in particular is
excellent. The staff I have met
are all very passionate and positive to be working here.
They are super.”
Pictured: Patient Gladys
Wolfenden from Rochdale
with Cllr Alan Godson, on the
Clinical Assessment Unit. Main
picture the Mayor and Mayoress
of Rochdale with staff from the
CAU.
In the news
m
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13
Pennine’s breast service staff are celebrating after winning a national award
for improving the surgical pathway for patients.
Awarded as part of the NHS
Improvement’s agenda on delivering
major breast surgery as a day case or one
night stay, hospitals within cancer clinical
networks were asked to demonstrate how
their team had made the improvements
to breast cancer services in their area.
Named as the winner, along with
Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS
Foundation Trust and St Georges
Healthcare NHS Trust, Pennine Acute
has received a token sum of £500 from
NHS Improvement to be spent within the
breast service.
Patients undergoing breast surgery traditionally stayed in hospital for around
five days. However, it has been recognised
by NHS Improvement, who have been
working with clinical teams across
England to transform the way in which
breast surgery is delivered, that this could
be further reduced to a day case procedure
or with a single overnight stay.
Pennine Acute implemented the new
way of working in April 2011. Consultant
oncoplastic breast surgeon and 23 hour
lead, Mr Mohammed Shamim Absar,
headed up a team which transformed the
way in which the service was delivered.
He said: “Patient acceptability, safety and
satisfaction were identified as the key
motivating factors in planning the change
in the service. We used to have an average
post surgery inpatient length of stay of
4.2 days. However with a total change of
pathway for breast surgery patients, the
total length of stay is now two days for
mastectomy and 0.6 days for breast conservation patients.”
Mr Absar continued: “Patients are
initially seen by breast care nurses
who will assess their suitability
to go on the new 23 hour
pathway. Most patients are
very happy to be treated
as a day case or go home
after one overnight stay
as they want to get
back to their normal
life.”
Imelda Hughes,
Macmillan breast clinical
nurse specialist and
the nursing lead for the
project, added: “Community
nurses have received additional
specialist training to deal with
wounds, drains and dressings
from the surgery as they follow up the
patients’ care in the community post discharge from hospital. Pennine breast
care nurses also ring the patients at home
to check that everything is going well
three days after their hospital treatment.”
90% of patients felt that the information,
standard of care and level of support at
diagnosis, admission and discharge was
good or excellent.
Miss Janet Walls, consultant and clinical
lead - breast services, is delighted at the
unit’s triumph. She said: “The breast unit
is delighted to be recognised as providing
an excellent and improved surgical pathway
for patients undergoing breast surgery.
The multidisciplinary team have worked
hard to achieve this standard of care,
using innovative and motivational ideas.
Pennine Breast Unit is looking forward to
spending the prize money on the purchase
of suitable post operative bras for patients
who have undergone a mastectomy.”
n P
atients needing breast surgery attend
outpatient clinics at North Manchester
General Hospital and The Royal
Oldham Hospital, but undergo their
surgery at North Manchester.
Mr Absar, Clare Brearley and Imelda
Hughes pictured above with a mammogram
machine, and below, the rest of the team.
The team which brought the success to
Pennine included:
n M
r Mohammed Shamim Absar – consultant oncoplastic breast surgeon
n Imelda Hughes – Macmillan breast
clinical nurse specialist
n C
lare Brearley – Macmillan advanced
nurse practitioner and lead nurse
breast services
n A
manda Snippe – Macmillan clinical
nurse specialist
n J une Burns – Macmillan breast care
nurse
n D
anielle Koomen – directorate manager, general surgery
n L ynn Hulston – assistant directorate
manager, general surgery
14
People
June 2012
On top of the world for children’s charity
The children’s ward and neonatal
unit at North Manchester had a special visit from a team of charity
trekkers in April.
Billed as a reunion, the visit was
organised by Medquip4kids charity
and consultant paediatrician Dr
Toni Tan, who took part in a
fundraising trek in Morocco last
year with the charity. He invited
his fellow trekkers to look around
the unit to see where some of
MedEquip4Kids’ money has been
spent over the years.
Dr Tan, who has worked at
the Trust since 2003, has been
involved with the charity for many
years. He said: “MedEquip4Kids
is a children’s charity which raises
money to provide paediatric
medical equipment and facilities for
hospitals and community health
teams. Their aim is to help ensure
babies, children and teenagers
receive the best possible care when
they are sick or injured and so will
fund items which are known to improve the care provided to
children, but are not readily available within the NHS’ limited
budgets.
“I have seen the great work which they do as we have received
an ultrasound machine from them for the neonatal ward and
they also funded equipment for the new women’s and children’s development which opened at North Manchester
General Hospital in 2009.”
Challenged to each raise £2,600 on their five day trek through
the Anti Atlas region of Morocco, the team found it tough
going as they were walking through difficult terrain in hot and
dry conditions.
Dr Tan continued: “Each day we were told that our morning
trek would last for about four hours, and our afternoon trek
for around three hours. However it was always two hours
longer than we had anticipated! We did develop good team
work though and enjoyed the beautiful surroundings which
we were walking in.
“I was surprised that wherever we stopped, a child would
appear from seemingly nowhere to sell us small handmade
jewellery. Even when we reached the top of a summit a child
appeared there with us.
“The last day was the hardest trek and we reached our final
destination well after sunset. Everyone was hungry and irritable and people without torches had to huddle together
around those who had light. We could see our hotel in the distance and when we finally reached it, the simple shower
and mint tea we received as a welcome seemed to be the most
delightful pleasures I have experienced!”
Rose Franks, fundraising co-ordinator at MedEquip4Kids said:
“This was a fantastic opportunity for the Moroccan participants
to get together and see the valuable work of MedEquip4Kids.
Toni is so passionate about his job and explained how important the medical equipment funded by MedEquip4Kids is,
in the care of babies and children at North Manchester General
Hospital. A huge thank you to all the participants for their
hard work in both fundraising and training for this international challenge.”
15
News - Trust stories
Thought for
the month
by Rev Susan Wood
Not enough time! Quality time! On
time! Leisure time! Spending time!
How often do we mention the word
‘time’ in our everyday conversations?
TV presenter Fiona Phillips to
host PAT staff awards
TV presenter, journalist and Alzheimer’s
campaigner Fiona Phillips has been
confirmed as this year’s special guest to
host the Trust’s Staff
Awards in June .
Fiona is one of
Britain’s best-loved
television presenters
and broadcaster
after 12 years as the
lead presenter on
GMTV .
During her time on
the GMTV sofa, her
warmth and genuine
interest has drawn
interviewees from
all walks of life,
from real life stories
told by the people
whose lives have
been affected by the
events featured on the show, to celebrities
and politicians .
But in August 2008, Fiona announced
that she was to quit the GMTV sofa,
revealing that her father had been
diagnosed with Alzheimer's just a year
after her mother had died of the disease
and that she had decided to devote more
time to him and her family .
Fiona is an Ambassador for Age UK, a
Patron of the Alzheimer’s Society and
a passionate Alzheimer’s campaigner
after sadly losing both
her father Neville and
mother Amy, from the
illness .
Since leaving GMTV,
Fiona has presented a
number of different
programmes including
a very personal and
emotional film about
dementia; ‘Mum, Dad,
Alzheimer’s and Me’
for Channel 4 .
Over 300 staff
nominations have
been received across
all divisions and sites
for this year’s awards .
Divisional winners will
be invited to the final
awards celebration dinner at Manchester
City FC Etihad Stadium . The event is
being supported by Weightmans, Vinci
Construction UK Ltd, NG Bailey, G2
Speech, ISoft, Mitie, APS print and
management suppliers and Corporate
Design Company (CDC) .
Watch out for a full round up of the
awards event in the next edition of
Pennine News.
Nursing Times Awards 2012 -
now open for
entries
THE Nursing Times Awards 2012 profiles good practice and highlights innovations
that have been implemented by frontline nursing staff .
This is a great opportunity for individual nurses or teams at Pennine Acute to
celebrate their achievements and successes . Take a look at the 18 categories and
decide where you might promote your initiatives and share your work nationally .
Each category winner (individual or team) will receive £1,000 of prize money .
The awards are announced at a prestigious ceremony at London's Hilton Hotel, Park
Lane, on 31 October .
Closing date for entries 29 June . For full details and how to enter visit
www .ntawards .co .uk
At the beginning of June we will have
an extra Bank Holiday to
celebrate the Queen’s Diamond
Jubilee, possibly giving us extra time
to spend with family and friends .
So how do we spend our time? For
those in employment, time may well
be spent balancing work and family
commitments with little time left
to ourselves . We can then become
stressed and over tired and feel that
we can give little energy to anything
extra, using those precious Bank
Holidays, weekends or days off
‘playing catch up .’
Increasingly too, there are those who
find that they are facing unemployment
or retirement and time can stretch
before them bringing feelings of
panic, fear and uncertainty .
As a member of the spiritual care
team I have become very conscious
of how important it is to give people
time . To give time to listen as people
talk through situations and issues that
they are facing during and after illness
or hospitalisation and time too, for
staff to articulate their concerns and
worries to someone who has that
valuable commodity - time to listen .
Even though the demands on His time
were immense, Jesus often took ‘time
out’ to be alone with God to talk to
Him and listen to Him, so if we follow
His example and draw away from
the demands and pressures that are
placed upon us, if only for a few
minutes, then we can be better
equipped to use the time that we
have effectively .
In whatever way you choose to spend
your time on the ‘extra’ Bank Holiday,
and even if you are called to work on
that day, may you have the opportunity
to take ‘time out’, if only for a few
minutes, to rest and re-energise
yourselves spiritually, emotionally and
physically .
16
Staff room - noticeboard
June 2012
d
r
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Staf
Retirements
Happy birthday
Happy 60th
birthday
to these
two young
ladies from
North
Manchester
General
Hospital.
Whatever the
air at North
has to offer,
the staff are
thriving on it,
as we can see
that staff nurses Evie
Hart and
Mary Hastings look much younger
than their 60 years!
All your friends and colleagues wish
you both a great birthday and a lovely journey through the rest of your life!
Thanks for caring
Anne Morris would like to say thank
to all friends and colleagues for their
good wishes, flowers, cards and gifts
received on her recent retirement.
A special thank you to friends in the
surgical division at Oldham and especially the fantastic people that
make up the vascular unit team - your
continued support particularly over
the past year has been much appreciated and I am going to miss
you all.
Make a date
for reunion
The Trust wished Mr Bernard Sylvester all
the best following his recent retirement.
Mr Sylvester has been a long
serving member of the upper
limb and orthopaedic team
at North Manchester General
Hospital and Ancoats for 34
years.
He developed the upper
limb surgery service in the
North of Manchester and
he was instrumental in the
instigation of a dedicated trauma list across the region.
Many of the people he has trained over the years have become orthopaedic consultants all over the country and he has trained over 100 registrars in his time
with the NHS.
He had a very strong relationship with his colleagues and was CAT Lead for the
Trust hospitals for many years. Well respected, he will be sorely missed by his colleagues who wish him well in his future pursuits.
Mr Sylvester plans to spend a lot more time catching up with his three children and
two grandchildren who live across the country, now that he has retired.
Striding out
to retirement
Keen walker Gill
Cotterill retired from
her post of physiotherapy
site lead for inpatients
and community at
Bury at the end of May. Working
within this role for the last five years,
Gill previously spent several years as a
musculoskeletal physiotherapy superintendent at Oldham.
Her colleagues will miss her and wish
her all the best for the future, especially
as she plans to complete the West
Highland Way walk in September.
Farewell Lola
Staff on ward I5 at North
Manchester wished a long serving
member of staff a happy retirement.
The North Manchester Nurses’
League reunion will be held on
Saturday 9 June at the post graduate
centre at North Manchester General
Hospital, from 10.00am. Lunch must
be prebooked.
Staff nurse Lola Lumsden retired
from the NHS after 37 years service.
For further information contact Mary
Varey on 0161 665 3190 or email
[email protected]
Goodbye and good luck Lola from all
your friends and colleagues on wards
I5 and I6. Best wishes for your new
life in Yorkshire.
Enjoying a party at the Red Hot
World Buffet in Manchester, Lola was
treated to jewellery and vouchers as
presents.
Enjoy the rest
Frances
After working for the hospital for 32
years, initially in psychiatry and then
in rheumatology as a medical PA,
all her colleagues, past and present,
would like to wish Frances Jones a
long, happy and well deserved retirement.
Thank you for all your hard work over
the years. Enjoy your retirement.
You’ll be greatly missed.
Well done
Congratulations to Dawn Mellor
and Michelle Haynes, from all your
colleagues in The Royal Oldham
Hospital outpatient department.
Dawn has passed the British Casting
Certificate after a year of intense
study and Michelle has passed the
venepuncture course.