Welcome to our June Members email. Next week will be the NHS’ 75th birthday and we’ll be using the occasion to celebrate everything that’s good about the NHS and the fantastic people who dedicate their lives to it.
The NHS formed in 1948 as the first health system in the world that was to be available to all, free at the point of delivery and principally funded from taxes. While we are all familiar with the multiple challenges that the NHS faces today, next week will again confirm that it remains one of our best loved institutions and appreciation for its staff is as strong as ever.
I have been invited to judge the Frimley Health ‘Bake Off’ as part of the NHS75 Big Tea themed party, and we have arranged for ice cream vans at our main sites, and deliveries to our community sites.
Our teams have certainly earned a treat, having seen our highest ever daily attendance in our emergency departments recently (caused mostly by unusual atmospheric conditions on a very hot day). You will also know from articles in these newsletters and our regular online health events just how hard our staff are working to improve care by tackling NHS waiting lists, emergency and urgent care demand and new ways of delivering care.
We think that showing our appreciation to staff and celebrating what they do every day is important. That’s why we’re making the most of NHS75 and asking you to nominate those staff members who you think have made the biggest difference for this year’s Frimley Health Staff Awards, which you can access here: https://www.fhft.nhs.uk/news/frimley-health-nhs-ft-staff-awards-2023/
I hope you enjoy reading this latest update from Frimley Health, and congratulation to our own Dr Prem Premachandran who was awarded a well-deserved MBE in the King’s Birthday Honours recently (read more below)
Thank you for you continued support and happy NHS75 to all of you.
Best wishes
Bryan
Let’s celebrate together
On Wednesday 5 July people from across the country will be celebrating the NHS’ 75th birthday and paying tribute to all those who work tirelessly to provide the best care possible to patients.
These celebrations are not just for our dedicated NHS staff - everyone can be part of the NHS75 celebrations: you could take part in one of the national events or, if you happen to be visiting one of our hospitals as a patient that day, you can grab a cake from our NHS75 stand in the reception areas of Frimley Park, Heatherwood and Wexham Park hospitals.
How about hosting an NHS75 Big Tea
There’s also still time to get your best teacups out and join the rest of the nation in an outpouring of love by hosting a fundraising tea party as part of the NHS75 Big Tea.
We’re encouraging everyone to switch on their kettles, celebrate the birthday and fundraise for your local hospital. Hosting an NHS Big Tea is a great way to bring your community and/or your colleagues together around a shared love of the NHS while raising money to support local NHS staff, volunteers and patients. So, grab your teapot, pop the kettle on and let’s turn tea and cake into cash.
Or if you’re not a lover of tea parties, why not try one of the other national events taking place in this birthday year, from the NHS75 Park Run on July 8/9 to the 75 for 75 initiative, where you can do 75 things for your local NHS hospital during the month of July. For further information on how you can get involved, see here.
A visual celebration
We’ve been engaging with local schools across the region about NHS75 to get their creative input on what their local hospital means to them. Our art and creative health team has been working with Burnham Grammar and Farnham College of Technology to design murals for our hospitals. We also launched a competition several weeks ago for school pupils to design their own bunting in celebration of NHS75. The winning pupil will be announced next week and the bunting will be printed and displayed across our sites from the morning of 5 July.
There will also be a wonderful display of 75 flowers in the children’s wards at Frimley and Wexham and the waiting area at Heatherwood. Every petal has messages from patients and staff celebrating the NHS. A 75th birthday garden makeover is underway at Wexham and there will be new murals and sculptures erected across our sites to mark the big day.
Top doctor honoured with MBE
One of Frimley Health’s most senior doctors has been awarded an MBE in the King’s birthday honours for his outstanding contribution to local and national healthcare.
Dr Prem Premachandran, consultant in emergency medicine, was a leading light behind new emergency departments at Frimley Park Hospital and Wexham Park Hospital and is also a top advisor for healthcare inspectors the Care Quality Commission (CQC).
He was awarded the title of Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the latest honours list announced on Saturday 17 June.
When he started as a consultant at Frimley Park Hospital 27 years ago Dr Premachandran was one of just two senior doctors in the emergency department (ED). Since then, he has provided outstanding frontline healthcare services to the community and inspired countless colleagues with his dedication and compassionate leadership.
Frimley Health Chief Executive Neil Dardis said: “Prem is one of our most admired and respected colleagues who has contributed so much locally and nationally for many years. We are very proud to work with him and delighted that he has been given this honour.” Read more
Frailty team shortlisted for top award
Our Frimley Health Frailty team has been shortlisted in the prestigious NHS Parliamentary Awards for its Hospital@Home service, which provides care in patients’ own homes helping avoid admission to hospital.
The Frimley Health team was nominated for the Excellence in Primary Care and Community Care Award category by local MPs Leo Docherty, Ranil Jayawardena and James Sunderland, for its Urgent Community Response Service and Virtual Ward Service.
The multi-skilled Frailty team includes consultant geriatricians, advanced nurse practitioners (ANPs), admin support and therapists who offer a similar level of care as a hospital ward in the patient’s home. The service includes the ability to carry out blood tests, give IV medication, take an ECG reading or give a nebuliser or oxygen alongside therapy assessments and providing equipment to help patients’ mobility.
The winners of the NHS Parliamentary Awards will be announced as part of NHS 75th birthday on Wednesday 5 July. Read more
Frimley Health Pride
As part of our Pride month celebrations in June, we launched our new LGBT+ Rainbow Charter, which came from an idea from one of our staff.
The Charter is statement of rights of Frimley Health’s patients and staff who identify as LGBTQ+. It strengthens our focus on progressing LGBTQ+ equality while underlining our commitment to being a hospital and employer of choice for all.
During Pride month we also created a visual display with contributions from staff on the theme ‘What Pride means to you’, made a ‘colour splash’ celebratory artwork and held training session on inclusion and understanding. Sites were decorated with rainbow bunting and bollard covers and we flew the Pride flag outside our buildings. Rainbow ice lollies were also given to staff. You can see some of these here: Pride month roundup
Frimley Health is committed equality diversity and inclusion – not only is it the right thing to do for staff, patients and our communities, but it has also been shown that organisations that focus on enabling everyone to be included and have a voice also have better recruitment and retention, lower sickness rates and increased productivity.
Top award nom for Frimley Health
A Frimley Health patient safety initiative has been shortlisted for a top national award.
The joint submission by our Point of Care Testing (POCT) and Hospital @ Home frailty service teams is among the finalists in this year’s HSJ Patient Safety Awards.
It was shortlisted in the Deteriorating Patients and Rapid Response Initiative of the Year category after the teams added a blood test called C-reactive protein (CRP) to their portable testing repertoire. CRP is a protein made by the liver and levels increase when there is inflammation or infection in the body.
The Hospital @ Home team visits frail, acutely unwell elderly patients in their own homes to support, diagnose and treat new or deteriorating conditions, often preventing the need for hospital admission.
Clinical scientist Dr Fiona Riddoch, from the POCT team, said: “The addition of CRP testing has provided a powerful tool to support timely and appropriate decision-making for antibiotic prescriptions, rather than having to rely on a result from a laboratory received hours later, and making post-hoc treatment changes, and potential adverse effects, due to the ability to make the right decision in real-time.”
The 2023 HSJ Patient Safety Awards will be held on 18 September in Manchester.
Our electronic patient record celebrates its first birthday
We’re delighted to introduce our new electronic patient record (EPR) yearbook – a digital collection of case studies, stories and diary entries from our staff and patients highlighting the benefits from our first year of our EPR.
Like many other NHS trusts, Frimley Health previously relied on paper patient records and old IT systems. Now with our patient records in one place, alongside improvements to safety and care using state of-the-art digital technology, all clinical services across our hospitals and community sites have been completely transformed.
But this is just the beginning, and we know that our vision is to be at the forefront of what the digital agenda can provide for the future – so far, we have barely scratched the surface of what our EPR can help us achieve.
We hope you enjoy this collection of our teams’ experiences and stories from the first 12 months of our journey.
Find out more about our digital journey here:EPR Yearbook
Could you be one of our new Governors?
Our Governors play a vital role in shaping the strategic direction of the Trust by representing the views and interests of our patients, the local community and our members. This includes people who use our services and their carers, the public, staff and partner organisations.
This year’s Council of Governors elections will open on Friday 28 July for a four-week period, closing at midnight on Friday 25 August. Full details and all information will be published on our website in due course. The following vacant seats will be up for election:
- Public Governors: Surrey Heath and Runnymede, Chiltern and South Buckinghamshire, Windsor and Maidenhead (two seats), and Rest of England.
- Staff Governors: Frimley Park Hospital, Heatherwood and Community Hospitals.
Find out more about the role of a Governor here. If you would like to consider standing for election, please contact: hannah.farmhouse@nhs.net
Skin cancer health event
Thank you to everyone who attended Tuesday’s Health event about skin cancer. The presentations by consultant plastic surgeons, Miss Deborah Green and Mr Kuen Yeow Chin, and cancer nurse specialist Sarah Millward were incredibly informative with advice and expertise on the different types of skin cancer, warning signs and symptoms and the various treatment options available to patients in our area. If you didn’t get chance to join the event live, you can watch it back here.
Helping you to stay well this summer
Summer is a great time to recharge, both physically and mentally. The longer, brighter days allow us to be more active, spending more time in the great outdoors and getting together with family and friends. However, while enjoying ourselves it can be easy to forget simple things that may protect our health, which is why our local healthcare providers have launched the ‘Stay well this summer’ campaign.
The Frimley Health and Care campaign shares several simple pieces of advice ranging from tips around sun protection and recognising symptoms of heat exposure, through to food safety for barbecues and picnics and staying safe around water.
But it’s not all about avoiding the dangers. There’s advice on using the warmer, longer days to get active and enjoy the countryside, and the benefits that can bring to both your physical and mental health in the long term. There’s also useful advice from pharmacists, including what to have stocked in your medicine cabinet.
For more top tips on staying well this summer, see the Frimley Health and Care website.
Dates for your diary
Save the date for our forthcoming Annual Members’ Meeting (AMM) on the evening of Tuesday 26 September.
This will be a fantastic opportunity to look back at the key events of the past year and to hear about our latest news and developments, and what they mean for our staff and patients.
Mark the date in your diaries and we’ll send you further information in the end of July newsletter.