News and media

Contact us

You can contact the Communications Team on 01254 732524

or email communications@elht.nhs.uk

Opening times

Monday to Friday: 8:30am to 5pm

FOR OUT OF HOURS MEDIA ENQUIRIES PLEASE CALL THE MAIN SWITCHBOARD ON 01254 263555 AND STATE THAT IT IS A COMMUNICATIONS QUERY. 

What we do

The Media Centre is an online resource for journalists wanting to find out about the latest news at East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust.

The Communications Team at the Trust provides a comprehensive and efficient service to help journalists access information about East Lancashire Hospitals and answer questions about the Trust. We aim to respond positively and openly to all reasonable media requests. We are also keen to promote the work of Trust in the media, and actively promote exciting and ground-breaking developments.

Our Role:

• Dealing with press and media enquiries
• Generation of positive news stories
• Co-ordination of publicity campaigns, media releases, photo opportunities and media interviews
• Ensuring the Trust maintains a professional, corporate image
• Production of publications
• Management of the Trust's website and intranet
• Promotion of good relations between the Trust and local communities
• Engagement with the Trust's Governors and extensive membership network
• Liaison with GPs and Primary Care Trusts

Interviews, statements, photography or filming

Requests regarding photography, filming, or interviews with staff or patients, must be made through the Communications Team. Anyone filming or taking photographs without permission may be asked by Trust Security to leave the site immediately.

All proposals will be considered and accommodated where possible or appropriate. We have a duty to our patients to respect their privacy, therefore full consent must be obtained before any interaction with our patients. More information on this can be viewed below. 

Proposals for filming should be e-mailed to communications@elht.nhs.uk and should include the following information:

• Name and Organisation
• Production Working Title
• Delivery Format
• Target audience
• When it will be shown/whether it has been commissioned
• Purpose of Production
• Proposed subject/s covered by filming (including staff and patients)

Our Media Service

We recognise that working with the media is an essential element of what we do – ensuring the delivery of an efficient and effective response can avoid conflict and misleading information, whilst safeguarding patients’ interests.

We will respond positively to all reasonable media requests and will:

• Act as a principal point of contact for all media activity

• Respond quickly to requests for information or comment

• Identify appropriately qualified and trained spokespeople to speak on behalf of East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust

• Obtain patient and staff consent before releasing any information to the media except where a patient or former patient, or those acting on his or her behalf, has already invited the media to report on his or her treatment

• Where the resulting media coverage contains inaccuracies or unfair criticism, East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust may comment in public, using factual information to correct misleading reporting

• Encourage staff to co-operate with media requests where practicable whilst respecting their right to refuse to participate in filming or interviews

• Encourage all staff to inform the Trust of any incident or forthcoming event which may lead to positive or adverse media coverage

• Treat all media requests on their merits and without favour Rebut inaccurate, unbalanced and unfair media coverage.

East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust reserves the right to decline media requests where these conflict with operational requirements or patient or staff confidentiality. Information will not be issued to the media about any staff member or any patient without the consent, usually written, of the individual concerned.

If an adult patient is incapable of giving informed consent (as judged by the clinical team) it may nevertheless be in his or her best interest for basic information to be released – for instance to correct misleading speculation. In such cases the decision to pass on information will take account of the view of any next of kin, or failing that, carers or relatives with whom they are in contact. In the case of a child, a parent or guardian must give consent.

Condition Checks

In order to protect patient confidentiality, we can only give out a 'Condition Check' for a patient if we are given the name, date of birth and address of the patient and have the patient's (or carer's) permission to release the information.

The Trust Communications Team (01254 732867) reserves the right to decline comment on any condition check if we so wish in respect of patient confidentiality.

For further information on the NHS Code of Practice regarding confidentiality, click here.