Hello and welcome to my latest blog.
Many thanks to Chief Operating Officer, Sharon Gillian for stepping in last week and giving a very personal insight into her own COVID experiences. It was a timely reminder that no one is alone at ELHT and there is always someone willing to lend a sympathetic and understanding ear. And as part of the ELHT family, there are three little words that we all know, and these are at the heart of all we do; Safe, Personal and Effective. But what do they mean? They can mean different things to different people, so this week I thought I’d share some examples of what Safe, Personal and Effective means to me.
Safe – The safety of our patients and staff is our top priority and all areas of the Trust work continuously to ensure this. It is extremely encouraging to see that the first 50 hospital hubs have now begun administering the COVID-19 vaccine and I am delighted to say that ELHT will be in the next wave of Trusts joining the mass mobilisation of the NHS to get people vaccinated.
The vaccination programme is a turning point for the country, and rightly those most at risk of the virus are being prioritised, with the programme expanding over the coming months. So, when your time comes, you will be contacted and I strongly encourage you to accept the invite.
While the COVID vaccine is the hot topic at the moment, there has been another important vaccination programme running in the Trust; the flu vaccination. And I am hugely proud to say 94.8% of our workforce has so far been vaccinated against flu. Not only is that thousands of people who work at the Trust, but also thousands of people who live in our community; making our communities safer too. The inFLUencer campaign this year also included the National Staff Survey, which leads me very nicely onto the next word.
Personal – Each individual is equally important to us; patients or staff. We embrace everyone’s uniqueness and recognise the wonderful benefits this brings to the ELHT family. We also recognise the importance of being listened to and having the opportunity to express feelings. This year we have had a remarkable response to the National NHS Staff Survey, with an unparalleled 8% increase on last year! Almost 5,000 members (54.8%) of the ELHT family completed their survey. This is our highest uptake yet and shows a real culture of openness and feeling safe to share stories and experiences of the organisation.
We were honoured to welcome Deputy Chief Nursing Officer for NHS England and Improvement, Hilary Garratt CBE to the Trust last week.
Hilary visited the Royal Blackburn Teaching Hospital site to meet with Chief Nurse and Executive Director of Nursing, Chris Pearson, and nursing colleagues, to get an insight into the personal challenges our staff have experienced whilst working through the pandemic. There are many more examples of this work in this week’s Other News; including stepping into ELHT, Prince’s Trust graduate success and Jasper goes on tour! This personal approach helps and enables our staff to achieve the last of our three little words:
Effective –Transformation spearheads effectiveness and only last night our Finance Team had great success at the Healthcare Financial Management Association’s award ceremony. Scooping up the brand new award of ‘Embracing Technology’, our fabulous finance team showcased their effective use of digital solutions and technology to improve our financial processes during the pandemic. Well done to you all!
And although we didn’t win an award, this time, ELHT’s Booking Centre Application was shortlisted for the “Small Scale Project Award” in the National Smarter Working Awards which also recognises and celebrates transformation programmes. These are both fantastic achievements during the most difficult of year, what great recognition for all their hard work.
I hope this has helped you to see how Safe, Personal and Effective really are the DNA of the organisation. Why not have a think about what it means to you? Maybe you can mull this question over as you enjoy your free Christmas meal, kindly donated by our Trust Charity, ELHT&Me. While we can’t enjoy the traditional Christmas party or meal together this year, we can come together in spirit and give thanks to everyone who has donated to ELHT&Me throughout the year, and for the continued support the charity provides. Full details of the Christmas meal can be found on our SharePoint site.
Take care and stay safe all!
Martin