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CNO Bulletin August 2021

 

A message from the CNO - Professor Nina Morgan

This month, we’re joining in celebrations and recognition of National Breastfeeding Month as well as World Breastfeeding Week (1st – 7th August). We have a very special interview with Claire Wise, our first ever Infant Feeding Specialist Nurse within our Paediatric Department, while we also look forward to introducing our new Director of Nursing, Elaine Clarke.

I would like to thank all of you who took part in the UHCW Pathway to Excellence Survey 2021 and can't wait to update you on its success across the Trust. You'll also get a closer look at the role of our Pathway to Excellence Ambassador and what impact they'll have as we continue on this journey to nursing and midwifery excellence.

You can also find out information about how you can nominatie someone for the Trust's annual staff recognition scheme: the Outstanding Service and Care Awards (OSCAs).

In this issue:

Interview with Claire Wise on National Breastfeeding Month

Claire Wise, our first ever Infant Feeding Specialist Nurse within our Pediatric Department, has been making a positive impact on our patients for more than a decade.

The social media post which celebrated her recent double DAISY Award was one of the Trust's most popular, recieving countless comments from grateful patients who've had their breastfeeding journey enhanced by Claire's care.

Claire said: "On Ward 15 we care for infants aged two years and below and although I love all aspects of my job, especially getting to know and support the parents alongside care for their infant, my true passion is for supporting new mothers who are having difficulties with breastfeeding which in turn results in their baby being re-admitted to hospital due to having associated health problems.

"I myself have two sons, who I breastfed for three years each, but with each baby, for a variety of reasons I had a lot of difficulties establishing breastfeeding and although they didn’t require hospitalisation I experienced a lot of difficult emotions for many weeks, including me feeling like a failure, which is what I commonly come across on the wards and it’s very upsetting to see mothers feeling that way about themselves.

"I was very fortunate during my experiences that I had access to a lot of breastfeeding support from Peer Support Teams, Infant Feeding Teams and Lactation Consultants who all played such an important role in helping me overcome my difficulties.

"But I realised a lot of women don’t have those options available to them and that thought ignited my passion in wanting to help as many women as I can to overcome their difficulties and alongside helping them establish breastfeeding it is also extremely important to me that I give them the skills, the confidence and the belief in themselves to enable them to continue successfully breastfeeding their baby upon discharge.

"As part of my passion to help women, I also volunteer as a breastfeeding supporter in the community which is such an essential service for many new mothers. I was trained by the National Childcare Trust (NCT) and I have been providing this service across areas of Warwickshire and Leicestershire for just over two years now.

"I am also studying a Foundation Degree run by the NCT at Worcester University to qualify as a breastfeeding councillor but also as a postnatal practitioner to support parents during their transition into parenthood.

"Winning my two Daisy Awards was just overwhelming for me, I can’t really put into words how much they meant to me. As the nominations were being read out I was very tearful and it was a very emotional experience for me. A lot of my colleagues from a variety of professional roles who were also at the presentation were also quite emotional and tearful because they all knew how much it meant to me.

"What mattered the most to me when I received my awards is that although I felt humbled that I had made such a difference, the most important factor to me was that the women were successfully breastfeeding their babies and enabling that to happen is always at the heart of what I do.

"The first week of August is National Breastfeeding week and it is my intention to create a wall display to highlight the health benefits of breastfeeding for both the mother and the baby, but also the importance of seeking out professional support when difficulties arise and how to find and access that help.

"A large part of my new role as the Infant Feeding Specialist Nurse will be to improve the service we provide to mothers who are struggling with breastfeeding in a manner that promotes and protects breastfeeding to the best of our abilities. This will include implementing new guidelines, new care pathways, more frequent and hands on support from a feeding specialist and a new manner of staff training.

"My role is the first of its kind within the Paediatric Department so I am very excited about how I can develop that role to enable us to provide a very special and important service.

"I will be working alongside the Neonatal and Maternity Infant Feeding nurses, Colette Fox and Stacey Ormsby, to be guided and supported by them, but also so we can work together to identify how collectively we can improve our services.

"It is my goal that every woman who leaves our department after being admitted for breastfeeding support goes home feeling just as confident and as pleased with their outcome as the two mothers did who nominated me for my Daisy awards."

Celebrations: Improvements in MUST complience

Wards 31 and Ward 40 have continued to make sustained improvements with MUST (Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool) screening for their patients since April 2021.

The Ward Manager or Nurse in charge checks Vital Pac every shift to check for new patients admitted to the ward and still require a MUST score. This is then communicated to the nursing staff looking after the patient.

MUST screening is discussed at the daily Safety Huddle, while compliance is tracked and celebrated with the team on the ward’s focus board.

Lisa Newey and Rachel Linden showcased the improvement work they have facilitated on Ward 31at Stand Up recently. The focus was to improve MUST scoring compliance to enable the teams to ensure that all patients received the correct nutritional input and prompt referrals to the Dietetic Team.

The team adopted the 5’s approach from UHCWi methodology to engage all staff members to make the improvements and embedded it in to their standard work. MUST scoring has improved from 30% to 100% and the ward are tracking progress on their focus board.

Introducing: Director of Nursing, Elaine Clarke

Elaine began her nursing career 34 years ago in Kent. She moved to UHCW in 1992 working in Cardio-Thoracic Critical Care and then became the Matron of General Critical Care before becoming the Associate Director of Nursing for Quality and Patient Safety in 2015.

We asked Elaine:            

How has nursing changed in the course of your career?

The nursing/midwifery profession has evolved significantly since I qualified, the opportunities for career development are so much greater and the autonomy nurses/midwives now have is inspiring to see.

Have you a message to give to the staff at UHCW?

A "big thank you”  to everyone for the extraordinary work and commitment you’ve shown over the last 18 months and for your on-going support as we continue through challenging times.

The UHCW Pathway to Excellence Survey 2021

The 2021 Pathway to Excellence® survey has now closed. We’d like to say a huge thank you to all of our nursing and midwifery staff who filled this in. We achieved a fantastic 42 % response rate, which will really help shape our journey to designation from the American Nurses Credentialing Centre (ANCC) next Summer. We are using all of your responses to drive change and excellence across our organisation.

If you’re interested in influencing our activity following the survey and want to continue to strive for excellence, please attend our Post Survey Listening Event in the Lecture Theatre on Wednesday 8th September 10:30-11:30. This event will also be available via MS Teams, please email PathwayToExcellenceUHCW@uhcw.nhs.uk for the event link.

 

Introducing Pathway to Excellence Ambassador

We are excited to announce that we have launched the new Pathway to Excellence® Ambassador role!

We are looking for highly motivated, experienced direct care nurses and midwives to join our team of Pathway to Excellence® Ambassadors. Ambassadors will provide a link between the Pathway to Excellence Team and the practice environment, forming part of the local leadership for the implementation of the Pathway to Excellence® framework and communicating key messages and opportunities to clinical staff.

You will support the Ward/Unit Manager and Modern Matron in identifying and showcasing examples of excellence from your practice areas and engaging your teams in the Pathway to Excellence® survey.

This role includes opportunity for professional and leadership development. As part of our commitment to our Pathway to Excellence® Ambassador network, we have developed a wraparound of support for this new role, which includes:

  • Educational sessions
  • Networking events
  • Professional development opportunities
  • Coaching support

If you’re interested in becoming an ambassador or would like to find out more information about the role, please email PathwayToExcellenceUHCW@uhcw.nhs.uk

Update on Research and Development

At UHCW our work can be life-changing for patients. And Research and Development have begun an exciting new development that could bring huge benefits to many people.

UHCW is conducting its first commercial phase one clinical trial testing an injectable antibiotic formulation (PP353) for chronic low back pain (CLBP) caused by bacterial infection.

Just three people in the world have trialled the drug, which is delivered directly into the spine via injection.

Pharmaceutical company Persica is running the trial through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Coventry and Warwickshire Clinical Research Facility (CRF), based at University Hospital, and the NIHR Lancashire Clinical Research Facility at the Royal Preston Hospital. The NIHR is a major funder of global health research.

Elsewhere, and having missed a year due to Covid-19, the Research & Development Research summit is back this year on 10th of September!

This is a must-attend event for those who wish to:

  • Develop their understanding of research and development by hearing from colleagues and partners who play an active role in these.
  • Seek advice/support on implementing their research project, developing their research ideas or growing their research careers.
  • Grow a network of like-minded colleagues and associates to catalyse change or enhance their own personal development.

Find out more and register at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-summit-2021-at-uhcw-nhs-trust-tickets-162426364629

Nutrition Link Workers Conference

The Nutrition Link Workers (NLWs) are a team of specialists including Nutrition Nurses, Dietitians, Speech and Language Therapists, Catering Leads, Catering Hosts, Nurses and HCAs from all ward areas (including Outpatients) across the Trust. We work together as a MDT to support best practice on all aspects of nutrition, promote learning and sharing best practice to enhance the patient experience and outcomes.

 

Our next event is to be held in the Lecture Theatre on Tuesday 28th September and is now open for registration on ESR. We are looking to encourage 2 members of staff from each ward to attend the day-long event which will include sessions on pressure ulcers, interactive sessions on feeding patients, electronic menu ordering and, by popular demand, yet another quiz! As well as being a forum for learning and sharing ideas, the NLWs report into the Nutrition Steering Committee and the Nursing and Midwifery Committee to highlight and celebrate best practice and support ongoing areas for improvement. We have also introduced formal competencies that can be used as CPD and will count towards a PDR and Revalidation.

 

Please register for this event ASAP. If you need any further information, please speak with your ward Dietitian and/or SLT, or email Laura Woodend.

 

Save the date!

Outstanding Service and Care Awards (OSCAs)

What an incredible 12 months it has been at UHCW.

It has been a year spent in the spotlight of the world after we proudly administered the first Covid-19 vaccine last December. A period where the BBC Hospital cameras followed our every move to produce a compelling six-part series.

And, of course, it has been a time where the challenges of Covid-19, as well as the need to restore services to pre-pandemic levels, continued.

Throughout it all the unwavering commitment and compassion of our staff in delivering the best possible care to our patients has shone through. That is why we're asking staff to take part in the nominations for this year’s Outstanding Service and Care Awards (OSCAs).

I am delighted to say, after a one year absence, we are again able to hold our traditional awards ceremony alongside some of the virtual elements that worked so well in 2020 (watch this space for further details).

A special evening is in store at the DoubleTree by Hilton in Walsgrave on Friday 5th November – so expect plenty of fireworks!

Further details on the categories can be found and nominations made via our website, with the deadline for entries set at 11.59pm on Tuesday 31st August 2021.

DAISY Awards in July

What an extraordinary month we have had at UHCW celebrating our extraordinary nurses and midwives across the Trust. To date, a total of 36 of our extraordinary Nurses and Midwives have been congratulated as deserving honourees of a prestigious DAISY Award!

Our DAISY honourees that were presented with a prestigious DAISY award in July are: RN Katie Campbell from ward 23, RN Claire Wise from ward 15, and RN Lisa Archer from the Day Surgery Unit at Rugby St Cross.

This month really has taken our celebrations to new heights, where for the first time ever RNs Katie Campbell and Claire Wise are the first 2 nurses in the entire Trust to have received two DAISY awards!

On presenting the award, we came to learn that honouree Claire Wise has now been appointed as her departments first breast feeding nurse specialist, as a result of her extraordinary care. Congratulations Claire!

We also want to shine a spotlight on Katie and asked her to share the experience of being the first double DAISY award honouree in the Trust:

“I'm so overwhelmed to be the first ever double DAISY honouree at UHCW… I didn't really have many words as it was so unexpected. I've been incredibly lucky to have several nominations but to actually be double awarded had me lost for words… as a team on W23 we definitely try to give the best we've got… I'm incredibly grateful to our ladies”.

Congratulations to each and every one of our honourees!

Tweets of the month

 

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