Hello and welcome to our new style executive director’s blog. This short piece is designed to share a few highlights of the week as seen through our director’s eyes and help spread any news. Please let us know if there are any particular subjects you’d like us to cover here by emailing either d.wake@nhs.net or dgft.communications@nhs.net. This week is from Medical Director, Julian Hobbs.
Workforce
We are committed to ensuring our service grow and develop and that we have the right people with the right skills and experience looking after our patients. In the last year we have invested in all staff groups, with significant investment in nursing and also new consultant posts.
We now have the largest number of whole time staff that we have ever seen, although the total numbers show small changes because over 100 pathology staff TUPE’ds across to Royal Wolverhampton employment as part of the Black Country Pathology programme. It is exciting to see even more new consultants being appointed over the coming weeks. This is in line with the increasing numbers of patients we are seeing and treating and everyone’s efforts to make our care the very best are very much appreciated.
I was delighted to take part in the Chief of Service interviews for Surgery a fortnight ago when Mr Mushtaq Ahmed was successfully appointed. I am looking forward to working closely with him and Karen Kelly to implement 7 Day Services.
I would like to thank Matt Weller over the last 18 months for his unstinting support and his very relevant and insightful contributions to the running of the Trust. I would like to wish him well as he returns to full time clinical practice (if indeed he ever left it) and his ongoing interest in medical education.
MTI Recruitment
I was recently invited to go to Pakistan to interview for MTI doctors. We interviewed 40 doctors for 16 positions. I was very impressed with the quality of the candidates we interviewed and I am hoping that we can welcome them into the Trust and successfully enhance their training. There is an expectation that they will return to Pakistan after 2 years with significant clinical governance and quality improvement experience in addition to completion of their Postgraduate exams and a wealth of clinical experience.
Dying Matters Week 13th – 17th May
It’s Dying Matters Awareness Week this week, and there’s lots going on across the borough. The week aims to encourage active planning for death and dying, and gives an opportunity to talk about death, dying and bereavement.
Our draft CQC report and national feedback recognises the palliative care team and others contribution in this area but we do need to support these efforts to help our patients have a dignified death in the place of their choosing.
Clinical Summit
A Clinical Summit is taking place on Friday, 5th July 2019. An agenda is currently being set. Dr Stephen Powis, National Medical Director has kindly agreed to speak at what we hope will be a useful and well attended event. Invitations have gone out to permanent medical staff and the elective team look forward to seeing you there.
And in other news…
Looking back on last week we had several high profile events including having the ‘force’ with us!
The children’s ward organised a fantastic visit from several of the Star Wars characters who also did a tour of some of our other areas. There was a real buzz and someone even mentioned it’s not every day you get to take on the CEO with a light sabre!
We held awareness sessions in main reception to celebrate the start of Ramadan. People need to be mindful that some patients may be fasting, and it is important we respect colleagues who fast.
Ramadan is the month when healthy adult Muslims give up food and drink from before dawn to sunset. Advice should be given to patients who wish to fast to ensure they are not putting their health at risk. However inpatients who are ill, recovering or on medication should be exempt from fasting.
It is also important that colleagues respect other members of staff who may be fasting. We advise staff who intend to fast to talk to their managers. Don’t assume that all Muslims will be fasting.
We also held a series of celebration events across the week in recognition of all our wonderful nurses and midwives. Great fun was had whilst encouraging future generations to join the professionals and sharing best practice – there’s an outtakes video somewhere! Celebrations coincided with International Nurses Day and International Day of the Midwife.
We also made sure we encouraged people to think about good infection prevention and control practice through Hand Hygiene day.