Welcome to the latest edition of your UHSussex staff newsletter, a round-up of the news stories from across our hospitals throughout July |
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Dear colleagues,
July was a historic month for the NHS as it celebrated its 75th birthday. To mark the occasion, we shared the history of our hospitals, heard from colleagues about what the NHS means to them, and saw several of our Star of the Month winners attend a special anniversary service at Westminster Abbey.
This month, we witnessed another milestone with the delivery of imaging equipment as part of the build of our first Community Diagnostic Centre at Southlands, opened a new fracture clinic at St Richard's, and saw the Louisa Martindale Building in Brighton become fully operational.
What's more, we followed a colleague's journey of discovery after featuring on ITV's on Long Lost Family, praised Sussex Endometriosis Centre for surpassing the national requirements to maintain its accreditation, and shared the results of a hospital rehab garden transformation.
These are just some of the stories to share in a month where colleagues have been working extremely hard to maintain patient safety through several periods of industrial actions, which included five days of junior doctor strikes, two days of consultant strikes, and two days of radiographer strikes.
So please grab a cuppa and take some time out to catch up on our news.
Thank you,
Communications
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Marking 75 years of the NHS |
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On Wednesday 5 July the NHS marked an impressive 75 years of service.
75 years on, it’s safe to say the NHS has given a lot and meant so much to many people, be that as a workplace or where a loved one has been cared for.
To mark the occasion, we shared messages from our colleagues about what the NHS means to them. We also delved through our archives to see how healthcare has developed over the decades to support the needs of our patients and staff.
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Stars attend anniversary service at Westminster Abbey |
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Several of our Star of the Month winners joined 1,500 fellow NHS colleagues at a special service to celebrate the NHS 75th birthday.
Bella D’Almeida, Clinical Specialist and Service Lead for Pelvic Health Physiotherapy Team at Worthing, Southlands and St Richard’s hospitals, Clementina Santofimio Gonzalez, Housekeeper at the Royal Sussex County Hospital, and Abi Downham, Pharmacy Technician at Worthing Hospital, were invited to the Westminster Abbey service, which also included senior government and political leaders, health leaders and celebrities.
Bella said: "It’s lovely to be invited to such a special occasion – I am so proud to work for the NHS alongside some truly amazing colleagues.”
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Patients and staff benefit from new fracture clinic |
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A newly renovated fracture clinic at St Richard’s Hospital will allow fracture patients to be seen more quickly and will reduce the length of time from referral to first appointment for elective patients.
Previously A&E, the Urgent Treatment Centre (UTC) and the trauma and orthopaedic service at St Richard’s all shared the same facilities to treat patients.
This new fracture clinic for both fracture outpatients and elective patients is separate from emergency and urgent care, increasing the capacity of our trauma and orthopaedic service and the care it can provide.
As well as a larger and lighter space, the refurbished clinic includes a plaster room, individual consultation rooms and additional space to allow for physiotherapists and occupational therapists to join clinics on a regular basis.
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Faster diagnosis process for women with endometriosis |
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Women with severe endometriosis can be diagnosed and treated earlier thanks to a dedicated service at Princess Royal Hospital (PRH) that has maintained its accredited status for the third year running.
Sussex Endometriosis Centre (SEC) is the county’s first and only centre of excellence for the diagnosis and treatment of endometriosis and is supported by a multidisciplinary team of nurses, gynaecologists, urologists and radiologists.
To achieve accreditation, services must meet certain criteria to showcase excellence in this field, including performing at least 12 severe endometriosis cases per year. Last year the team surpassed that mark by performing 26 cases. They saw more than 370 patients at the clinic and carried out over 140 general surgeries.
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From the classroom to the outdoors |
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A group of students from Seaford School spent the day at Donald Wilson House, a specialist neurorehabilitation service at St Richard’s, revamping their garden to provide a more accessible and welcoming space for patients.
As part of a voluntary community day, the group of 14–18-year-olds tidied up the garden to create a tranquil space, filled with beautiful flowers and plants for patients to enjoy.
The group built a large, raised planter which is accessible for wheelchair users so patients can get their hands dirty, new tables for relatives and friends to enjoy socialising in the garden, as well as a new purpose-built gate increasing safety for the patients.
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The Louisa Martindale Building now fully operational |
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BBC and ITV News crews were on hand to capture the moment the Louisa Martindale Building (LMB) became fully operational in July as all wards and the critical care unit moved into the new building at The County. |
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Another imaging milestone at Southlands Hospital |
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The MRI scanner arrived in style as part of another important milestone in the build of our first UHSussex Community Diagnostic Centre (CDC) at Southlands.
Construction of the multi-million-pound centre, which is funded thanks to national investment through NHS England’s CDC programme, continues at pace.
Following the opening of Phase One to patients in the autumn, work will start on Phase Two, refurbishing the current radiology department to provide additional on-site ultrasound, gynaecological investigations, lung function testing and echo services.
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Practitioner discovers family she never knew on Long Lost Family |
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Rachel Burch, an operating department practitioner at St Richard’s, appeared on ITV's Long Lost Family after contacting the show to help find her birth father.
Growing up in a predominantly white family, Rachel yearned to know more about her roots. It was while working on the frontline during the pandemic and seeing patients not have their family with them, that she began to think about her own family even more.
Researchers on the show discovered her birth father had sadly died 20 years ago. But using Rachel’s DNA, the specialist researchers began searching for other family members and found her half-sister, Sian.
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People Pulse Survey: July 2023 |
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There is still time to take part in the quarterly NHS People Pulse survey before it closes on Monday 31 July.
It takes five minutes to complete and provides an opportunity to share your insights and experiences. The outputs from the survey are reviewed at a national level and will help to shape the support available for NHS people across the country.
The results make up the Staff Friends and Family Test and is part of the NHS People Promise ‘A Voice that Counts’
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Team race in memory of colleague |
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Several members of staff walked the Southsea Race For Life this month in memory of a St Richard’s Hospital nurse.
Regi Johny was a nurse for 20 years at St Richard’s who lost her battle with cancer in April this year.
The team of colleagues, who participated in the race as Team Regi, raised £2,655 (and over £600 in gift aid) for Cancer Research UK. They would like to thank everyone who has donated to the cause in support of Regi.
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Rain couldn't dampen our spirits at Worthing Pride this month. We danced in it, cheered with the crowd, and had a truly wonderful time.
Thank you to our charity, My University Hospitals Sussex, for organising this amazing event for our colleagues.
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Patient First Planet First news |
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Pilot project hits international headlines |
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We were thrilled to share our reusable suture kit story with the international publication Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) News this month.
Professor Mahmood Bhutta, Clinical Green Lead who instigated the project, said in the article: "We cannot talk about planetary health without embedding certain principles into everything that we do — and health care is no exception.
"We absolutely have to reuse what we can - it's part of future health care."
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Staff receive heart-warming gesture amid strike weekend |
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A huge thank you to the Durban Curry Club for reaching out to the Emergency Department at the Royal Sussex County and Royal Alexandra Children’s hospitals to arrange delivery of hot meals for staff on the weekend of the five-day strike action by junior doctors.
The events caterer based in Brighton joined forces with My University Hospitals Sussex on 14 July to provide staff with 100 hot dinners. Durban Curry Club Director, Marilyn Chelliah Beadle, and the Charity’s Head of Funds Assurance and Operations, Sam O’ Mahoney, served up butter chicken curry, Kashmiri aubergine curry, pilau rice, paratha bread and pickled salad potato samosas as a well-deserved culinary treat for colleagues.
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In a first for My University Hospitals Sussex, the charity launched its ‘My Comedy’ night bringing together the local community for an evening of belly laughs and raising funds for our hospitals.
The event, held last month at The Charmandean in Worthing, sold out to an impressive line-up of comedians, some of whom have appeared on Mock the Week and Live at The Apollo. All had generously donated their time to support the charity and to entertain more than 150 in the audience.
Director of Charity and Voluntary Services, Steve Crump, said “The Trust’s dedicated charity not only has a new name and look, but it also has a new ambition to host great events with community and joy at the core. Our first ‘My Comedy’ night was a great success filled with laughter and the spirit of giving back. A huge thank you to our comedians Mark Cram, Alasdair Beckett-King, Kate McGann and Anthony Ayton for helping us to raise a fantastic £2,000 on the night. We’re looking forward to holding many more My Comedy nights in the future!”
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In case you missed it....
Here's our round-up of all the stories and updates across the Trust in July:
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Patient feedback highlights |
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