Posted on: 6 September 2021
On Wednesday 1 September 2021, all acute team members in CNWL were invited to discuss good practice and transformation ideas. The event took place in the Mahatma Gandhi Hall at the Indian YMCA Building with face masks and socially distanced seating in place.
The event was hosted by Kim Cox, Director of Nursing for Jameson Division, and introduced by Maria O’Brien, Chief Nurse for CNWL. They set out the main purpose of the forum – having discussions that will improve safety for staff and patients. It provided an opportunity to share ideas and discuss how they can be adapted for local service needs.
The packed and varied agenda included several polished presentations:
- Anthony Okwuokei, Oxehealth Lead, and Dr Mehtab Rahman, Consultant Psychiatrist & Trust Physical Health Lead, spoke about the successful trialling of Oxehealth’s digital care assistant on Nile Ward.
- Kim Cox and Reena Sharma, Project Delivery Officer, presented findings from the Mental Health Optimal Staff Tool Project. This is an evidence-based tool that enables nursing teams to maintain clear records of decision-making when it comes to maintaining safe staffing levels across the organisation.
- Helen Willetts, Director of Nursing for Goodall Division, and Ony Vambe, Lead Nurse Hillingdon and Group Clinical Fellow, spoke about their implementation of the ‘See Think Act’ Framework in clinical practice – a methodology designed to support staff in achieving violence reduction. Hillingdon was the first site in the UK to trial ‘See Think Act’ in an acute setting.
- Benjamin Ayisi, Matron for Hazel Ward and Topas, and Sinclair Hungwe, Matron for Willow Ward & Cherrywood, delivered the final presentation. This focused on the role they’ve played, as matrons, assessing the safety and quality of inpatient services through walkarounds, in liaison with key stakeholders.
Attendees provided feedback, asked questions about each other’s projects and thought collectively of ways in which certain projects could be implemented more widely across the Trust. They also shared ideas for how certain projects could develop in the future. For example, Dr Simon Edwards, Medical Director for Diggory Division, suggested that junior staff could be brought on to matron’s walkarounds to increase both their personal development and the overall quality of staff engagement in inpatient wards.
Kim Cox facilitated group discussions on both the possible removal of plastic bags from inpatient areas and the introduction of safety pods into acute settings – see this video for a presentation on the latter. Once the context had been set, attendees debated these complex topics and discussed ways of empowering staff and patients to implement these projects.
The future plan is to hold Acute Care Forum workshops three times a year. The next will be held virtually in January 2022 followed by a face-to-face one in May 2022. Attendees were also invited to send in parts of their presentations for a safety conference being held in November 2021.
Kim Cox ended the day thanking everyone for their contribution: “the presentations were both helpful and informative. Its rewarding to see what everyone can offer to different teams – there’s been a real willingness to share and motivate one another.”