Part of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust
Connect
The newsletter for Trust members with an interest in heart and lung care
be Informed be Invited be Involved
A legacy of kindness
A Legacy of Kindness, a film produced by Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals' communications team, captures the continued efforts being made by staff at our hospitals to care for some of the sickest Covid-19 patients.
The film follows the stories of frontline staff, who speak openly and emotionally about their experiences, the personal sacrifices they have made and the pride they have in the level of care given to patients. Read more.
Collaboration between hospital teams saves newborn
Close collaboration between clinicians from Royal Brompton Hospital and Evelina London Children’s Hospital, part of Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, has saved the life of a new-born baby with a rare congenital heart disease. After making a diagnosis while in the womb, clinical teams were able to perform life-saving surgery on the baby boy just hours after being delivered. Seven months on, baby Leo is thriving, thanks to the joint efforts of specialists across the hospitals. Read more.
How one Covid-19 patient was given a second chance at life
A Covid-19 patient at Royal Brompton Hospital who was on ECMO for more than 60 days, longer than any other patient treated at the hospital during the first wave of the pandemic, has thanked staff for performing ‘a miracle’ and giving him a second chance at life.
Raj was admitted to the hospital with respiratory failure and put on ECMO - a form of life support. Staff were worried he wouldn't survive, however almost four months later, Raj defied all odds and walked out of hospital. He has spoken about his recovery and the care he received.
Read more about Raj’s story here.
Research study to determine the health benefits from singing gets go ahead
A research study has been awarded funding to determine whether singing classes can help people maintain the health benefits seen after undertaking pulmonary rehabilitation.
Pulmonary rehabilitation is an education and exercise programme recommended for people with lung conditions to help improve the management of symptoms, such as breathlessness, the ability to exercise and improve quality of life. Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals have their own pulmonary rehabilitation service which is run by physiotherapists at both our hospital sites. Read more.
See the events section of this newsletter to learn more about music activities you can participate in
Research to identify the sickest children post-Covid-19
A new study authored by Royal Brompton Hospital paediatric cardiology consultants, Professor Alain Fraisse and Dr Carles Bautista, in collaboration with the infectious disease department at St Mary’s Hospital (part of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust) has been published in the journal Pediatrics. The study will help clinicians to identify which patients with a new syndrome, called paediatric multisystem inflammatory syndrome (PIMS-TS), will go on to become very sick and therefore what treatment is best for them. Read more.
To learn more about the latest heart and lung research taking place at our hospitals and to hear from two of our leading researchers, visit events and register for this webinar taking place on Wednesday, 24 March at 10am.
NOMINATIONS NOW OPEN
Council of Governors
Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust
The deadline for completed nomination forms is
5pm on Monday 29 March 2021.
If you have an interest in our Trust and in helping us continue to deliver the best possible care to our patients then please consider standing for election as a governor.
If you are interested in standing for election, more information and the online nomination form can be found here.
Stay tuned for details of the upcoming governors' awareness session on Friday 19 March for anyone interested in learning more about being a governor.
You can help shape how services are delivered at our new imaging centre
Construction on the new Imaging Centre at Royal Brompton Hospital continues to progress well, with the recent removal of the tower crane being achieved on time. The crane removal allows contractor, Kier, to progress to the next key stages of work, on track to open the building to patients in December 2021.
We look forward to involving members in helping us shape how services will be delivered at the new imaging centre. If you are interested in learning more, please email [email protected].
Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals are committing to meet NHS England’s target to become ‘Net Zero’ by 2050, as part of its ‘For a Greener NHS’ campaign.
Our Green Plan sets out what we will do in our hospitals to help meet this target and improve our environmental impact across a number of areas, including waste and recycling, biodiversity, energy production, and travel.
We have been making positive strides on sustainability, despite the challenges presented by the Covid-19 pandemic. Some of the recent changes include the introduction of compostable food packaging at both hospital sites, promoting and protecting biodiversity on hospital grounds by restoring green spaces such as lakes and gardens, and mass tree planting. These initiatives have the added benefit of improving patient wellbeing.
We look forward to keeping you up to date as our sustainability plans develop. If you have a particular interest in this area and want to learn more about how you can get involved, please get in touch at [email protected]
A walk through nature and history of Harefield Hospital
Rb&hArts is working on a project that aims to encourage patients, staff and the local community to explore the great outdoor spaces of Harefield Hospital, and get healthy while doing so. The project will introduce a series of signs around the hospital that will guide walkers to different areas of interest on hospital grounds, culminating at the newly restored hospital lake.
On their journey, patients and staff will see information about Harefield’s diverse greenery, and stories of Harefield’s past – from nurses treating Anzac soldiers during WWW1, to modern day clinical firsts such as the UK’s first combined heart and lung transplant. Walkers will also come across motivational tips – for things like exercise, breathing and posture – that they can use to set their own health goals. Goal setting during outdoor activities such as walking can provide a valuable tool for patients, in their recovery.
Influenced by the NHS #EndPJParalysis and ‘Get Up, Get Dressed, Get Moving’ nationwide campaigns, which aim to encourage patients to keep active so they can recover more quickly, the guided walk around Harefield Hospital similarly hopes to encourage patients to keep mobile while in hospital and stimulate their physical and mental wellbeing.
To learn more about this rb&hArts project and how you can get involved contact Annabelle Bond at [email protected].
a
Events for members and patients
a
Focus on innovation:
the latest heart and lung research at our hospitals
Date: Wednesday 24 March
Time: 10.00am - 11.00am
Location: online
Register to attend: click here
Join Professor John Pepper, consultant cardiac surgeon and professor in cardiothoracic surgery at the National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, and Professor Christoph Nienaber, consultant cardiologist and co-founder of International registry of Aortic Dissection for an exceptional opportunity to gain insight into the latest heart and lung research at our hospitals. Read more
Be inspired, get involved
Date: Tuesday 13 April
Time: 10.00am - 11.00am
Location: online
Register to attend: click here
We welcome you to join us for an uplifting event, where we will look back over the past year to highlight some of the great work that our hospital staff, volunteers and supporters managed to achieve during a particularly challenging time.
Whether you are a patient, carer, member of the public or a member of staff, whether you are time rich or time poor, there are many ways you can get involved to support the community. Find out more.
What a 'hybrid' model means
for the future of patient care
Date: Friday 23 April
Time: 10.00am - 11.00am
Location: online
Register to attend: click here
‘Transforming patient care’, ‘a hybrid model of care’ - join us to learn what this means for the future of your care. Join us to better understand these changes, learn what other developments are on the horizon, how you can help shape future services and what you can do if you have concerns about these changes. Read more.
In case you missed it:
Covid-19 vaccines:
your questions answered
Over 200 members joined online to hear from our experts who spoke about the benefits of having a Covid-19 vaccine, dispelled some common myths surrounding it, and answered a range of questions from members.
If you missed this event you can watch a recording here.
Music making events
Music-Making sessions
every Wednesday and Thursday
Inpatients and outpatients can now book 1-2-1 singing, beatboxing, song-writing and instrumental Zoom sessions with one of our musicians. Activities are tailored to each child or young person’s interests. Sign up here.
New music production and singing/song-writing courses coming March 2021
We will soon be launching a music production course and a singing/song-writing course, where participants from both courses will work alongside each other to create a complete track. Participants from the music production group will create a backing track, which the singing and song-writing group will use to write and record the vocals for. The end result will be a fully original recording of a Vocal Beats song, accompanied by a video. You are welcome to participate in one or both courses. No experience is necessary and all levels are welcome. Please register your interest here.
Young peoples’ sharing event
If you would like to co-produce an online event with us to share music and issues that matter to young people in the NHS then we want to hear from you!
Details and first meeting dates coming soon. Please email [email protected] to get involved.
Updates and events hosted by the charities supporting our hospitals
The Brompton Fountain
Our Covid-19 online webinar took place in January featuring presentations from various Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals’ staff members, and a Q&A session with parents of cardiac and respiratory paediatric patients. Over 100 families attended the webinar and the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, with attendees saying they left the webinar feeling “reassured” and “optimistic”x.
Our next webinar will take place on Thursday 11th March from 7 - 8:30pm. The topic is “Paediatric Dental Health”. If you are interested in signing up, please register here.
The Trailblazers youth forum (for RBH patients 13-25 years old)
The Trailblazers continue to meet virtually for monthly catchups and activities. The last event in January saw members trying to complete an online escape room. Although failing to escape the room in time, they have vowed to attempt another one later in the year to prove they have what it takes!
The next Trailblazers activity is on Sunday 28th March at 3pm, a painting workshop via Zoom. If you or your child is 13-25 and a current/former RBH patient, please register your interest in the Pop-Up painting session here. Spaces are limited.
Finally, we would like to once more thank our amazing supporters for their donations over the past few months. It has not been an easy time for any of the frontline workers at our hospitals, but the small tokens of appreciation have gone a long way to maintaining morale. We set up an Amazon Gift List for supporters to buy items from, which we have been distributing to staff as they arrive. Thank you for your continued support in these challenging times. It really does make a difference.
Royal Brompton & Harefield Hospitals Charity
Covid-19 Relief Fund
On the 1st of February Royal Brompton and Harefield Hospitals Charity launched the Covid-19 Relief Fund to support staff and patients at Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals during this wave of the pandemic.
Funds from the appeal will be used to buy life-saving equipment for those needing urgent care now and into the future. We launched the fund after we saw a significant increase in demand for critical care capacity at Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals.
Gill Raikes, Chief Executive of Royal Brompton and Harefield Hospitals Charity, said: “Our NHS colleagues are working around the clock looking after some of the most ill Covid-19 patients and we are aiming to provide them with the equipment they urgently need. This equipment will help our NHS colleagues not only care for the current wave of Covid-19 patients but support them into the future as they deal with the long-term challenges of this deadly disease.”
The Covid-19 Relief Fund aims to raise £100,000 to contribute to priorities, such as ECMO machines to treat the sickest Covid-19 patients and Patient Experience Coordinators to deliver face to face or virtual activities that will improve the experience of adult patients. It will also support staff wellbeing by providing sustenance packages, including drinks, hand cream, massages and treatments to help our NHS colleagues rise to the challenge of the pandemic.
After nine years at the helm, Gill Raikes is stepping down
We are sad to announce that Gill Raikes is stepping down in April as Chief Executive of Royal Brompton and Harefield Hospitals Charity after nearly nine years at the helm.
Gill has shepherded the charity through nearly a decade of events, appeals, carol concerts and fun runs. Over the years, Gill has managed the team through events, carol concerts, donor tours and fun runs. In the wake of the pandemic, the charity has had to develop a whole new way of working, balancing its day to day fundraising commitments, with responding to the needs of patients and staff affected by the pandemic – such as launching its first emergency appeal in March last year.
Gill said: “It has been an enormous privilege to be part of the Charity which raises funds for these two world class hospitals. I have met so many life changing people; doctors, patients, and our generous donors. Donations come in all sizes – sometimes from Charitable Trusts, or perhaps from participating in a half marathon or by baking cakes or coming to our Golf Day. But all gifts are inspiring and moving and by supporting our Charity, you have made a real difference to the lives of thousands of patients, their friends and families. It has been my pleasure to share in your stories and I will remember you all as I start a new chapter in my own story.”
Everyone at the Charity wishes Gill all the best for her next adventure. It’s hard to imagine the Charity without her, but whatever happens next, we will all keep working hard to raise funds for staff and patients at our two wonderful hospitals with the same passion that Gill brought to her leadership.
January saw the launch of the Royal Brompton & Harefield Hospitals Alumni Network – recognising and connecting staff at the hospitals, past and present, and their contributions to our reputation as a world-leading centre in heart and lung care.
In the first month since launching, over 150 current employees and former colleagues from all areas have joined. From administration and managerial areas to clinical and research backgrounds, as well as honorary staff, we have welcomed alumni from across the globe. If you worked at the hospitals or are currently employed here, register to reconnect with colleagues past and present, access education and training, networking events and job opportunities.
We understand the importance of building long-term relationships between our hospitals and our alumni, encouraging new opportunities and continued personal development. Wherever you are in the world, we want you to keep in touch with us and the international community that has shared the Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals' experience. If you have any questions or would like to have an active role in the network please contact Maria Rosemin, Alumni and Community Manager, [email protected].
Your Membership
If you have any questions or want to share your feedback about Trust membership, we’d be delighted to hear from you. Contact Nancy Dickinson at [email protected].
To unsubscribe from receiving emails, please click here.