A premature baby being cared for in an incubator.

Membership Matters

York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

August 2024

Head and shoulders shot of Martin. A message from our Chair

On behalf of the Trust, a company called Civica is running the election process for Governors who are elected by Members who live in that constituency. At the time of writing this article, in some of our constituencies, there have been no Members at all wanting to be a Governor. I hope by the time of the closing date later today, this will have changed. There is still time, so I would encourage any Member who has the time and ambition to be a Governor to step forward. The time commitment is in the region of 8-10 days a year.

More details on Governor elections.

I could not be more pleased for the Trust’s workforce that our new Government has accepted the independent Pay Review Bodies’ recommendations in full, and that there is some optimism that the junior doctors’ dispute over pay is nearing resolution. It is about time that NHS staff had a pay rise above inflation after a lot of years of below-inflation pay rises. On the other hand, the restrictions that GPs who are members of the BMA have been advised to place on their work (i.e. to work to their contract and not beyond) are likely to have significant ramifications, but at the time of writing this article, it is far too early to know the implications of such advice if it is followed, having begun on 1 August. This dispute arose as a result of the 1.9% increase offered by the previous Government. I understand that negotiations are continuing with the new administration.

The Trust is continuing to introduce improvements to reduce waiting times for patients attending our emergency departments, the time patients are waiting for a bed who need to be admitted, and the delays in ambulance crews being able to transfer care to colleagues who work in our emergency departments. The Trust is a significant outlier in comparison to other trusts. This is a critical issue for the Trust to improve as soon as possible. Another key issue is to continue to find and implement new ways to reduce our expenditure to help ensure the Trust does not fail to meet its financial obligations.

I am pleased to report that the Trust is making good progress in reducing waiting times for outpatients and surgery and indeed the total number of patients on the waiting list. The Trust is also making steady progress in reducing waits for patients with a diagnosis of cancer or suspected cancer.

The morale of our workforce is of crucial importance, and one of the most if not the most important priority for the Trust Board is to provide the right conditions (both physical and psychological) that will enable each person to give of their best. At the Board meeting a couple of days ago the Board approved an improvement plan based on feedback from the staff survey carried out last autumn, to help us to achieve this.

York constituency

Our Council of Governors is holding an annual constituency event to give members an chance to meet with their elected Governor(s) and other senior Trust staff, including me as Chair of the Trust and Council of Governors and our Lead Governor.

It is an opportunity to ask us questions, to share with us concerns and positive or negative feedback. It will also be an opportunity for me to share with attendees information about the services we provide in York, as well as the challenges the Trust is striving to resolve, along with some of the progress that has been made over the past 12 months. By way of background information, I joined the Trust as its Chair 6 months ago.

This will be our very first constituency meeting in York, which will take place on Tuesday 24 September 2024, starting at 6.30pm. I envisage that the meeting will conclude by 8pm. I do hope that you will be able to attend and kindly ask that you confirm your attendance by responding to [email protected]. If you are unable to attend and have a question or comments to share with me, please email me [email protected] . I hope to meet you on 24 September.

Martin Barkley

Trust Chair

Help York SCBU Support Group celebrate 40 years

A family fun day will take place on 1 September at Osbaldwick Sports Club to celebrate 40 years of York Hospital’s Special Care Baby Unit Support Group.

The group has been supporting families with premature babies in York since the 1980s. They raise money to pay for a variety of specialist equipment, from incubators to heated mattresses. The fundraising day will give families in York who have been cared for in the unit an opportunity to mark all the achievements of the group and a fabulous way for the SCBU community to come together.

Find out more about the SCBU Support Group family fun day.

Get involved

Public Council of Governors meetings

These meetings are held throughout the year and give you the chance to see first-hand the workings of the Council of Governors speaking up and representing the views of their constituents.

The Council of Governors acts as the voice of the community, ensuring local people have a say in the running of their hospital. Governors are either elected by member of the Trust or appointed by appropriate stakeholder partners, which includes nominated representatives from the Local Authority, University, and other partner organisations.

You can read all about your local governors on our website. If you would like to contact any of the governors, email [email protected], including the name of the governor you wish to contact.

The next meeting takes place on Wednesday 11 September.

Public Board of Directors meetings

These are held every other month and give you the opportunity to observe the Board of Directors on how decisions are made and what the challenges are of managing a NHS Trust.

Upcoming dates:

Wednesday 25 September, 10am
Wednesday 23 October, 9.30am
Wednesday 27 November, 10am

More details on Board of Directors Meetings can be found here.

Star Award finalists

All our staff and volunteers deserve recognition - but there are many that go above and beyond the call of duty to make the Trust a better service - with hard work, exciting new ideas and simply by putting patients first. Click here to read why they were nominated and learn how they made a difference. If you would like to nominate someone for a Star Award complete the online form.

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