Members E-Newsletter
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Spring is here and we have seen a significant and welcome drop in Covid-19 since I last wrote. At the moment we have no Covid-19 positive patients in intensive care on either of our hospital sites. This is in line with what is happening across North West London. |
| At the Board this month, there was a long discussion of what we as a Trust have achieved – the numbers of patients we have treated, the changes we had to make, and the learning and innovations we introduced. There was a huge thank you to all staff, contractors, and volunteers for their work throughout the year from the whole of the Board. | |
Staff thank you event
Tuesday 23rd March marked the one year anniversary of the first lockdown. We held a virtual event to commemorate and to thank all staff and volunteers for going above and beyond in this extraordinary year. We spent some time reflecting on, and commemorating, how far we have come together. We reflected on how difficult it has been but also celebrated. Please view An Extraordinary Year - Thank you to staff and volunteers.
Recovery at the Trust
We managed more work through wave 2 of Covid-19 than we did in the first wave, although like all Trusts it was not possible to do everything we wanted. Like all Trusts we need to reduce our backlog of cases, while ensuring our staff can reset and recover. What I can say with confidence though, is that our staff have shown time and time again what a resilient, resourceful, innovative, and magnificent team they are and I have no doubt we will get there.
Post Covid-19 service opens
As you know, Covid-19 can have lasting effects, informally called Long COVID. The Post COVID Assessment Clinic at Chelsea opens this week. Three clinics now cover the NWL sector; Central Middlesex Hospital, Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, and Imperial.
They all offer a 30 minute assessment by a physician, Occupational Therapist, Physiotherapist and Clinical Psychologist.
Patients are referred by their GP.
Vaccinations
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Last week the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visited the vaccination hub at Westminster Abbey. They met NHS staff and volunteers and joined in a moment of reflection, lighting a candle and laying flowers to remember those have been lost through the pandemic. On the same day we opened a community hub at Brentford Fountain Leisure Centre, Brentford. It is important that the vaccination campaign reaches into all parts of our communities. |
#ProudAwards
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The #Proud Awards are a way of recognising staff who go above and beyond. Here are just a few of those presented recently.
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Our pre-operative assessment team, who have been flexible and adaptive going above and beyond to provide excellent care to our elective patients and also supporting Intensive Care Unit (ICU) during Covid surges.
Pain Clinical Nurse Specialist Kelly Ramotar. Award winner for helping to embed good practice and role modelling to the team.
Pauline, ICU matron at West Middlesex Hospital. For her amazing leadership and the dedication she shows to her staff and patients. She is always “the first person in the unit and the last person out”.
Tracy Boswell Paediatric Practice Development Nurse at West Middlesex Hospital. Tracy has been instrumental in ensuring high standards of care are given to our patients. She ensures new nurses are supported as they transition from student to qualified nurse. |
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Public Health Team shortlisted twice by HSJ
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Two projects of the Trust’s public health team have been shortlisted for the prestigious HSJ Value Awards.
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“A Picture of Health” saw the Trust working with Imperial College and supported by the Health Foundation to identify a core catchment area for the Trust. It then estimates the health needs of people in that catchment, to help plan services and public health responses.
For “Tip Top Teeth” the Trust worked with Kensington and Chelsea, the City of Westminster, and Public Health England (London). Almost 1 in 3 children in our catchment area are estimated to have visible signs of tooth decay by the age of 5, an almost entirely preventable disease. This project uses hospital appointments for other reasons to reach children at risk. |
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Make It Matter
I was impressed by this sensitive animation on end of life care, and how we can make even someone’s last days matter. Watch it to get a sense of what #unfailinglykind looks like.
| Farewell to the troops
The last volunteers from the Royal Anglian Regiment left their duties at West Middlesex site this weekend. They impressed us all with their hard work and can-do attitude, and supported us across a wide range of departments. They go with our warm thanks and gratitude. |
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Lifecycle Project
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We are committed to helping staff travel safely to and from work. We actively encourage staff to walk, run, cycle to and from work if possible. Lifecycle Project is here to gift bikes to key workers. The project has been developed by Bouygues E&S Solutions, InfraRed and HCP with many bikes being donated by staff.
The lifecycle project team received over 600 applications from key workers for a recycled bike, which is amazing.
The next stage of this project is still to be introduced. If you would like to help and have a bike that is no longer required, even if it’s in need of repair (e.g. puncture) please email [email protected] and he will arrange to collect it.
The next phase will also include kids’ bikes and we can assist some of underprivileged children in our local schools and communities, so again if you have bikes gathering dust in your shed, these can also be collected. |
CW+ COVID-19 Response and Innovation
Our charity’s COVID-19 Rapid Response Fund continues to welcome donations here to help us respond to the evolving needs of our staff and patients. The fund is supporting our extensive staff health and wellbeing programme, which has become a mainstay in how we support staff across the Trust, even after the outbreak.
Additional ongoing support includes the provision of remote patient care via Trust developed apps such as Klick, for stable HIV patients and DBm-Health for patients with diabetes.
This month, our innovative Neonatal Palliative Care project – supported by CW+ and in collaboration with True Colours Trust - was launched across the UK with the Trust's Alex Mancini, now the country’s first National Lead Nurse in Neonatal Palliative Care at the helm.
CW+ is the official charity of Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust including its hospitals and clinics. www.cwplus.org.uk
Your Experience Matters
We want your time at Chelsea and Westminster and West Middlesex Hospitals to be the best possible.
Learning of your first-hand experience of the hospitals' services would provide valuable insights and help us improve our performance.
If you would like to share your experience to make a difference, please contact the Membership Team on E: [email protected] or T: 020 331 52885.
Meet a Governor Sessions
Our Council of Governors, elected by you, play an important role in making sure your views as members and those of the wider public are represented by the Trust
If you would like to speak to a governor directly, please join one of our next upcoming Meet a Governor sessions. For more information please click here.
Health Seminar Invitation: Older Adults & Fragility - Staying healthy
Join us for our next virtual Health Seminar to hear Lucie Wellington (Improvement and innovation fellow and Physiotherapist) and Emma Goodman (Senior Physiotherapist) speak about how older adults, including those with frailty are supported at the Trust and in the community to stay healthy.
Date: Tuesday, 13 April
Time: 4:00pm – 5:00pm
The seminar will be hosted by Nowell Anderson, Public Governor.
Staying in touch
Your next e-newsletter will be out in April with more news and events. In the meantime, keep safe and well and thank you for your continued support, we will be in touch again to tell you more about events and opportunities.
There are several ways for you to keep in touch. We love to share information about our work, and you will find lots of stories about us on social media.
• Instagram: Trustwide
• Twitter: Chelsea and Westminster • West Middlesex
• Facebook: Chelsea and Westminster • West Middlesex
For any queries, or to update on any changes in contact information, please contact the Membership Officer by emailing [email protected] or call 020 3315 2885 for more information.
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