Newsletter for the staff of Barnsley Primary Care Trust No 39 June 2008

DYING TOO YOUNGBy Ian McMillan

We’re dying too youngDying too youngWe’re a song that won’t get sungA funeral bell that’s often rungBecause we’re dying too youngDying too young..

Years ago you saw them gasping for airAt the end of every street;White faced, flat-capped, wrapped in despairHalf dead on their shuffling feet;‘It’s the pit, kid’ they’d wheeze,‘and the dust, and the cigs, and the booze’And they’d sway like trees in the slightest breezeAnd say ‘this is the life that I choose’This is the life that I choose.

But now, here in Barnsley, we can make a choiceA choice between life and death;Between sinking and swimming so let’s make some noiseand fill up our lungs with good breathand Frisbee the chip pan to the end of the yardand fill up your plate with lettuce, cucumber,and hold back on the pork pies and dripping and lardand learn how to jive and to rumbalearn how to jive and to rumba

We can all use the stairs and not use the liftWe can walk down to school with the kids;We’ve been given a life and that’s a fine giftSo let’s not put our life on the skids;Let’s get a check up and see how our heartsAre pumping the blood round our veinsThe smallest of gestures can be how it startsSo let’s drop them crisps down the drainLet’s drop them crisps down the drain

Let’s get a health check todayLet’s put some more years on the clockLet’s throw the beer cans awayAnd let’s put a stop to the chocOlate and to the raiding of fridgesThe slobbing on setteesThe eating of stodge; it’sUp to me and it’s up to thee...Up to me and it’s up to thee...

Because we don’t want to die too youngDon’t want to be a songThat won’t get sung...

Fit for the Future, with the help of Yorkshire poet Ian McMillan recently launched Dying too young, a plan designed to help the people of Barnsley who are aged over 40 to get more support and help to look after their health.

“Heart disease is the main cause of premature death in Barnsley,” said Public Health Director Paul Redgrave. “So we decided to do something about it. The ‘Dying Too Young’ event included a programme to encourage all people over 40 living in Barnsley to have a simple check-up to assess their risk of heart disease and diabetes and to ‘know your score’.”

Fit for the Future has been making good progress in encouraging people to stop smoking, undertake more physical activity and improve the food they eat. However, they are keen to do more to make sure healthy choices are easy choices - by improving opportunities for physical activity, such as walking, cycling, dancing and eating better food.

Caption: L-R Tom Sheard, Chairman; Ailsa Claire, Chief Executive; Steve Houghton,

Leader of the Council, BMBC; Ian Macmillan, poet, Paul

Redgrave, Director of Public Health and Dr Martin Sics,

Chair of the Professional Executive Committee.

below: Ian Macmillan

Barnsley Bard supports ‘Dying too young’ event

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Message from the Chief ExecutiveCongratulations to Care Services StaffStaff who work within the Care Services Direct (Provider) side of the PCT have been recognised at the Board meeting for their performance and business development achievements. I have recently been conducting a review of all the business units and would like to commend their work and recognise the high standards of performance our services have achieved over recent months. There really has been an immense shift in Care Services Direct’s Performance levels and these are really something we should all be proud of. Well done everyone.

National Skills PledgeWe have recently signed up to the National Skills Pledge. Although we have always been committed to training and development of staff, the Pledge means more specifically:• we have made a commitment to actively encourage and support our employees to gain the skills and qualifications that will support their future employability and meet the needs of the PCT; • we will actively encourage and support our employees to acquire basic literacy and numeracy skills, and with Government support work towards their first Level 2 qualification in an area that is relevant to our business/organisation• we will demonstrably raise our employees’ skills and competencies to improve company/organisation performance through investing in economically valuable training and development.

We will offer these opportunities to staff but it is down to each member and their line manager to identify the skills they need in their staff development review and personal development plans. More information on the National Skills Pledge can be found online at www.traintogain.gov.uk/skillspledge

Two new directors for Care Services DirectAdrienne Pickering has been appointed as Director of Information Technology. This post is primarily based within Care Services Direct but also provides technical support to the PCT commissioner. Adrienne is currently employed by Doncaster and Bassetlaw Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust as Head of Information. She will be taking up the post in about three months and will be based at Kendray. More information will be communicated once Adrienne begins her role at the PCT.

Karen Taylor has been appointed Director of Operations for Care Services Direct, the provider part of the PCT. Karen will be known to many of you, having been acting into the post for the past 9 months. Karen is a nurse by background and has a wealth of experience in management.

Healthy Ambitions launchedNHS Yorkshire and the Humber have published the results of their wide-ranging review identifying huge improvements that will be made to the NHS in the region.

Healthy Ambitions is the culmination of the NHS Next Stage Review which has involved hundreds of doctors, nurses, midwives and health professionals from every part of our region in drawing up a blueprint for higher quality NHS services. The report outlines how the regional NHS will face the challenges of the future and our priorities for the next 10 years.

Priorities for action include:• A better system with fewer journeys for patients, carers and families.• Healthier lifestyles – with a halt in the rise in obesity.• Rising breastfeeding rates – with reduced variation across the region.• Halving the number of children admitted to hospital with asthma.• Mental health services available without waiting.• Half the number of preventable admissions from diabetes.

An additional £150m has already been identified to implement these changes.

Margaret Edwards, Chief Executive NHS Yorkshire and Humber, said: “This year will see the 60th anniversary of the NHS. The communities we now serve are very different to when the NHS was set up. Public expectations are changing; working and family lives have altered; people are living longer and the patterns of disease are radically different from sixty years ago.”

We are looking for Community Health Champions!!Local people are set to benefit from significant improvements in health services - with three new GP practices in local areas and a new GP led Health Centre in the town!

Improvements will see increased access, extended opening hours, new services closer to where people live and more doctors.

Over the coming weeks we’ll be talking to local people about the services they’d like to see in these new GP practices and in the new GP led Health Centre. You could help!

Are you a natural communicator? Do you listen to the views of others with empathy and compassion? Are you known for your common sense approach, or for getting others more involved? Have you got the skills to influence those making decisions?

By becoming a ‘Community Health Champion’ you could help local people get more involved in decisions about changes to local NHS services in your area. You could also find yourself acting as a source of accurate information, letting others know what is planned for their local GP service or the new Health Centre in the town.

We are looking for people with excellent communication skills who are happy for others to contact them for information or support. Naturally, you’ll be interested in or have experience of using local health services. You may already run a local fitness class or community group, you might be involved in your church or social club, or you may simply be ready to take on a new challenge. Either way you’ll have what it takes to act as a link between your community and the NHS in Barnsley.

So, if you live or work in Barnsley and would like to work with others to help improve local NHS services we want to hear from you!

For more information please contact Joanne Wilson on 0114 282 3530 or email: jwilson@thecampaigncompany.co.uk

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News in briefIt’s good to Walk! … and you’re all invited

Inspired during their attendance at the Fit for the Future Dying too Young event (featured on page one), Barnsley Arena are arranging a special walk and they are encouraging friends, family and partners to join them .

Lynne Eliott, Chief Executive at Barnsley Arena said: “we are putting our organisational pledge to promote health into action. We have decided to go for a walk and to celebrate Barnsley’s green spaces.”

The walk takes place Friday 27 June and they will be using the BMBC Walking Guides, following Guide no. 3 - Dearne Valley Park, Hoyle Mill. The walk is 2.1 miles (3.2 km) and is rated Easy/Moderate.

Instructions are to bring a packed lunch and meet at the Dearne Valley Park car park on Pontefract Road, ready to leave at 11.00am. The estimated time taken for the walk is 1hour 15 minutes.

HSJ awards Have you had chance to enter your initiative into the HSJ awards yet? This is a fantastic opportunity to promote your service, get recognition and reward for hard work. Almost every relevant discipline from IT to patient safety is represented and entries come from all over the UK. This year we have created three new categories in the form of World Class Commissioning, Workforce Development and Best Social Marketing Project, to represent the shift in NHS priorities. Anyone thinking of entering should inform one of the PCT’s communications leads (Katy Jarvis or Helen Claughton) for support with their entry. Visit http://www.hsjawards.co.uk/home.asp for the online entry form and category info. Closing date is 28 June.

National Darzi Review – update

The Our NHS, our future Review team has published “Leading Local Change”, a document setting the context for the upcoming SHA local visions and the principles which will guide their implementation. Also launched is a best practice guidance called Changing for the Better. Next to be published will be the nine SHAs who are releasing their local vision documents as part of Lord Darzi’s wide-ranging NHS Next Stage review. Visit http://www.ournhs.nhs.uk/ for more information on the review or to download the documents.

We’re Medipex winners!Staff from across Yorkshire and Humber’s National Health Service were invited to the awards which show the clinical world new ways of providing better healthcare for patients, at the Medipex NHS Innovation competitions 2008 awards ceremony, held last month.

Out of the four categories, fifteen initiatives were shortlisted from the many entries received, and Barnsley PCT’s initiative was picked as the winner from the publications and training materials category. The prize was a glass trophy, £2000 to fund the initiative and also networking and further support for the initiative as it develops over the coming months.

Amanda Jackson, (pictured) from the Yorkshire and Humber Specialised Commissioning Group (SCG) Educator Co-ordinator (hosted at Barnsley PCT), picked up the Yorkshire Forward Publications Award for the creation of a parent information leaflet for newborn skincare. This was being developed in response to a lack of qualified information on how to treat newborn skin properly, and identifies issues such as the avoidance of baby toiletries in the first few weeks of life.

Since winning the award, Amanda has moved jobs to work in Scunthorpe, but remains a member of the North Trent Neonatal Network, so will be able to take forward this important piece of work. She said: “I still can’t believe we won. It was a real honour to be shortlisted but the prize is the icing on the cake. This money will make all the difference in creating awareness amongst parents who have newborn babies. We are already looking forward to promoting this initiative wider than the network in the future.”

Richard Clark, CEO of Medipex, the organisation that handles innovation across the region’s NHS said: “The Yorkshire and Humber NHS Innovation Competition is now in its fourth year, and each time we are surprised to see the strength and depth of innovation across Yorkshire and Humber’s NHS. The region is home to truly world class services and innovation, and it is a privilege to play a part in rewarding these achievements.”

Medipex Ltd is the NHS Innovation Hub for the Yorkshire and Humber region. It is one of a national network of NHS innovation hubs that manage and exploit Intellectual Property (IP) emanating from within the NHS including Primary Care Trusts. Caption: (L-R) One of the judges, Andrea Scully from Yorkshire Forward, presents the PCT’s Amanda Jackson with her prize cheque with Medipex Chief Executive Richard Clark.

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Barnsley’s first TPP SystmOne system has been installed and launched at Rotherham Road Medical Centre. TPP SystmOne includes a range of modules that provide an integrated electronic patient record within the system, offering features that are aligned with clinical requirements that is maintained and developed by TPP (The Phoenix Partnership) via a centrally-managed service that works to the advantage of both patients and healthcare professionals. Mike Robinson is the Practice Manager at Rotherham Road. “So far, the new system has proved to be great,” said Mike. “It’s a patient-based software system that has allowed us to develop electronic communications at a local and national level with a proper support system in place,” continued Mike.

The benefits to the team at Rotherham Road have been that the new system is more compatible and they can also access more services for patients via the system. The system change was quite challenging, starting in September 2007 with manual data entry being performed from November 2007 through to the end of March 2008 when the system went live. Some of their new functions include:

• electronic booking, using Choose and Book• Pathology links (lab testing)• Electronic appointments• Document scanning

“It’s a really patient-focused system,” explained Mike, “at reception, the patient books in using an easily accessible touch screen. This then lets practice staff and doctors know they have arrived. We can use this information to manage the waiting times whilst they are there and to also easily audit attendance and appointments post visit.”

Future plans are already in place to develop the system further, as the practice are working with TPP to develop a prescribing enhancement that meets their local needs. “Once we’ve organised a system that works, we know there are other practices that will benefit from using the same system too.

“it’s taken a lot of work to get to this stage but the benefits have been significant, and the ongoing support has been exceptional from both the PCT and NHS Yorkshire and Humber. It’s been a springboard for improvement so we are pleased that we made the move and it’s always nice to say we did it first,” ended Mike.

Paul Foster, Assistant Director of Information Services added: “The NHS’ vision is to have a more modern, efficient, patient-led health service and to give patients more choice and control over their own health and care. The aim of introducing TPP via the National Programme for IT is to deliver new, integrated information systems and services to help modernise the NHS and ensure care is patient-centred. This requires delivery of the right information to the right person at the right time.”

He went onto say “The PCT are currently implementing TPP SystmOne Child Health and Community modules to replace existing PCT systems, so once these modules become operational, the Rotherham Road Medical Centre practice will begin to see additional benefits previously unknown in Barnsley through the wider sharing of patient information, where it is appropriate to do so.”

Pictured:( left) Mike Robinson, Practice Manager and (above) at the booking in station: (l-r) Sandra Watson, Receptionist and Fay Ward and Sharon Johnson both Secretaries.

SystmOne has arrived in Barnsley

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Every Adult Matters updateLast month we ‘met Martha’ from the EAM team and touched upon some of the new roles that have been developed in response to the EAM work currently taking place. There has been a lot of interest in the Care Navigator role and this month we meet the very first two people to be taking part in the Dementia Services Pilot and working as full time Care Navigators, Viv Tingle and Julie Longstaff (pictured). Both are currently based at Oak Park in Kendray.

PCT News was interested to find out Viv and Julie’s personal journeys and what the role of a Care Navigator means to them.

Viv Tingle returned to work in the NHS after training here in the 80s. During that time she has worked in the private sector, nursing in the community in Chesterfield before returning to Barnsley PCT in November 2003. She was working in respite care at Kendray which included community work with home visits. “It was my favourite part of the job, interacting with service users in their own environments,” explained Viv, “So when I saw the Care Navigator post advertised, I realised it was exactly what I wanted to do and applied at last minute. I was thrilled to be offered the job.”

“The Care Navigator role feels a lot more proactive and this has a huge appeal to me. Helping people to cope and promoting independence, developing a care approach that fits their need feels like a massive step in the right direction. In the past I have seen people get care packages that does not match their need and they end up unhappy. I’m determined that the care navigation will be a flexible approach to finding solutions that fit individuals.”

Outside work Viv is passionate about her tourer caravan and taking long weekends with her family to places that are out of the way. She enjoys gardening, music, the theatre, visiting her daughter who is currently studying psychology at Aberdeen University and going to concerts (particularly rock ones!).

Julie Longstaff has worked for the NHS since she was 15 years old. Her career has spanned over 30 years and she has been with Barnsley PCT for 19 years. “ In 1992 I successfully completed the enrolled nurse conversion course and this combined with my wide experience allowed me to gain promotion over the next few years.” Said Julie.

“Throughout my long, varied and extensive career, most of my experience is with clients (and their carers) who suffer from memory problems. My experience, knowledge and

dedication will hopefully enable the person with dementia and their family to have more choice and control in determining and receiving the best care that they need.”

The navigator role is about enabling people to have the information to make decisions and choices about what’s going on in their lives to support and guide people though care systems that can appear confusing in a world that is already becoming strange and unrecognisable. Part of the Care Navigator role includes working with families, and carers, and making sure their needs are met and that they are happy too. “I think it all fits with putting the Service User at the centre of our approach, and although it’s early days and it’s going to take a lot of work to get us there, we are already making a difference on the pilot. Half the battle is about knowing what services are out there. We’ve been gathering information and researching in preparation for this project - there’s a lot of work involved in building the role so it can function properly.

Outside work, Julie’s just become a grandma for the third time. Her grandchildren are aged from new born to seven, so she has plenty of babysitting duties to fulfil. She has also recently moved house so has been getting her new garden in order and has lately discovered the joys of travelling further afield. With a son also living in Korea she has lots of future trips planned.

Current plans for the Care Navigators include being based in GP Practices. Viv will be based at Walderslade, Hoyland and Julie at Garland House in Darfield. We’ll bring future updates of the Care Navigators’ progress in future issues of PCT News.

Next month look out for details of Eamonn Mulligan, Programme Manager who is in charge of projects and governance arrangements for EAM.

New toolkit available!

A newly launched Personalisation Toolkit has been developed by the Care Services Improvement Partnership (CSIP).

The toolkit is a collection of information resources based upon the experiences of the Individual Budget Pilots aimed at supporting the implementation of some elements of Putting People First.

CSIP are working on developing a programme to support implementation of the Toolkit - further information will be available shortly. Visit http://icn.csip.org.uk/personalisation/index.cfm?pid=1005 to view the new resource.

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2007 2006 2005 Compared Score Score Score with others*

% Staff working extra hours 53 63 64

% Staff using flexible working options 82 77 82

% Staff appraised within previous 12 months 82 65 64

% Staff having well structured appraisals within previous 12 months 39 37 38

% Staff appraised with PDPs within previous 12 months 75 56 55

% Staff receiving job relevant training, learning or development in previous 12 months 80 81 -

% Staff working in a well structured team environment 43 41 43

% Staff having health & safety training in previous 12 months 89 87 92

% Staff suffering work related injury in previous 12 months 8 7 10

% Staff suffering work related stress in previous 12 months 27 25 30

% Staff witnessing potentially harmful errors/near misses/incidents in previous month 20 24 25

% Staff reporting errors/near misses/incidents 97 88 89

% Staff experiencing violence from pts/relatives in previous 12 months 11 11 10

% Staff experiencing violence from staff in previous 12 months 0 0 1

% Staff experiencing harassment/bullying/abuse from pts/relatives in 12 months 16 18 18

% Staff experiencing harassment/bullying/abuse from staff in 12 months 12 11 11

Quality of work life balance (x/5) 3.65 3.60 3.67

Quality of job design (x/5) 3.41 3.38 3.39

Support from immediate managers (x/5) 3.76 3.65 3.62

Extent of positive feeling within organisation (x/5) 2.88 - -

Fairness & effectiveness of incident reporting procedures (x/5) 3.41 3.42 3.43

Perceptions of effective actions towards violence & harassment (x/5) 3.60 3.57 3.58

Availability of hand washing materials (x/5) 4.63 4.56 4.55

Staff job satisfaction (x/5) 3.56 3.56 3.57

Work pressure felt by staff (x/5) 3.02 3.04 3.06

Staff intention to leave jobs 2.62 2.57 2.50

Statistically significant deterioration since 2006

Statistically significant deterioration since 2005 *Above the desired side of average compared with other PCTs with MH

Statistically significant improvement since 2006 *Average when compared with other PCTs with MH

Statistically significant improvement since 2005 *Below the desired side of average compared with other PCTs with MH

The Healthcare Commission published the 2007 annual staff survey results last month and a breakdown has been given which highlights the PCT’s position when compared to previous year’s results and other mental health trusts.Of the 26 key areas, Barnsley PCT was found to be: • Average in four areas• Better than average in 19 areas• Worse than average in three key areas.

The Chairman, Tom Sheard commented that: “These are a good set of results based on a decent response rate of +60%.” He added: “We can use the results as a tool for further development.” The full set of results from the 2007/08 staff survey are now available online at: http://www.healthcarecommission.org.uk under surveys > 2007 NHS staff survey.

• Overall the results are very positive, with more areas than ever before showing statistically significant improvements (blue shaded cells). Further, where deterioration has been seen, the PCT is still better than average compared to other comparable organisations in many areas. This may be because the PCT had a high starting point and/or there may have been overall deterioration across other Trusts with whom the PCT is compared in that question area. The PCT scored better than average in 19 of the 26 indicators and average in a further 4.

• There are three areas which have been a consistent concern since the first staff survey in 2003:

• The PCT has been below average every year for the % of staff stating that they work in a well-structured team environment. This doesn’t appear to be deteriorating but neither has there been an overall improvement• The extent of positive feeling within the PCT has been consistently worse than average year on year. Changes in the way this question was worded in the 2007 survey mean that statistical comparisons with previous years have not been made. It should be noted however that last year this area showed a statistically significant worsening and this year’s score of 2.88 is the worst score yet seen. This is in contrast to good and improving scores in other areas which would otherwise be expected to have a positive impact on the extent of positive feeling e.g. less staff are working extra hours, quality of work life balance has improved, support from managers is increasing and work pressure felt by staff is reducing. • Staff intention to leave their jobs has been getting worse year on year since 2004 to statistically significant levels. For the first time this year, the PCT is worse than average compared to other organisations in this area.

• As anticipated, staff appraisal uptake has shown a massive increase as the KSF has become embedded across the PCT.

A working group has been set up to develop an action plan to address the staff survey results and will be reporting more on this in future issues of PCT News, so watch this space!

Staff survey results: a breakdown Barnsley PCT Staff Survey Results/Comparisons

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Work on reconfiguration of community mental health services continues, following the original visioning day held on 31 January (see Feb PCT News for more information). The reconfiguration steering group have set up a number of time out sessions at the Blue Bell in Dodworth to agree the way forward and involve a number of staff and stakeholders in this work to ensure everyone’s views are heard.

PCT News dropped by the event to speak to some of the staff there to get a first hand account of how the work is potentially going to change their working lives and the services that are delivered in the future.

Jill Jinks is the team manager for the Central Community Mental Health Team. “We hope the outcome of this work will be that service users get the services they need, when they need them,” said Jill, “This may mean their route is possibly via primary care, but whatever the route, it needs to be without stigma.

“What’s becoming clear is that jobs will be done differently in the future,” added Jill, “this may have other benefits, like improving job satisfaction. We’re using models of care to help direct this work and its clear that there is a huge amount of work to be done and commitment is needed at every level. These sessions offer a perfect opportunity to collect opinions and views which will be vital to getting this right.”

Maxine Groves is a service user who is involved in helping to reconfigure services to better meet the needs of our clients. “It’s good to be involved with change and the fact that there has been more effort to understand patient needs and coordination with service users means that the end result should be an easier journey for people using the services. I welcome the change if it works – I’d like to see less blocks in the way when you’re ill and trying to get well you need a smooth path to follow. With this work, we can learn from past experiences and although we sometimes query whether we have been here before, we must try to do this to get better.”

Helen Day is a Personnel advisor in the HR department. She said: “It’s been really helpful to be involved in this work from an early stage. What’s interesting is the way this work does impact on the whole of the PCT. From a HR perspective, I’m interested in the changing role definitions. It has been helpful to have the chance to meet people in person and have the opportunity to understand and consult with everyone. What should not be underestimated is the breadth of this project, and how it is being developed, although this is a very huge project to undertake, it’s been handled in a really refreshing style and paves the way for working together constructively in the future.”

Pat Pope is a Physiotherapist. She said: “Clinical therapy in mental health plays an extremely important role. Since the last meeting we have reviewed our last piece of work and circulated documents amongst the group. We looked at a model from Lincolnshire and it was a useful exercise, it is certainly something we could build on here and you can see the similarities between Barnsley and Lincolnshire.

“Although the presentations mean that you only get a limited perspective of a couple of people’s experiences, there are also opportunities to dig a little bit deeper.”

The group have been using an external facilitator to help them move the work of the steering group forward. “it’s been really useful to have that resource,” added Pat, “His viewpoint is objective and he keeps the sessions flowing well. It’s also been helpful to hold the sessions away from the workplace as you don’t get the distractions that follow you at work!”

“Since starting on the reconfiguration, the work has since broadened our horizons and made it more obvious how much we work in a team with other areas who we are also involving in this work, such as Crisis Care, HR, the Recovery Team and other team leaders, our work all has impact on each other and we’re working on the vision to define where we all sit within that in the future.”

Pam Cooper is an Occupational Therapist who works on the Community Mental health Team for Older People at Kendray. “We know there is currently room for improvement,” said Pam, “but what is important to me and my colleagues is that we make sure OT is embedded in the future services as it has a vital role to play. We feel that we are currently spread too thinly across the services and this is frustrating as it leaves little time to achieve the service we should be delivering. OT enhances the quality of service that is delivered and part of our objective for being involved in this steering group is to help staff understand our role and encourage an inter-professional approach rather than being multi disciplinary.

Reconfiguration work’s moving on

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A look at … Home WorkingLots of staff at the PCT are able to work flexibly away from their normal work base. The PCT has a Home Working Policy which covers this type of ad-hoc working.

Before staff can do this, they need to discuss their home working options with their line manager as sometimes, it is not possible for their role to be conducted away from the work place.

Where this is agreed the PCT’s Home Working Policy comes into play. The policy looks at associated risks to their health and safety, that information assets, both electronic and paper are carried, held and worked upon in a secure and confidential manner.

Occasional homeworking can be a constructive way of meeting urgent deadlines and completing specific project work, as well as providing a good emergency planning option when personal or business contingency plans need to be put in place.

It’s not necessary to allocate a room in your house to work from home. It’s up to you! As long as you are able to complete your work in your chosen environment in a safe and appropriate manner, the PCT supports home working wherever possible.

If you’re interested in working from home, the next step is: • Download the policy and its appendices from Connect• Complete written application to work at home• Complete the set checklist for a written self assessment to analyse risk• Submit to manager for approval

If successful with your application, you will need to stick to the following rules: • Be available! You must be contactable at all times • Record your hours on your time sheet• Take care of your health, safety and security• Check your home insurance permits you to work from home• Protect PCT information and equipment• Follow statutory working time directives (see a full break down in the policy)

Download the policy at: http://nww.barnsleypct.nhs.uk/policiesandprocedures/

‘Our survey said…’• 81% of staff drive to work in a car• 35% of those using their car to come to work are prepared to car share with other employees• Only 8% of staff walk to work although 24% live less than two miles from work

These are just some of the findings to come out of the staff travel survey conducted in November 2007.

All staff were asked about their travel to work habits and over a quarter responded (25.9%). They also responded in exactly the same proportions of males and females as are employed by the PCT ie: 17% males and 83% females. In that sense it’s fairly representative.

It might have been expected that most people drive to work, but 4 out of 5? This seems excessive. However, from a greener travel perspective, the fact that 24% of staff live less than two miles from work and another 27% live between three and five miles away means there is great potential for increasing walking and cycling.

The proportion of current cyclists (to work) at 5% is disappointingly low, but not unexpected and although the vast majority of staff say they would not cycle under any circumstances, there is still considerable potential to increase the percentage if facilities are provided.*

The Travel Plan Working Group has been looking at the report’s findings and is drawing up recommendations to put to the PCT Board.

The full report from SYPTE on the ‘travel to work’ habits of the PCT’s staff is now on Connect – click on Projects and Groups to find the Travel Plan page.

*Watch this space: there are now bicycle lockers on the Kendray site, due to be fitted with suitable lock fixtures!

In order to comply with the N.M.C. Standards for Supporting Learning in Practice (N.M.C 2006) each clinical area or team which supports students in their final placement is required to have trained sign-off mentors. It is anticipated that wards at Mount Vernon and CRRU at Keresforth will also take final placement adult branch student nurses in the future.

The next Sign Off Mentor Workshop is: Thursday 26 June, 9 – 3pm at the University Centre, Barnsley, 4th floor Meeting Room (the building next to Barnsley Town Hall).

To book a place please send a study leave form signed by your manager to Angela Wilde, Training Co-ordinator, Centre for Learning and Development, Keresforth Centre.

Sign-Off Mentor Workshop for staff

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Imagine being ‘allocated’ to someone you’ve never met before and suddenly, you’re having to spend 7.5 hours a day, five days per week for five weeks duration with this person. That’s what happens to student nurses during their twice-yearly community mentorship placements and it can be both a rewarding and daunting time for both student and mentor. PCT News met Gary James this month to hear his first hand experience of mentoring, share in his recent success presenting his paper ‘Nowhere to Run – A Student in a Community Setting’, a paper about community nursing student placements at the recent Commonwealth Nurses Federation Conference in Malta.

“You often find your very first introduction is made as you are both jumping in the car and making your first visit,” began Gary, “this is an intimidating moment for both the student and the mentor, and your social skills are truly tested!”

Gary is a student nurse at the University of Sheffield, and has been on a number of placements since he started his course. He has used his experience, comparing acute-based nursing on the wards to community health visiting and nursing to aid his learning and has found mentoring to be mainly positive.

“I’ve spoken to fellow students and not everyone has felt so positive about mentoring,” Said Gary, “Your time with your mentor is so precious, on the wards they can be so busy and in the community you get the chance to have discussions and learn in between appointments. Some peers have had mentors who’ve preferred to turn up the radio in between appointments and this becomes a lost opportunity to the student learner.”

In his second year, Gary’s community placement was with Barnsley’s Health Visitors and Community Nurses. “I was really interested to find out how I would be received in the community as a male student nurse, but I actually felt welcomed and really enjoyed being involved with the baby clinics! This was a really hands-on placement and it was motivating to find everyone so friendly and welcoming towards me. I then had the opportunity to work with three great Community Nurses and learn three practice styles. We worked in some diverse situations and they really promoted the learning opportunities I had.”

Gary has kept a journal while in community and listened to other student’s feedback throughout all the placements to date and this helped him in writing the paper which drew on all his experiences and landed him the opportunity to present to the academic paper at the Commonwealth Nurses Federation Conference which was hosted by the Maltese Union of Midwives and Nurses (MUMN) in Malta. His trip was supported by the PCT, BHNFT and the School of Nursing and Midwifery.

Margaret Kitching, Director of Professions at the PCT said: “Gary has done extremely well to be selected to present in front of this international audience and we are proud to have been part of his positive mentoring experience. This kind of first-hand feedback should be shared more often amongst qualified staff and now he has had some practice, we have plans for Gary to present his paper to people locally!”

Gary continued: “I have had a lot of support in my journey to date from the PCT, BHNFT and the University including my personal tutor who has helped me to share my passion for

good mentorship and how much value it can add to a student’s learning experience. Although the presenting part was quite nerve-wracking, I worked on my delivery of it the night before until it was perfect and the actual presentation went really well. One of the most memorable parts of the trip was the feedback I received from one of the organisers, a Maltese Staff Nurse who starts his mentorship training soon. He told me that I had made him look at the mentor role in a different light. “During the trip I met key people, including the President of the RCN, the President of the MUMN and the Maltese Minister of Health. I was given a VIP tour of the newly built hospital there. It was also really interesting to find that Malta have similar problems to us in relation to nursing.”

In addition to keeping the journal and his coursework, Gary has interviewed his community mentors following his placements to get personal feedback on the transition from being mentored in an acute ward to the community setting.

“It’s that order, routine and familiarity that you get on acute placements that changes completely when you work in the community where every day is different. In the community you have to work as a team and react and adapt to the situations you become part of, there’s no emergency buzzer to press, no team to come running so you need to make the right decisions and work together to achieve a result in an emergency.”

What does the future hold for Gary? “I really liked my health visiting and community nursing experience, I felt that the mentors were friendly and really cared about my progression. I have a few more presentations to make as a result of the paper I wrote. I qualify in May 2009 and hope to obtain a permanent position and start my Preceptorship – I plan to do this in a ward environment. My long term goal is to work in the community but I realise that I need to build up my experience in an acute environment first.”

In conclusion, it’s neither the responsibility of the mentor or the student to make a successful placement, but how each party deals with the situation can make or break the experience. Mentors need to remember their time as a student and how they felt when they were learning to when they qualified. A nurse never stops learning and both the mentor and student can learn from each other. Do you have an experience you’d like to share in PCT News? Get in touch details are on the back page.

Malta Benefits from Barnsley PCT Experience

How to be a good mentorBe friendly!Acknowledge good workGive constructive feedback early onCommunicate oftenGive quality time to your studentDon’t assume knowledgeAsk them for feedback

How to be a good studentListenUse every opportunity to learnBe helpfulAsk questionsBe interestedAsk for feedbackMake the most of your 1-2-1 time

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Penny wins regional Adult Learner AwardDuring Adult Learners Week, the PCT was pleased to hear that Penny Priestley, who has been through the PCTs’ TLM internship as part of the employability programme has won an award.

Following a nomination from Linda Palmer, Staff Development Officer in the PCT’s Centre for Learning and Development, Penny was short listed and won Adult Learner of the year (2008) for the Yorkshire and Humberside Region during the Adult Learner’s Week Award Presentation, organised by NIACE, the National Institute of Adult Continuing Education and held at Leeds Town Hall.

Penny said: “I’m really pleased to have won this award, it was a bit nerve wracking going on the stage at Leeds Town Hall but it was worth it! The TLM scheme has been a fantastic opportunity for me to do lots of different courses whilst in the process of working and gaining experience in my different job placements in the PCT. The scheme is a very good way of helping somebody to build up their confidence and introduce them in to a working environment.”

The Internship Programme is run by the Employability Team in the Personnel Department. Penny has been on the programme since September 2006 and has worked in Smoking Cessation until recently. She is now applying for a number of jobs in the PCT. Good luck Penny!

Caption: Penny was presented with her prize and certificate from Dr Cathy Doggett, the Head of University Centre Barnsley.

Adult Learners’ WeekAdult Learners’ Week is an annual week-long national campaign delivered each May which seeks to engage and inspire people to pursue adult learning - either to catch up on skills not learnt at school, to learn for or at work, or to learn for fun.

It is the UK’s largest learning campaign, and promotes education and training for adults, provides access to information and guidance, motivates more adults to participate in learning opportunities and celebrates the learning achievements of adult learners through regional and national awards.

The National Institute of Adult Continuing Education, NIACE, is the largest organisation working to promote the interests of learners and potential learners in England and Wales and, since 1992.

The PCT held an open day at its new Centre of Learning and Development at the Keresforth site, offering staff the chance for a sneak preview prior to its official opening next month.

Staff were given the chance to look round the building, talk to staff to discuss learning needs, test out the new ‘smart board’ technology and admire the new facilities. “This week ties in well with the PCT’s National Skills Pledge, which is mentioned on page 2 in the Chief Executive’s foreword,” said Jeremy Robbins, Assistant Director of Human Resources (Development & Learning). Our new facilities at Keresforth are fantastic, we are so proud to be able to show people round. It really is a step in the right direction and we are pleased that the PCT places so much importance on developing its staff. I would encourage everyone to embrace their learning opportunities. We want our workforce to be skilled and motivated and the key to achieving this is through making the most of the training resources that are available to us.”

Next on the agenda for the Team is the launch of an e-learning platform which will enable staff to complete mandatory training using online software in the workplace or from home. Look out for more news on this in Connect and future issues of PCT News.

Pictured: During Adult Learners Week are Benita Parnhani, Catering; Rose Goldsmith, Health and Safety; Angela Glover, Training; Cecilia Cunliffe, Catering and Gina Senior, Training.

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Fruity Friday is organised by World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) – and Barnsley Community Dietitians launched a competition to win a fruit hamper.

Fruit and vegetables provide a wide range of nutrients necessary for good health and increased consumption is known to have a wide range of health benefits and can significantly reduce the risk of many chronic diseases such as heart disease, stroke and some cancers.

‘Guess the apple’ competition, fruit tasting and a representative from the Community Dietetic Department were in the Barnsley, Kendray, Keresforth and Mount Vernon hospital restaurants on Friday 16th May over lunchtime.

The Community Dietetic Department found it a fun way to get the 5ADAY messages across and would like to thank all those involved and who took part.

Winners of the fruit hampers were:Joanne Merritt and Jill Dalison from the Orthopaedics Dept. at the Hospital.Steve Jones from Keresforth Hospital and Bryan Wragg from Kendray Hospital.

Michelle Huber from the Early Intervention team at Kendray ‘guessed the hidden fruit’ activity and won £20 and as well raising £20 for WCRF.

We’ve got the keys!The handover of the Oakwell Centre at Kendray was completed last month when the builders officially handed the building over to the PCT.

An open day for staff and partners is planned for the middle of this month (June) – details of which can be found on Connect.

Staff who are due to be working in the Oakwell Centre were given an orientation session around the building. As you can see from the pictures, the building was still classified as a building site at the time, therefore staff were made to wear PPE.

Cecilia Crump, Estates Asset Officer led the tours and demonstrated some of the building’s state-of-the-art features. “It was a good opportunity for staff to get a feel for the new building,” said Cecilia, “I think it’s a lot bigger inside than people expect and it will probably take some getting used to but there was also an air of excitement amongst the staff as they looked round. It’s hard to imagine what it will be like when the service users and staff occupy the building but it’s fair to say that it is a definite improvement on their current building!” We will keep you updated on more Oakwell Centre News over coming months so look out for more photos and developments in PCT News.

FruityFriday

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Cecilia CrumpLynne Elliott Paul FosterAngela GloverMike RobinsonAmanda JacksonGary JamesDon JonesKath Kershaw

Keep in touch! A record number of mums turned up to the latest keep in touch event, held at the education centre at BHNFT. The babies were treated to a baby yoga demonstration and the mums were given information packs and the chance to network with each other.

Community Staff Nurse Emma Drinkall has just completed and passed her Nursing Degree with a 2:1 at Sheffield University, her colleagues at Darton Health Centre all send their Congratulations. Well done!

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Casino Night’s a winnerThe Physio team based at BHNFT held a Therapy Fundraising Event – a casino night last month at Brooklands Hotel, and successfully managed to raise over £3000 for specialist neurological equipment.

Kirsty Lycett, Senior Physiotherapist from the Acute Neurology team said: “We’d like to give a big thank-you to all those who kindly attended and donated towards our event. It was a great night and we had lots of fun!”

Keep sending in your information, ideas and stories to:

Katy Jarvis, PCT News, HR Building, Kendray or email Katy.jarvis@barnsleypct.nhs.uk or tel: 01226 43 ext 4298.

Thank you.

Margaret KitchingJulie LongstaffWendy LowderKirsty LycettJoanne PooleJeremy Robbins Dan SlaterViv TingleKirsty Waknell

Thanks to this month’s contributors