Making Waves October 07 - James Paget University Hospitals

October 2007 

James Paget University Hospitals 

NHS Foundation Trust 

Making Waves 

25th Anniversary Success 

Win a Digital Camera 

Children’s art Outpatients progress Charity donation 

IN THIS ISSUE 

Bringing staff and visitors the latest news from around the Trust

Editorial 

Welcome to the October edition 

of Making Waves. This has been a 

great edition to put together 

because we’ve had so many 

contributions from across the 

Trust. Clearly Making Waves is 

becoming THE magazine to get 

published in, so remember, if you 

want to tell people about 

something, this is the best way to 

do it! I keep being told how 

much people enjoy reading it, 

and learning about what’s going 

on around the Trust, so do keep 

your contributions coming in! 

In this issue we say thank you 

to everyone who supported the 

25th anniversary celebrations. The 

general view seems to be that we 

got it just right, and the two 

major events, the conference and 

the fete, were celebrated 

successes. Thank you to everyone 

who helped make the anniversary 

such a success. Next year it’s the 

60th anniversary of the NHS (I’m 

sure most of us still remember the 

50th!) so our fete may well have 

a commemorative theme. 

You can also read about some 

major clinical developments at 

the Trust, from a support from for 

families living with diabetes, to 

fast track surgery and improved 

services in outpatients. And the 

new IPM PAS and ICM Order 

Comms are coming! Don’t know 

what they are? Read all about 

them on Page 6 and get the 

chance to win yourself a digital 

camera! 

Happy reading, and remember 

the deadline for the Christmas 

issue of Making Waves, out in 

December, is Friday 16th 

November. 

Rebecca Driver 

Head of Communications and 

Foundation Secretary ext. 2269 

2 October 2007 Making Waves 

Student nurses celebrate 

graduation in new curriculum 

Jason Lee, one of our recently qualified nurses, tells Making Waves 

how students found the new course. 

The latest group of student nurses have successfully completed the new curriculum 

with a Diploma in Higher Education Nursing from Suffolk College. This has seen them 

develop an enhanced awareness of the holistic approach to modern nursing, with 

greater emphasis on applying theory to practice during their training. 

Rigorous assessment of keys skills has been made possible by completion of written 

assignments, practical assessments, examinations, seminars, portfolio of evidence and 

practical demonstrations under the supervision of the programme leader Bob Payne. 

The clinical practice facilitators here at the James Paget University Hospital have 

developed specific clinical skills programmes to meet the demanding needs of the 

students whilst training, helping the students to analyse and apply theoretical and 

conceptual applications to nursing practice. This has substantially helped the students 

value the importance of delivering a consistently high standard of tailored individual 

care to help achieve the requirements of the Trust’s vision statement. 

Lisa Healy, clinical educator for pre-registration students has supported their 

achievement, ensuring they meet the NMC standards of proficiency for entry to the 

register and are prepared for lifelong learning. 

Support has been ‘valued very highly’ by both students and mentors in the major 

review conducted at Suffolk College by the QAA in 2005 ensuring students are fully 

prepared for their future careers. Pictured below are the students. Jason is the tallest at 

the back! 

Pictured: The students. Jason is the tallest at the back! 

ICU Fire 

All staff will know about the fire which occurred in our Intensive Care 

Unit on Wednesday 19th September. The fire alarm sounded at 15.36hrs, 

and the fire service was on site within minutes. The fire was caused by an 

overheated air extractor, fitted to the ceiling in ICU. Wards 4 and 5 and 

of course ICU were evacuated, and all staff involved have been praised 

by the fire service and the Board of Directors for their quick, calm and 

efficient approach to this incident. Patients were well cared for and 

reassured throughout, and the 57 patients who had their operations 

cancelled were rebooked by 8th October. What was most impressive was 

getting ICU open again just 48 hours after the fire occurred. 

Wendy Slaney, Medical Director, and David Hewer, Head of Risk 

Management and Governance, are leading a full review of the event. 

This will make sure that all staff’s views about what went well and what 

could be improved are captured and used to learn from the ICU fire. The 

findings of the review will be shared widely. 

Timescales for publishing Making Waves made it impossible to put 

more details into this edition, but we will be covering the incident in full, 

with interviews with key staff involved, in the December issue. 

www.jpaget.nhs.uk

Enhanced recovery after surgery 

(ERAS) or fast track surgery 

Roshan Lal and Jerome Pereira, Consultant General Surgeons at the Trust are currently developing 

a new patient care pathway for colorectal and breast patients. Making Waves caught up with 

them to find out more about this new programme that will have real benefits for patients. 

Roshan Lal Jerome Pereira 

Enhanced Recovery 

Programme after Surgery 

(ERAS) or Fast Track 

Surgery is a multi 

disciplinary approach to 

patient care. This 

pathway takes a patient’s 

perspective from start to 

finish. Detailed 

information about the treatment plan, pain control and the 

patient before, during and after hospital treatment is 

considered. Mr Roshan Lal explains; ‘ERAS involves fine 

tuning conventional clinical practice and careful coordination 

of everyone involved in the patient’s care’. 

Key factors in ERAS are: 

• patient information 

• pre operative assessment, avoiding bowel preparation 

• modern intra operative anaesthesia (fluid restriction, 

minimal physiological disturbance) 

• use of minimal invasive surgical techniques 

• reduced use of drains and tubes 

• prevention of complications 

• effective dynamic pain control (by using epidural and 

morphine sparing pain treatment) 

• early mobilisation 

• early oral nutrition 

• active involvement of the patient. 

Most of these are relevant for patients undergoing 

colorectal operations. To deliver this requires the active 

involvement and support of nurses, physiotherapists, 

anaesthesiologist, dieticians and surgeons. 

Mr Lal continues: ‘ERAS is mainly for ASA 1, 2 and fit ASA 

3 patients undergoing elective bowel surgery. Discharge, 

although achieved early, has the same discharge criteria as 

for patients treated in conventional way.’ 

Patients are given detailed information leaflet covering all 

areas of their care. In case of any ‘warning signs’, for 

example, inadequate pain control, wound problems, signs or 

symptoms suggestive of anastomotic leak, patients are 

advised to seek help from their GP or to attend A&E. 

Experience from other centres has observed a 10 to 20% 

readmission rate in the beginning for medical and social 

reasons. Most of these hospital visits are for minor problems 

not requiring a hospital stay. 

Mr Lal finished by saying: ‘Published results from various 

centres in the UK and abroad suggest significant and clear 

overall benefits for patients. This approach leads to better 

surgical outcomes, reduced complication rates (systemic 

morbidity), earlier recovery, a short inpatient stay and better 

utilisation of health care resources. In the long term it‘s 

envisaged that there will be 30 to 40 % reduction in hospital 

stay for most patients.‘ 

‘Results of our initial six months experience will be 

audited and presented at the various forums in the Trust, and 

published through Making Waves.’ 

Look back at 2006/07 

The Trust’s Annual Report and Summary Review of the Year 

have just been published. The lighter style of the summary 

aims to give staff and 

patients alike a flavour of 

our achievements last year. 

And much quicker to read 

than the Annual Report 

too! This has been really 

well received by 

everyone, and will be 

used as a handout at 

Membership recruitment 

events, and also in 

recruitment packs for 

new staff. It shows 

everyone how much we 

have achieved as a 

Trust in the last twelve 

months. 

Farewell to Dr Forster 

Dr Peter Forster, Consultant Physician, retired from the Trust 

on 8th June, with over 20 years service. Bernard Brett and 

Nigel Huston gave speeches at the event where friends and 

colleagues gathered to say their farewells. As a 

parting gift, Dr Forster was presented with an 

English longbow, pictured. Dr Forster is a keen 

fan of archery and several ‘Robin Hood’ 

references were made! Dr Forster was 

looking forward to enjoying his 

retirement, sailing on his boat and 

planned visits to France 

and Spain. 

www.jpaget.nhs.uk 

October 2007 Making Waves 3

Inside our Preassessment Clinic 

Staff will know that the preassessment clinic prepares patients for admission to surgery, as 

. inpatients or day cases. Patients normally have an appointment with a preassessment nurse 

one to two weeks before their operation. But what does the clinic achieve, and how? Here, 

Michael Lundberg Consultant Anaesthetist, Michelle Thompson, Preassessment Sister and 

Donna Carrier, Anaesthetic Administrator explain all. They recently made the semi-finals in an 

Eastern region Health Care Innovation Contest, and wanted to share what we told them with 

Making Waves readers. 

Left: The Preassessment Clinic team: left to right: Michael 

Lundberg, Consultant Anaesthetist; Debbie Norton, Staff 

Nurse; Sharon O’Connor, Sister; Irene Spencer, Admissions 

Coordinator and Michelle Thompson, Senior Sister. 

So what does Preassessment Do? 

The prospect of having even minor surgery can stir up 

considerable anxiety in a patient. A good psychological 

preparation is essential and has been shown to speed up 

recovery. Thus a lot of information is given to clarify what lies 

ahead, and ample time is allowed for questions. Many patients 

also need bloods taken, X-rays or ECGs done and medications 

stopped or modified. The Kardex and other paperwork are 

initiated to facilitate the admission process and pre-clerking (ie 

examination by a junior doctor) is frequently done at this point. 

One of our most important tasks is to identify the patients 

at risk of developing complications during or after the 

operation. Due to other illnesses patients may lack the 

functional reserves to meet the stress imposed by major surgery 

which has been compared to running half a marathon. Function 

of key organs can be so compromised that anaesthesia is 

hazardous. It is essential that these patients are thoroughly 

investigated before the operation so that specific risks can be 

identified and precautions taken. Such a patient may need 

specially tailored anaesthetic technique, monitoring and organ 

function support both during and after the operation. They will 

also benefit from close monitoring in the high dependency unit 

(HDU) for a time after the operation. Studies have shown a clear 

decrease in complications if patient risk factors are properly 

managed. Fewer complications translate directly into shorter 

length of stay and a higher patient turnover. 

High-risk patients are traditionally picked up by surgeons. 

They communicate with their anaesthetist who then initiate an 

investigation of the patient. Some patients slip through the net, 

however. When the patient is seen at preassessment one to two 

weeks before admission it’s often too late to address serious 

health problems and the operation has to be deferred. 

Occasionally, these patients are only picked up after admission 

and promptly cancelled by the anaesthetist. The patient is 

distressed, the surgeon occasionally upset, bed and theatre list 

management poor, and the result is sub-optimal use of hospital 

resources. 


All about the Well Being Questionnaire (WBQ) 

In 2004 Dr Frayssinet (then a JPUH Consultant Anaesthetist) 

developed a system to address these short term cancellations. 

On decision to operate the patient is asked to fill out a health 

questionnaire (WBQ) designed to flag up health problems and 

given a slot on the waiting list. A preassessment nurse uses 

information from the WBQ to risk grade the patient. BMI (body 

mass index), general health score, exercise tolerance and type of 

surgery (minor/ intermediate/major) make up a risk index. 

Patients who are fit or have well controlled systemic disease 

have telephone preassessment or an appointment with a 

preassessment nurse. Patients with a high risk score have their 

notes reviewed by a consultant anaesthetist, who decides if they 

need a clinic appointment or further investigations and plans 

the level of postoperative care. No patient has their waiting list 

number activated unless they have been “green-lighted” by 

dedicated preassessment staff or an anaesthetist. 

The gains of the system are that resources are focused on the 

high risk patients, who need them most. Waiting time is used to 

identify and if possible optimise treatment of co-existing illness 

that might affect surgical outcome. Unless exceptional measures 

are necessary (such as coronary interventions) no patient loses 

their original place on the waiting list. 

The WBQ system was launched as a pilot covering general 

surgical and urological patients in January 2005. It quickly 

proved its worth, as showed by an audit of the first six months 

running: short term cancellations for major medical problems 

had ceased to be a problem. Gynaecology joined the system 

from April 2007. 

Part of the 

Anaesthetic 

administrative 

team: 

Donna Carrier, 

Anaesthetic 

Administrator 

and Sharon 

Peek, 

Anaesthetic 

WBQ 

secretary. 

www.jpaget.nhs.uk

What about the Future? 

Developing the WBQ has given 

us a unique overview of the 

surgical services. With so many 

people involved, and given the 

time limits set by cancer targets, 

it is essential that everybody 

works to an agreed pattern to 

avoid “rush jobs”. Patient 

pathway mapping has helped us 

to identify and address teething 

problems and bottlenecks. 

Meetings with surgical 

secretaries, matrons, outpatient 

department staff and medical 

records have improved 

cooperation. Communication 

with primary care is currently 

being looked at, as we would 

appreciate more information 

about patient history and 

treatment to be included with 

referrals. 

The system continues to 

develop, to meet the challenges 

of the cancer and 18 week 

waiting time targets. A 

successful recent bid for 

anaesthetist cover of all 

preassessment sessions has 

enabled us to plan for a roll-out 

of the service to all remaining 

surgical specialities, subject to 

more spacious clinic 

accommodation becoming 

available. The WBQ system 

greatly simplifies the 

preoperative work of the 

anaesthetists and helps to 

implement admission on day of 

surgery. Invaluable help from 

Matthew Piggott in the IT 

department has allowed us to 

develop a system to register 

patients and print anaesthetic 

charts with all preassessment 

details filled in, which improves 

safety and facilitates 

administrative work and audits. 

Finally, a word about our 

vision: to create a ‘one-stop’ 

preassessment service, where 

patients can go straight after 

their meeting with the surgeon. 

It would make life a lot easier 

for everybody, and above all, for 

our patients!! 


Welcome to our New 

Governors 

Following the recent elections to the Governors Council, we are 

welcoming three new members to the Council, and celebrating the 

re-election of Rachel Hulse, Gillian Pope, Russell Allen and Neville 

Sanderson. Many thanks go to Allison Bester and Peter Gordon for all 

their work on the Governors Council. 

Below, meet your new Governors, hear what they can offer the Council 

and how they will be getting involved. 

Laurie Howarth 

Laurie has worked at the James Paget University Hospital since 1986. She 

sees the role of Governor as an opportunity for her to promote the Trust. 

She says: ‘We need to educate and support staff to have ownership of the 

Trust so that they feel appreciated. Communication is part of my everyday 

role and I hope to play a key part in keeping both staff and the public 

informed about the work of the Trust. As ward manager of the neonatal 

unit I hope my listening skills and organisational abilities will be helpful.’ 

Brian Callan 

Brian has 21 years experience as a manager in Yarmouth 

and Waveney Health Authority being as Director of 

Patients Amenity Services. He’s also clocked up forty years 

service in local community organisations and served as a 

County, District and Parish Councillor. Brian says: ‘Having 

received excellent service and treatment from JPUH and 

its staff over the years, I became an early supporter and 

member of the Foundation Trust. To me, my offer of 

personal practical help plus the experience I have gained seems a good 

way to show my thanks. I hope my experience as a researcher and writer, 

and my wide community contacts, will really benefit the Governors 

Council.’ 

Tim Barrett 

Tim has 30 years experience running a care home group 

in East Anglia which was highly regarded. Tim says: ‘My 

team and I were passionate about resident welfare and 

staff development and won numerous awards for 

training. Now that I have sold the care home group I 

would like to retain an interest in healthcare by helping 

the Trust to continue to provide the best of care to the 

local population. Having lived in the area for 26 years my 

family and I have all used the services of the hospital.’ 

Don’t forget the League of Friends 

The League of Friends actively fund raise for the Trust, and have money available to 

give to wards and departments. Anything from the very small to a bigger bit of kit 

can be supported. You can apply in writing for anything under £500, or fill in a form 

for items of greater value. Then all you have to do is come to a Friends meeting, 

present your bid, and hopefully secure a contribution or the full amount! 

For more information, contact Chairman Heather Cave through the Friends shop in 

the foyer, or Wendy Burman on x2680. 


Some of the 200 staff who attended 

the CSCA Bus 

ICM Order Comms Project Team - Alan Gregory, 

Kim Turner, Tina Liles, Ian Moore 

IPM PAS Project Team - Angela Woodcock, 

Cyprian Hague, Paul Harries, Veronica Riseborough 

iPM PAS and iCM Order Comms 

(Two Major National Programmes for IT (NPfIT) Projects) 

The National Programme for IT (NPfIT) is the 10 

year phased programme to use IT to benefit 

patient care across England. 

There are now two new major NPfIT projects 

underway that will affect staff at JPUH and the 

outreach hospitals and clinics in locations such 

as Beccles, Halesworth, Lowestoft and 

Southwold: iPM PAS and iCM Order Comms. 

iPM PAS 

iPM PAS will replace the HISS Patient Administration System 

(PAS). The project will affect everyone that currently uses the 

HISS, around 1,800 staff, both here at the JPUH and at clinics 

and hospitals in the PCT. Amongst many benefits, the new iPM 

PAS will introduce: 

• more effective patient tracking 

• improved bed management 

• improved discharge planning 

• wrist band availability on the Wards 

• and will enable the iCM Order Comms system to work. 

A series of workshops are being held in September and 

October to detail the processes needed to work with the new 

system and the project team would like to say a BIG THANK 

YOU to all those people making the time to attend and 

contribute. 

iPM PAS training will start in mid January 2008 but, if you 

have not attended a Basic IT Skills Training Course, you will still 

need to submit your Training Needs Analysis (TNA) and, if 

required, will need to attend the free Basic IT Skills training 

that is on offer, as soon as possible. Call the Training Team on 

extension 3836. 

The iPM PAS Go-Live is planned for 1st April 2008. 


iCM Order Comms 

The new iCM Order Comms system will provide a new, 

electronic way to request Pathology and Radiology tests and to 

view results, replacing the paper forms that are currently used. 

It will also provide the ability to request other patient 

services such as Transport and therapies and to request some 

tests performed by external locations. 

iCM Order Comms will affect everyone that currently places 

or receives requests, or views test results. Around 1,500 staff 

will use ICM Order Comms. 

The new system is expected to bring benefits to patient 

safety, patient satisfaction and 18 Week Wait, including the 

following: 

• Improved quality of test requests 

• Elimination of lost order forms 

• Improved appropriateness of test requests 

• Reduced duplication of tests 

• Acknowledgement that results have been seen and will be 

acted upon 

• Consistent presentation of results in a user-friendly style. 

The processes needed to work with the iCM Order Comms 

system will be detailed during workshops in November and 

training is due to take place from May 2008. 

A phased go-live is planned between July and October 2008. 

Smartcards 

Every member of staff will 

require their own 

Smartcard in order to 

access these new systems. 

We will be contacting you 

in the near future to fix 

you up with your own card. 

www.jpaget.nhs.uk

CSCA Bus 

Many staff will have met members 

of our iPM PAS and iCM Order 

Comms project teams and our 

supplier, CSCA, around the Trust, or 

during the recent demonstrations on the CSCA Bus. The bus 

visited JPUH for three days early in July and was a huge success. 

Over 200 clinical and non-clinical staff came aboard to see 

demonstrations of iPM PAS and iCM Order Comms. The 

response was amazing! Over 90% of attendees rated the 

demonstrations average to highly informative and around 80% 

rated them average to highly relevant to their specific area. 

We had a huge demand for the demonstrations with all 22 

sessions being filled within 24 hours of our email, poster and 

canteen invitations being sent out! 

But don’t worry if you missed the bus, we are planning 

another visit in October. Watch out for posters, flyers and 

emails with more news. 

Latest News Updates 

Keep your eyes open for updates on the progress of the iPM 

PAS and iCM Order Comms Projects in the Monthly Briefing, 

Making Waves or via emails from the Projects or through 

your Line Manager. 

Alternatively check out our new iPM/iCM Intranet page. 

If you have any questions about iPM PAS or iCM Order 

Comms, please email the project teams on 

connectingforhealth@jpaget.nhs.uk or call them on 01493 

453838 (ext 3838). 

Win a Digital Camera 

The iPM PAS and iCM Order 

Comms team have got a 

fabulous digital camera to 

give away, donated by 

CSCA, to a lucky member 

of Trust staff. All you have 

to do is answer this simple 

question below. The answer is in the iPM 

PAS article in this edition of Making Waves. 

Q: What is the planned Go-Live date for the iPM PAS? 

A: 

Name 

Job Title 

Department 

Contact Extension Number 

Send your completed form to ‘Making Waves 

Competition’, Communications and Foundation 

Office, JPUH. The closing date is 30th November 2007. 

The draw for winners will be made on 1st December 

and they will appear in the December issue of Making 

Waves. Cups and pens will be awarded for second and 

third places. 

Good luck! 

✃ 

Little Leah benefits from 

charity donation 

Four year old Leah Sage from Hemsby, Great Yarmouth, 

was born with a congenital heart condition and has 

had two major heart operations in her very short life. 

She needs to have her blood checked regularly and 

until very recently, had to visit the hospital frequently 

for blood tests. This has all changed now with the 

donation of a Coaguchek XS device by the Charity 

organisation 'Anticoagulation Europe', worth £400. 

This device will mean that this can be done at home, 

saving her the distressing regular visit to the hospital. 

Sarah Simpson, Anticoagulation Nurse Specialist said: 

‘It’s just like a home diabetes testing kit with a small 

skin prick. It will be so much better for Leah and her 

family and we are delighted that this has been sorted 

out for them through the generosity of this charity.’ 

Royal 

thanks for 

Godfrey 

and Vera 

Godfrey and Vera 

Ringwood of 

Gorleston have been 

fundraising for the 

Trust for 27 years. In 

that time they’ve 

raised an amazing 

£60,000! This has been 

used to buy kit for the 

children’s ward, ICU and A&E to name but a few. In 

July, they attended one of the Queen’s Royal Garden 

parties at Buckingham Palace and had a really special 

day. Vera said: ‘We had the opportunity to walk around 

the various royal gardens, saw the lake and had a 

delicious tea. There were over 3,000 people there from 

all walks of life. We felt honoured to be present and it 

was a day that we will never forget.’ 

Godfrey added: ‘We’d like to thank everyone whose 

helped us over the years by giving us gifts to sell on 

stalls. We could not have raised this money without 

your support.’ 



Outpatients – 

making great progress 

Trust staff and regular Making Waves readers will know that outpatients has been a busy place 

over the last twelve months as the outpatient project has been rolled out. This has brought 

medical and surgical outpatients together as one department within Clinical Support Services. 

Here, Wendy Mitchell, Outpatients Manager, gives Making Waves an update on progress so far, 

and what still needs to be achieved. 

The outpatient review project had two key 

purposes: 

1. To introduce more a much more flexible staffing structure in 

outpatients. This included developing the role of 

Outpatient Assistant (of which, more later) and more cross 

working across all our outpatient clinics 

2. Modernising roles to make sure we’re ready to meet future 

challenges like 18 weeks and choose and book. 

So what have we achieved? 

Wendy says: ‘There’s no doubt this has been a difficult project 

at times, and it’s taken longer that we would have liked. But 

we’ve achieved a lot and I’m so proud of the staff working with 

me who have done this. Ultimately, we’re going to end up with 

outpatient clinics that are fit for purpose and that deliver 

excellent, flexible, integrated care to our patient, and that’s 

what really counts.’ 

Nursing team 

Whilst we’ve achieved some financial efficiencies, what’s really 

important is the integrated working that’s going on now 

between different nursing groups. We’ve implemented a new 

professional and personal development programme for our 

nurses in outpatients. We all recognised that in some areas 

there was a shortfall in management skills, so we’ve developed 

a management programme so that senior nurses can develop 

their management skills and become mentors for student 

nurses. This is a great step forward. We adopt a team approach 

to delivering this development; ensuring nurses gain a broad 

overview of the whole service both from the nursing and 

business side of things. 


Outpatient bookings and performance 

We’ve also completed a detailed review of the admininistrative 

support to outpatients. From discussion with and listening to 

the views of our consultant users we recognised that some of 

the original systems in place across outpatients worked well, 

others required a different approach. We’ve re-structured it to 

change the role of our Outpatient Coordinators, so that rather 

than operating a call centre system we have now allocated all 

specialty areas with their own dedicated coordinator. Many of 

these staff possess a working knowledge of how clinics run and 

they are working as part of each specialty team directly with 

Consultants and secretaries, providing a clear link with 

outpatients. There is some training and development work still 

required in this area but what we aim to achieve is an 

Outpatient Coordinator team which provides information on 

waiting lists, make sure clinic slots are well used and monitors 

choose and book referrals. This structure is working very well in 

a number of specialties already and we hope that this will 

improve over the next 3 months. 

Top left: Wendy Mitchell, Outpatients 

Manager. 

Top right: The Outpatients Assistants 

with Jo London, Penny Cox and 

Teresa Norton. 

Right: Beverley Sharpe-Brash, 

Ophthalmology Nurse Practitioner. 

www.jpaget.nhs.uk

O/A’s! 

The Outpatient Assistants role was originally set up a few years 

back in Medicine. The role consists of healthcare assistant and 

administration duties. These team members undertake all the 

responsibilities usually expected in terms of clinic support but 

the multi skilling element provides greater flexibility and 

enhances the way we deliver care, especially in the face of 

staffing pressures caused by sickness or annual leave. 

This role does not replace the need for trained nurses in 

Outpatients but it does result in a shift to what we call our hub 

and spoke approach, that is our trained nurses are free to 

provide support suitable to their skills and to supervise the clinics 

whilst our O/A team provide the important role of supporting 

patients and consultants through the consultation and booking 

process. 

Whilst this sounds ideal I would emphasise that from the 

lessons we have learnt from the past this is not an “overnight” 

transformation, and special care has to be taken to ensure 

training and support are maintained for our team. In order to 

ensure this if offered our O/A’s have their own training and 

education programme which has been led by nurse managers 

Teresa Norton and Penny Cox. Particular thanks however need 

to go to Ophthalmology Nurse Practitioner Bev Sharpe-Brash 

who has driven the training forward and now regularly 

organises training sessions delivered by specialist nurses from a 

wide range of specialties. I’m really grateful for the work they’ve 

done on this with support from the Nurse education 

Department and our specialist nurse team. 

New lead nurse roles 

As part of the reorganisation we’ve also achieved the 

development of two lead nurse jobs within Ophthalmology (Bev 

again!) and the Colposcopy Nurse Practitioner in Gynaecology, 

Lesley Crisp. These new roles that have been in post six months 

now and form an important role in our strategy to develop 

nurse led clinics with a particular focus on reducing Consultant 

follow ups where appropriate. 

Changing the way we work…. 

A number of the Outpatient specialties have been involved with 

team sessions to map their work and to highlight some of the 

constraints (and irritations they experience!) which are inevitably 

faced across the service e.g. continuity of skill mix, 

accommodation pressures, improving communication with the 

wider organisation etc. We have tried to identify different way 

of working and introduce support roles to help in these areas 

where needed. 

So what’s ahead? 

The next phase is the refurbishment of main reception. You will 

see a lot more of our Outpatient Assistant team over the coming 

months working in this area. They wear a white uniform, and 

they will be meeting and greeting patients, booking 

appointments, dealing with enquiries, and providing a speedier 

validation system for car parking for our disabled patients. 

Although we are not investing any additional resource into 

our staffing at the current time we have been able to identify 

more innovative pathways in some areas. To support these 

improvements we have recruited a small cohort of trained 

nurses, mainly newly qualified staff to help us take forward our 


plans by providing continuity to the clinics. In addition we 

recognise that there is a need to support the Outpatient training 

process for the next 12 months, and with this in mind, new O/A’s 

will be recruited in the near future. 

Breaking the boundaries… 

Again following the theme of integrated working, health 

records are now part of our service and we’re collaborating with 

them on new roles that provide outpatient administrative 

support for both health records and outpatients. This gives the 

team in health records exposure to the frontline delivery of 

outpatient services, and conversely, the staff in clinics learn 

about what goes on behind the scenes. We’re only just starting 

this, but I’m confident this will be an effective way of 

developing staff and ultimately providing a better service. 

So over the next sixth months, it’s a period of consolidation. 

At the end of this time, we’ll have 20 new Outpatients 

Assistants, fully conversant with their role and working flexibly. 

Our structure will be fully in place and we’ll be providing a 

much improved service to consultants and their secretaries. 

Thank you! 

❝ I want to thank everyone in the team – we’ve 

achieved a waiting time of just 9 weeks for all new 

outpatient referrals at the end of June. This was 

with a momentous effort from all staff and it’s a 

fantastic achievement. ❞ 

The team are extremely supportive of each other in focussing 

on improving our wait times against all odds! Thank you finally 

to all the associated specialties and departments who have been 

patient during these changes. 

A few quotes from our O/A team 

‘The last 8 weeks have been really hectic! Having been used to just 

doing the nursing side in our clinics we didn’t have a clue where to start 

when we were put on the reception desk but I think it was the best 

way for us to learn now. 

I’ve really enjoyed learning all the new work on the computer and 

what is involved when a patient arrives at the clinic reception desk. 

What I like about the new role is that it is very varied and interesting 

to see how other Outpatient areas work, plus it has given me a better 

understanding of the type of patients illnesses are treated and all the 

clerical work that goes on before each day’s clinic’. 

Beverly Tindall – Outpatient Assistant 

‘When I was first approached about the O/A role I was more than a little 

apprehensive. I had been an HCA for more than 15 years in the 

Orthopaedic OPD and enjoyed my job. I had not considered trying 

anything new. 

Once I started my reception training I began to enjoy the challenge 

of learning something new. I did find it mentally exhausting but also felt 

a sense of achievement when I first made an appointment or booked 

transport for a patient without having to ask for help! It has been really 

interesting learning what goes on in other outpatient areas. The people 

that I have met have been friendly and helpful and have shown 

exceptional patience with me! All in all it has been a good experience’. 

Bridget Pratt – Outpatient Assistant 


Essence of Care Update 

Cherry Townsend, Clinical 

Educator for Essence of Care 

gives an update on how this 

important programme is 

progressing. 

The fundamental concept of Essence of Care 

(EOC) is that it hopefully improves the 

patient’s experience through their healthcare journey. As 

highlighted in the March edition of Making Waves, EOC 

benchmarking is an ongoing process of comparing, sharing and 

developing practice in order to achieve and sustain best 

practice. 

The framework consists of 10 benchmarks. EOC was 

launched here in March 2003 and since then we have 

undertaken three benchmarks: 

✔ Food and Nutrition 

✔ Privacy and Dignity 

✔ Continence Care 

Achievements with these ongoing benchmarks were 

covered in the March edition, but we’ve made more progress 

since then, including: 

FOOD AND NUTRITION 

Protected Mealtimes: 

The concept of providing a calm atmosphere, with a focus on 

serving appetising meals and providing patients with 

uninterrupted times to eat and enjoy their food has always 

been our aim. As part of the nutrition benchmark for EOC, we 

should be attempting to provide an environment which is 

conducive to comfortable eating. 

The concept of Protected Mealtimes has been previously 

launched within the Trust, with staff successfully implementing 

the initiative in some areas very well. However, a recent 

nutrition observational audit showed non-urgent clinical 

activities continued to take place in some areas during the time 

allocated as a protected mealtime. So it’s proposed that we relaunch 

protected mealtimes again over the next few months, 

sharing the best practice achieved in some areas and promoting 

the benefits of the initiative throughout the Trust. 

I appreciate it’s very difficult to totally achieve this initiative 

in a busy acute hospital, so a project team will be developed 

representing all services involved. This will be widely advertised 

throughout the Trust with regular updates and feedback on 

progress. Presentations and training sessions are also planned 

to assist with the implementation process. 

Friends and relatives who visit patients to assist at mealtimes 

will of course continue to be encouraged to visit. 

Adapted Cutlery: 

We are reviewing purchasing more adapted cutlery and holding 

them in a central store in the kitchen for ward use. 

Standardising the use of the red trays: 

An updated nutrition pathway will be provided to each clinical 

area, describing options 

available to the nutritionally 

compromised patient, including 

the use of the red trays, 

screening and referrals. 

Nutrition Policy: 

Is being reviewed. 

Conversion to “Thick and Easy” thickener: 

Replacing Nutilis as a thickening agent. Speech and Language 

therapy are instigating the change. Training is taking place 

around the Trust provided by Fresenius reps. 

Mealtime support Volunteers: 

Nine volunteers have been trained to provide mealtime 

support; once all have completed assessments in practice, the 

service is likely to expand. 

CONTINENCE CARE 

We are negotiating with Coloplast to agree the content of a 

staff training programme for the remainder of 2007 and 2008, 

promoting continence. 

Free Distance Learning packages for continence care continue 

to be available from nurse education. 

NEW BENCHMARK 

The next EOC Benchmark will be Pressure Ulcers. The first 

project team met in August to discuss the content of the 

benchmark and the proposed format of the audit tool. The first 

audits will take place in November 2007. 

Essence of Care has been designed to provide a structured 

approach to developing best practice and assisting staff to 

achieve and sustain the fundamentals of nursing care and to 

focus once again on ‘getting the basics right.’ 

Once an Essence of Care culture has been established, 

sustaining momentum and maintaining interest in delivering 

the essence of care is crucial to its continued progress. 

❝ I would like to thank all the staff who 

continue to be enthusiastic and motivated in 

achieving the goals set by the Essence of Care 

benchmarks. ❞ 

If you would like to be involved with any of the initiatives mentioned or need assistance with any stages of the Essence of Care 

process, please do not hesitate to contact Cherry Townsend on ext 3731. 

CELEBRATION DAY 

A day to celebrate Essence of Care achievements, incorporating the launch of the new pressure ulcers benchmark is planned for 

Tuesday 16th October in the Boardroom. This is open to all staff and will give you an opportunity to see what’s been achieved 

since we started our first benchmark four years ago and also ideas for how we move forward with the new benchmark. 


www.jpaget.nhs.uk

Thank You! 

Another small sample of the many letters we receive from patients and their families after 

their treatment. 

EADU, Ward 5, Theatres, Hotel Services 

I was admitted to James Paget hospital on Wednesday 

afternoon with acute appendicitis. Having never attended 

hospital for an operation before, I was slightly apprehensive 

once the local GP informed me that I needed an urgent trip 

to the Paget. 

However, once I arrived and was found a bed on the 

EADU department I was soon made to feel relaxed and very 

welcome. I was later moved onto ward 5 after my operation 

on Thursday evening, where I stayed until my discharge on 

Saturday afternoon. 

There are so many staff on these departments that I 

would like thank for doing such a wonderful job and giving 

me first class care throughout my stay. The surgeons, doctors, 

nurses, assistants and cleaning staff all made me feel totally 

at ease with their friendly smiles and enthusiastic approach 

to the job they were doing. 

Ward 7, Physiotherapy 

I was booked in for a partial knee replacement. From the 

time I went onto Ward 7 until my discharge the day 

following my operation I was treated with courtesy and 

kindness by everyone I met. My treatment, both before and 

after the operation, was exemplary. The whole team on 

Ward 7 were friendly and very professional, despite being 

extremely busy. Their care and that of the Physiotherapy 

Department enabled me to return home just a day after the 

operation. I had expected to be in for several days, so was 

delighted to be discharged early and in such good shape! 

Outpatients 

I don’t normally bother with such things but I just had to 

write this letter. I had to attend the Eye Clinic – Mr Butler. 

Apart from the fact that I was dealt with so sensitively by 

everyone I came into contact with, I have to bring to your 

attention other matters. I had arrived early and so was able 

to watch the nursing and senior staff dealing with other 

patients. To say I was impressed would be an 

understatement. Elderly patients being treated as intelligent 

people and not looked down on. Everyone being treated 

with patience and kindness especially those slightly confused 

or infirm. And the star roles going to the two nurses dealing 

with the young man in a wheelchair who appeared both 

slightly physically and mentally challenged. They spoke to 

him, asked him the relevant questions directly instead of 

ignoring him and communicating with his carer. 

Ward 12 

I was treated in ward 12 for six days at the beginning of 

October. May I take the opportunity to thank the staff for 

their excellent care, their colleagues for the cleanliness, which 

was beyond reproach and everyone who made my stay in 

Ward 12 comfortable and stress free. My anaesthetist 

explained his procedure with clarity. The whole team made 

the operation less daunting than I would have thought 

possible. 

A&E, Radiology, Fracture Clinic and EADU 

In August I fractured my left wrist and came to James Paget. 

I would like you to know and to pass best thanks to all the 

staff in A&E, X-Ray and Fracture Clinic who looked after me. 

It was also necessary for me to stay in EADU. I consider I 

received excellent treatment and support. 

Ward 15 

I was an inpatient at the hospital following a stroke. I 

encountered nothing but kindness and expertise. Small 

things like having slipped bedclothes replaced in the middle 

of the night reflect the gentle concern and great good 

humour which was paramount, throughout my stay. Nobody 

wants to be in hospital, however, from experience I can reassure 

folk that they can at least go to James Paget with 

confidence. 

and finally, from one of our Non Execs... 

I have always been a very active person, but over the last year 

it has been very frustrating painful and a shock to find due to 

a hip problem I could no longer do the things I wanted to do. 

A walking stick was my best friend! 

Like many other patients I have had the privilege of 

having a hip replacement at JPUH. The result is amazing! no 

more pain and after six weeks I was able to say good bye to 

my best friend (the walking stick). 

My thanks to all who cared for me in a professional 

manner the light hearted humour made my stay and recovery 

a pleasant experience. 

Rita Carter 

Congratulations! 

On Saturday 5th May this year members of staff 

from the Nurse Education Team participated in the 

Race for Life Cancer Appeal at the Norfolk 

showground, collectively raising an amazing £923.50 

for Cancer Research. 

We all had a great day and will hopefully be taking 

part again next year. 

Pictured left to right are: 

Belinda Leighton, Sharon Duneclift, Dawn and Daisy 

Taylor, Lisa Healy and Cherry Townsend. 



Florence Nightingale 

Commemoration 

Service, 

Westminster Abbey 

In May, William Jenner, Staff Nurse on Ward 4, attended 

Westminister Abbey for a Florence Nightingale Commemoration 

Service. He thought he’d share the experience and his thoughts 

about it with Making Waves readers. 

William says: ‘Florence Nightingale is 

best known for her work during the 

Crimean War and for improving the 

standard of nursing care. Her most 

notable achievement was to raise nursing 

to the level of a respectable profession for 

women. Each year nurses, midwives and 

health visitors, government ministers and 

those associated with the Florence 

Nightingale Foundation attend the 

Florence Nightingale Commemoration Service held at 

Westminster Abbey on a date close to Florence Nightingale’s 

Birthday which is the 12th May. This year, the Service was 

held on 9th May.’ 

‘The Nurses’ Roll of Honour - compiled in remembrance of 

those Nurses who gave their lives in the Second World War 

while caring for the sick and wounded - was carried into the 

Abbey by a member of the armed forces and was escorted by 

the three Matrons in Chief of Her Majesty’s Armed Forces.’ 

‘During the service, the Lamp – symbolic of Florence 

Nightingale – was taken from the Nurses’ Chapel in the 

Abbey and carried by a senior member of the profession; it 

was handed from one nurse to another, then to the Dean, 

who placed it on the high altar. This signified the passing of 

knowledge from one nurse to another. This year the Lamp 

was carried by Florence Nightingale scholar Sir Jonathan 

Asbridge, escorted by student nurses 

from the School of Nursing at the 

Institute of Health & Community 

Studies, Bournemouth University.’ 

‘The address was given by Group 

Captain Wendy Williams – Defence 

Nursing Advisor, MoD. She reflected 

on the work carried out by all nurses, 

particularly those who serve in the 

military and the courage they display 

whilst carrying out their duties under 

extreme conditions.’ 

‘The Chelsea Pensioners were also in attendance at the 

service in recognition of the work undertaken by Florence 

Nightingale in reforming the armed forces during her 

lifetime.’ 

William ends by saying: ‘Thinking about the service 

afterwards, it’s easy to see how morale can sometimes get 

low when you’re working as a nurse, whether it be in the 

military or public sector. The service gave strength to 

everyone present. To be surrounded by fellow colleagues 

who have the same experiences, and to hear of heroic actions 

by colleagues in the military, gave us the resolve to continue 

working as advocates for those whom we serve, our patients. 

William Jenner and colleagues 

representing St John Ambulance, 

Norfolk at the service. 

Focus on our Bereavement Care Service 

Nicky Downs and Steve Newman have taken up the post of bereavement 

coordinator on a job share basis, and are currently in the process of 

developing the service. 

Steve and Nicky recognise and acknowledge that bereavement can be 

difficult to deal with, both for the bereft and for health and social care 

professionals alike. There are voluntary organisations, such as CRUSE, 

which give valuable support. However, these organisations cannot provide 

all the bereavement support needed within our community. Therefore, 

the aim of this new service is to complement the work of these existing services, to provide additional support 

to those who are bereaved. 

The counselling service offered is currently in its infancy, and has limited counsellor availability at the 

moment. Counselling can be offered on a time limited basis (six sessions), with experienced volunteer counsellors 

or with Steve and Nicky. All clients referred have an initial assessment. Currently this service is available at James 

Paget University Hospital, but the bereavement coordinators hope, in time, to branch out across the PCT locality. 

The service is available for bereaved adults at least one month post bereavement (research has shown that 

counselling is not conducive prior to this time period). Those referred must live in Great Yarmouth and Waveney. 

Referrals can be made via any health care professional or indeed the client may self-refer. For more 

information, or to get a referral form, give Nicky or Steve a call on ext. 3856. 


www.jpaget.nhs.uk

Excellent Service Awards 

On 4th July, three members of staff stepped up to receive their Excellent Service 

Award. Chairman John Hemming welcomed the nominees and colleagues from 

their departments saying: ‘This is always one of my favourite jobs as Chairman. 

It’s great to be thanking those staff who have been seen to go beyond the call 

of duty, supporting patients and staff. This is why the James Paget is such a 

good hospital, because our staff always go that extra mile.’ 

Receiving their awards were Eileen Broadbent, Health Care Assistant from 

ICU, Kevin Mason (‘Kev the Cable’), Telecommunications Technician from Estates 

and Liz Barber, PALS Manager. 

Eileen was nominated for handling a very difficult situation on ICU one night 

with a distraught family, said to be one of the most difficult situations ICU had 

ever seen. Eileen was calm and her colleagues were all very proud of the way 

she dealt with events that night. 

Kevin received an outstanding nine nominations, unprecedented in the 

history of these awards. Chief Executive Adrian Pennington joked: ‘It’s the first 

time anyone has ever seen you sitting down!’ Kevin, or ‘Kev the Cable’ as he is 

affectionately known, was said by colleagues to be ‘constantly working at 100 

miles an hour whatever time of day it is.’ Another said: ‘He should be knighted 

by the Queen!’ 

Finally Liz Barber received her award for the time and support she gives to 

patients, relatives and staff, dealing with difficult issues positively, always with a 

big smile. John Hemming commented on the volume of extra tasks she takes on, 

and the service she has given to the Trust over the years. 

Adrian finished by saying: ‘As NHS employees, we are always being asked to 

do more at every level. Despite this, you have taken the initiative and done more 

than is expected of you, and we are very grateful for the service you give every 

day in the Trust.’ 

‘Blooming Showtime’ evening 

Don’t forget to 

nominate a member 

of staff who you 

think deserves an 

award for service 

above and beyond 

the call of duty. 

Contact Liz Barber for 

more details on 

extension 2651. 

Pictured are Liz 

Barber, Kevin Mason 

and Eileen Broadbent 

with John Hemming, 

Chairman and Adrian 

Pennington, Chief 

Executive. 

MIDAS - their 

Fantastic 

Fundraising 

Efforts 

MIDAS fundraisers have just 

topped the £100,000 mark in 

fundraising for the Trust. 

‘MIDAS’ (so named as 

everything they touch turns to 

gold!) is a small group of local 

people from the Potter Heigham 

area who have been fundraising 

for the hospital for ten years. 

Andrew Fox, Divisional Manager 

at the James Paget University 

Hospitals NHS Trust said: ‘MIDAS 

has actively fundraised for the 

hospital for ten years. Hitting this 

£100,000 mark is an amazing 

achievement and one which we 

sincerely thank everyone at 

MIDAS for. With the money 

raised, we have bought many 

much needed items of equipment 

for the hospital. These have 

included a pressure infuser for 

A&E, pressure relieving 

mattresses, weighing scales and 

equipment to monitor blood 

pressure. The money raised so far 

this year has enabled us to buy 

some exercising equipment for 

patients to use in our acute 

rehabilitation ward.’ 

Norman Harrison, one of the 

key figures in the MIDAS 

fundraising team said: ‘We have 

worked hard all around the 

community to raise this money. 

We are delighted to have topped 

the £100,000 mark, and hope we 

can raise a few more pennies yet. 

However, many of us are not 

getting any younger, so we really 

hope that some new faces may 

come forward to help us in the 

future. This fundraising is so 

important for the hospital and we 

want it to continue.’ 

A musical journey through the decades with a fashion show and 

floral demonstrations raised £7000 for the Palliative Care East 

Appeal at the Ocean Room, Gorleston on 12th September. 


Palliative Care East Car Raffle 

draw...win a 3 door Peugeot. 

Tickets £2 each. 

To purchase them or help to 

distribute them to any groups, 

please contact Jenny Westgate 

Palliative Care East Appeal 

Co-ordinator 

Tel: 01493 453348 

Email: 

jenny.westgate@jpaget.nhs.uk 


In loving memory of Christine and Jeanne 

Sadly two staff passed away recently. Here their departments pay tribute to them... 

Christine Jacobs 

In August, guide dog owner Robin Evans was 

invited to the James Paget University Hospital to 

receive a cheque for Guide Dogs for the Blind 

Association for £206 in memory of Christine Jacobs, 

Domestic Assistant at the James Paget, a much 

loved friend and colleague who passed away 

suddenly. 

Robin of Trinity Avenue, Gorleston, is pictured 

accepting the cheque from John Smith, Domestic 

Services Manager at the James Paget University 

Hospital, along with guide dog Bertie. Pictured 

from left to right is her sister, Sue Welton, 

Christine’s partner Peter Buxton, John Smith and 

her mum Lily Jacobs and Robin Evans. 

Her sister Sue said: ‘Christine was a great 

supporter of guide dogs and we thought what 

better way to remember her than to make a 

donation in her memory’. 

Jeanne Greenfield 

Sadly Jeanne Greenfield passed 

away peacefully on Sunday 19th 

August 2007 at Pricilla Bacon 

Lodge following a short illness. 

Jeanne had worked as a 

Specialist Paediatric Occupational 

Therapist (OT) for the James Paget 

University Hospitals NHS 

Foundation Trust at the Children’s Centre since 

March 2000 and significantly developed the service 

offered to the children of this area during her time 

in post. In addition to her clinical work Jeanne also 

held national office professionally and as Chair of 

the Membership and External Affairs Board, sat on 

the governing council of the College of 

Occupational Therapists and the British Association 

The £206 was raised by a collection among staff 

who worked with Christine over many years and 

who will miss her greatly. 

Nichola Hicks 

Head of Support Services 

of Occupational Therapists. She became a Nonexecutive 

Director of both these organisations. 

More recently Jeanne combined her clinical 

expertise with her leadership skills when she 

became the Professional Lead for Occupational 

Therapy. 

Jeanne will be remembered by families, 

colleagues and friends for her commitment and 

enthusiasm for offering a high quality service to 

the children of the Great Yarmouth and Waveney 

area and for her vibrant leadership of the Therapy 

department. However most of all, we will miss the 

unerring support and sense of fun that made her a 

wonderful friend to have. 

Rachel Hulse 

Head of Therapies 

NHS Innovations East stand in Aubergine Restaurant 

NHS Innovations East (Health Enterprise East) ran an informal information stand in the Aubergine Restaurant 

on 5th September 2007. Tracy Coultas, Customer Liaison Executive, brought along a wealth of information 

about the services they can provide to NHS staff members to help them protect, develop and turn their ideas 

into reality. Also on display were some example innovations they have already helped to progress covering 

the three key areas of medical devices, service delivery and software. 

If you would like to submit an idea of your own, disclosure forms are available from their website at 

www.hee.org.uk, along with plenty of other information about their services. 

If you would like NHS Innovations East to come along and present to your department, please contact Tracy 

on tel. 01480 364196 or e-mail tracy.coultas@papworth.nhs.uk 


www.jpaget.nhs.uk

James Paget Hospital 

A celebration of 25 years of achievements of our local hospital 

25th anniversary 

events round up 

The Fete 

The sun shone, and much fun was had by everyone who 

came to the James Paget University Hospital Fete on Saturday 

21st July in the hospital grounds. 

Fete organiser Jill Jacobs was delighted with how well the 

event went. ‘We raised over £8,000 for the hospital, which is 

just fantastic. Well over half of this will go to the East Coast 

Palliative Care Appeal, with the rest going to various wards 

and departments. It was a beautiful day and over 3,000 

people visited the fete, enjoying everything from an Indian 

dancing display, Bollywood style, to a pink limo and the 

chance for children to put out a blaze with the local Fire 

Service. To top it all the Endeavour Rangers marching band 

played for us all day, much enjoyed by our younger visitors.’ 

John Hemming, Trust Chairman said: ‘We are very grateful 

to everyone who contributed to the success of our fete. This 

coupled with our 25th anniversary conference at the hospital 

and the publication of Hugh Sturzaker’s book of the history 

of the building have served as very fitting tributes to our 

hospital’s silver jubilee.’ 

James Paget University Hospital 

THE FIRST TWENTY FIVE YEARS 

By Hugh Sturzaker, Retired Consultant Surgeon 

This book should bring back many memories to the 

many people who have worked at the James Paget and 

should be essential reading for anyone new to the 

hospital to give them an insight into its history. 

The hard back version is £15 and the soft copy £10. 

£1 of each copy sold is going to 

the Palliative Care Appeal. 

Copies can be obtained from the Library, the Education 

and Training Centre and from the front desk in the 

Foyer to the hospital. 

Sir James Paget’s Great 

Grandson visits Hospital 

Sir Julian Paget, great grandson of Sir 

James, visited the James Paget University 

Hospital on Friday 20th July to attend the 

25th Anniversary Conference. Following an 

opening address by John Wells, retired 

Trust Chairman, there were 17 

presentations each lasting ten minutes. The 

aim was to show the changes which had 

occurred in medical practice over the last 

25 years and to illustrate the ways in which the staff at the 

hospital had lead these changes. 

The health service provision for the area had been 

described by David Owen, the Health Minister in 1975, as 

securing equal place with Weston super Mare as the worst in 

the country. Now the local population has a University 

Hospital, which is a Foundation Trust and is ranked among 

the top 10% of hospitals in the country. This is a great 

achievement and the conference gave examples of the Trust’s 

many successes such as the advances in radiology, respiratory 

services, endoscopy, haematology, palliative care and 

laparoscopic surgery. Willy Notcutt gave an amusing account 

of his world-leading researches into pain relief and Jerome 

Pereira covered the changes in Breast Surgery and the 

National Audit into Breast Reconstruction of which he is the 

clinical lead. Adrian Pennington, Chief Executive, looked 

towards the future and John Hemming, Chairman, gave the 

closing address. 

I presented Sir Julian with a copy of my book ‘James Paget 

University Hospital – the first 25 years’ along with a print of a 

Lady Paget which he had been given by retired GP, Dr. Clive 

Liddle. 

Hugh Sturzaker 

Other events - Gorleston Golf Club raised £1,800 for the 

Palliative Care East Appeal, and the exhibition in the Board 

Room was well received. 

Many thanks to Medical Illustration and the Graphics 

department for all their work in preparing this. 

Member of staff scoops top prize 

Trish Dunton from Medical Records won first prize of the Grand Draw raffle, proceeds all to the 

Palliative Care East Appeal. Trish won a voucher for £100 to be used at one of the Southwold Adnams 

Hotels. Well done Trish! 



School Children’s Art 

Project Promotes 

Infection Prevention 

On Thursday 7th June school children from Saint Felix 

School in Southwold presented the Trust with eight 

murals they had completed on a hot health service 

topic – infection prevention and control. These have 

been placed in the foyer corridor, the new adolescent 

room on the children’s ward and the arts display 

cabinet on the main hospital street. 

The murals are all on metre square boards and each 

one depicts a child’s painting of one of the many bugs 

that are present in our communities. Linda Hawtin, 

Senior Infection Control Nurse Specialist, was involved 

from the start, sending the children photos which they 

copied onto canvas and created their own images. The 

results are colourful and bright and raise awareness of 

infection control issues through a child’s eyes. 

Following a photo opportunity at the murals near 

the main foyer, which included Andrew Turner of Radio 

Norfolk stopping visitors to see what they thought of 

them, the children, their art teacher, Susie Yates, and 

Head Teacher, David Ward, went onto the Boardroom 

for some refreshments. The Chairman, John Hemming, 

said a few words and expressed his appreciation for the 

fantastic pieces of work. Both the Trust and the school 

would like to continue to keep the children involved in 

the local hospital. This particular project has been great 

for the hospital to get young people used to the idea 

of cleanliness and hygiene. He handed over to Dr Ngozi 

Elumogo, Director of Infection Prevention and Control, 

who reiterated the Chairman’s comments about the 

fantastic artwork. What the children have done gives a 

clear message about the most important instrument in 

spreading or not spreading infections – hands. She 

particularly highlighted the importance of washing 

hands after visiting the toilet, particularly for the boys! 

She hoped that in future the children will come to their 

local hospital and see their hands on the walls and 

remember the important messages. 

Susie Yates thanked Annette Stannard, Non 

Executive Director, and all who had been involved in 

arranging this presentation. This project had benefits 

for both the school and the Trust, and the children 

would go back to school and talk to their 

friends about the messages. 

Missed any back issues of Making Waves? 

This edition and previous editions can be found on the James Paget 

University Hospitals intranet in pdf or paper copies are available from the 

Communications Dept. 


www.jpaget.nhs.uk

Making Waves October 07 - James Paget University Hospitals

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