AND PLUS - University College London Hospitals

Inside Story
Workforce in the spotlight – pages 4 & 5
AND
Around the world with UCLH – page 6
PLUS
Trust pioneers medical devices – page 7
Inside Story is the UCLH staff magazine

news
Evergreen tree marks cancer centre milestone
An evergreen tree has been hung at
the top of what will be the most
advanced cancer centre in the UK to
bless the building and all those who
are treated there.
The traditional 'topping out' ceremony
at the University College Hospital
Macmillan Cancer Centre marked the
completion of the structure of the
building which is set to open in 2012.
Representatives from Skanska, the
construction company, were joined by
charity partners and donors as well as
staff.
Speaking at the ceremony Richard
Murley, UCLH chairman said: “Cancer
is one of the greatest challenges of
our generation – it will affect one in
three of us at some stage in our lives.
Its state-of-the-art facilities and
leading edge research and
development will make all the
difference in treating and surviving
this disease."
Cancer charity Macmillan Cancer
Support is contributing £10 million to
help build the centre. The Trust is also
working with other charity partners
including Teenage Cancer Trust and
the UCLH Charitable Foundation, to
help fund it.
The £100 million centre will redefine
the way patients are treated and there
will be increased focus on the best
treatments, wellbeing, rehabilitation
and cancer survivorship.
Phone number changes
The next big milestones in the
Trust-wide phone and fax number
changes are:
The Heart Hospital (8 May)
The new number for The Heart
Hospital will be 020 3456 7898
All existing four digit
extensions will become five
digits by adding the number ‘6’
(ext 6098 will become 66098)
Staff must add 020 345 to the
start of any Heart Hospital
extension to create the full
telephone number (eg 020
3456 6098)
NHNN (22 May) and RLHIM (5
June)
These sites will change over
two weekends: 22 May, when
the majority of
the NHNN will
be affected and
5 June, when 33 Queen Square
and the RLHIM will change
All existing four digit extensions
will become five digits. Most will
change by adding the number ‘8’
(ext 3491 will become 83491).
There are some exceptions to the
rule, including current 4 digit
extensions begin with 87
Staff must add 020 344 to the
start of any NHNN extension to
create the full telephone number
(eg 020 3448 3491)
For more information please see the
project page on Insight or contact
John McGhee, project manager on
ext 5135.
Are you a top trainer?
Nominations are now open for The
Chairman’s Medal for Excellence and
Chairman’s Awards for Ideas and
Innovation. The awards recognise those
who have made an exceptional
contribution to education throughout the
Trust. The competition is open to all staff
involved in teaching or training, including
those on UCLH/UCL honorary contracts.
Contact stephanie.eborall@uclh.nhs.uk
for an application form. The deadline is 29
April.
You can now follow us at
twitter.com/UCLH. Content for the channel
will include a mix of news, information
about events we are running and links to
new content on our external website.
Contact Us
If you have any information you would like included in Inside Story, or on the Trust
intranet site Insight, contact: Communications Unit, 2nd Floor Central, 250 Euston Road,
London NW1 2PG. Email: communications@uclh.nhs.uk, Tel: ext 9897, Fax: ext 9401.
Front cover: Professor Monty Mythen with
the Oesophageal Doppler Monitor probe.
(Story on page 7)
2

news
One infection is too many
As part of a new zero tolerance
campaign for infection prevention and
control, the Trust this month
announced its top ten actions for
preventing healthcare associated
infections.
Drawing on best practice from across
the NHS, the actions are designed to
help the Trust achieve its goal of
having no MRSA infections in
2011/12. The top ten actions will also
help reduce C difficile and other
significant infections.
A section has been developed on
Insight with details of who is
responsible for each action, how to
comply with them and how
performance will be measured
The actions include: screening
patients; effective risk assessment
and management; inserting safe
intravenous lines; hand hygiene;
prescribing antibiotics properly;
providing a clean safe environment;
taking blood cultures the right way
and excellent education and training.
Sir Robert Naylor, UCLH chief
executive, said: “Patients depend on
us to protect them. Infection control
begins with every single member of
staff and individuals need to take
ownership of this issue.
“One infection is too many and failure
is not an option. These top ten
actions, which have been laid out in
an easy-to-read format on Insight,
give staff all the tools they need to
ensure we achieve our goal. UCLH
staff will be expected to comply with
infection control guidance and
policies and will be held to account for
not doing so.” The actions will be
launched on Insight soon.
New QEP campaign - time is of the essence!
From management meetings and
surgical sessions to outpatient
appointments – starting and finishing
on time can have a radical knock-on
effect for both staff and patients.
The On Time campaign launched by
Trust medical directors Dr Gill Gaskin,
Dr Paul Glynne and Dr Geoff
Bellingan is part of the Trust’s quality
efficiency and productivity (QEP)
programme.
The campaign highlights the
importance of starting clinic, theatre
and meetings on time with no delays
for patients, no overruns and no early
finishes.
It is already improving the service
UCH surgical teams provide for
patients.
At the beginning of 2010, theatres lost
an average of 142 hours of operating
time per month due to starting lists
later than planned. In the first two
months of 2011 main theatres
reduced this to 98 hours - a 30 per
cent improvement.
If it continues over the coming year
this will help theatre teams to:
Reduce overrunning theatre
sessions, which is costly
Minimise the chance of patients
being cancelled on the day
Help with smooth running of lists.
Katie Rawlings, theatre service
manager, said: “One of our theatre
efficiency initiatives is a policy of zero
tolerance towards late starts.
“Everyone understands we are in a
culture of efficiency and our systems
have been refined so that patients are
ready, prepped and brought down to
the receiving bay as soon as a
theatre is ready. The theatre coordinator
for the day ensures the lists
are running smoothly and slickly, with
minimal lags.”
3

focus on workforce
Rising to the challenge ahead
Staff issues are high on the agenda
in the current climate; Elke Tullett
looks at the burning issues facing
the Trust’s workforce team.
The Trust workforce team is faced with
a tricky balancing act.
With UCLH committed to making £45
million savings over the coming
financial year, it is hardly surprising
that workforce costs and efficiencies
will be in the spotlight more than ever.
Although the Trust has made huge
savings by reducing the use of agency
and bank staff, overall pay still
accounts for 49% of Trust expenditure.
Encouraging staff survey results show
most staff feel high levels of
engagement and would recommend
UCLH to patients and as a place to
work. So how does the Trust maintain
that level of morale, retain top quality
staff and patient care, whilst making
tough and sometimes unpopular
decisions?
David Wherrett, workforce director,
said: “We have no option but to reduce
overall workforce costs and some
decisions will be easier than
others.
“It will be a challenge for us all,
especially as UCLH has grown so
significantly over recent years. To
be successful we must work together,
with openness and honesty, with staff
and their representatives. Change,
whilst unsettling, can bring new
opportunities, the chance to develop
new skills and work in different ways –
but that is not to underestimate the
challenges we face.”
Although reducing the overall
workforce is unavoidable, the Trust
hopes to minimise any redundancies.
David, who leads the Trust’s workforce
team supporting managers achieve
change, said his team will have to be
extremely creative. Sometimes
necessity is the mother of invention.
A Workforce Efficiency and
Productivity strategy is currently being
drafted and the Mutually Agreed
Resignation Scheme (MARS) is an
example of one of the workstreams.
Others include offering staff the the
opportunity to buy additional leave, tax
efficient schemes and further
reductions in agency spend. Details
will be posted on Insight.
One of the priorities for the workforce
team, and key to supporting staff
during change, is reforming the Trust’s
appraisals process: there is evidence a
robust process improves staff morale
which, in turn, improves the quality of
care patients receive. Training and
development programmes which help
staff maximise their potential and
simplifying procedures to make it
easier for managers to manage are
also linked to staff engagement.
David added: “It is not necessarily
what is happening that can negatively
affect morale. It’s the sense of control
and understanding that staff have of
the situation. Staff need to know why
something needs to be done, to share
it, be part of it.
“In difficult times of change and
uncertainty we have to keep talking,
listening and communicating with each
other. Communicate, communicate,
communicate – that must be our
mantra.”
Helping staff fulfil their potential
The Trust is stepping up its
commitment to achieve full take up
of appraisals by launching new tools,
training and simplified material.
An annual appraisal provides staff
with the support they need to give
their best and develop and deliver
against challenging goals.
A new policy, launched this month,
means a change in the way we
approach the appraisal procedure.
The workforce compliance team will
support line managers with any
queries they have.
The policy applies to all Trust
employees except medical and
dental staff who are covered by
other specific appraisal processes.
For more information contact the
workforce compliance team on ext
3145 or see the workforce pages on
Insight.
4

focus on workforce
Staff survey results
The 2010 staff survey results show a marked improvement on the previous year and have identified areas where staff
believe the Trust needs to perform better.
The survey results have been published against 38 key findings: overall staff feedback shows the Trust is better or has
stayed the same in all 38 key categories. The full results for all trusts are published on the Care Quality Commission
website. Because the Trust had such a high survey response rate, professional groups and divisions/boards have been
able to provide detailed information. This will be used to inform local action planning on areas needing improvement.
UCLH is in the top 20% of all acute
trusts for:
staff recommending UCLH as a place to work or receive
treatment
staff who believe their role makes a difference to patients
fair and effective incident reporting procedures
good opportunities to develop staff potential at work
good communications between senior management and staff
fewer staff reporting work pressure than national average
fewer staff feeling pressure to attend work when feeling
unwell
number of staff experiencing physical abuse from patients,
relatives and the public is lower than the average
The Trust also scored in the top 20% of all acute trusts for overall
staff engagement – significantly better than the previous year.
UCLH is in the bottom 20%
of all acute trusts for:
staff feeling valued by their work
colleagues
staff working extra hours
staff receiving health and safety
training
staff believing the Trust provides equal
opportunities for career progression or
development
staff using flexible working options
staff experiencing harassment, bullying
and abuse from staff in last 12 months
impact of health and well-being on
ability to perform work or daily activities
staff experiencing discrimination at
work in the last 12 months
Mutually Agreed Resignation Scheme
As part of the Trust’s plans to reduce
workforce costs, staff are being
offered the opportunity to apply to
resign voluntarily in return for a
severance payment by mutual
agreement.
The newly launched Mutually Agreed
Resignation Scheme (or MARS) is
open for a fixed period until Friday 20
May, as part of our overall efficiency
programme. MARS is not a
redundancy, and is completely
voluntary.
It aims to create job vacancies which
can be filled by redeployment of staff
from other jobs or as an alternative
employment including for those facing
redundancy.
David Wherrett, the Trust’s workforce
director, said: “The time limited
scheme is entirely voluntary for
employees with individual applications
considered for approval on their
merits. It is intended to prompt new
ways of working or thinking.”
Key points on MARS:
A minimum of three months and a
maximum of one year’s severance
pay are available, depending on
length of service.
It is subject to eligibility criteria and
is unlikely to be agreed for any
member of staff providing vital
clinical or operational services.
If your request for severance
payment is agreed a number of
conditions apply. These impact on
your ability to be employed
elsewhere in the NHS for the
period covered by the payment and
any future redundancy payments.
There is no right of appeal if an
application is not supported
If you are interested in applying:
Refer to full details on Insight and then
discuss it with your line manager who
will decide whether to support the
application. He/she will consider
whether it is in the financial and
organisational interests of the
department. The application also
needs to be signed off by the medical
director and other members of the
edical director’s team. Supported
applications will then be considered
for approval by the finance director
and workforce director.
For more information contact Wendy
Murphy, junior HR business partner,
via email or on ext 3385.
5

our trust
Flying the flag for UCLH
From cleaners to consultants, from midwives to managers –
the UCLH workforce bring their expertise from all corners of
the globe.
Some have left behind families to seek a better quality of life
or to escape unstable regimes. Others were lured by love
…or better career prospects.
The Evening Standard newspaper featured six of our staff
from multi-ethnic backgrounds, dubbing them the “rainbow
warriors”. It said an international workforce is vital for
hospitals such as ours, to reflect the diversity of the local
population. Here are some of their personal stories…
France
The midwife
Celine Delanoue
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Wing
“ I came to London from Paris in 2008 to follow my
husband Hugues, who is an engineer. I was quite scared!
I intended to keep working as a midwife and didn’t know
if I’d enjoy working here. It’s true that in France the care
has a good reputation but it’s a lot more medicalised, so
a very different experience for women having babies.
“Now I’m proud to work for the NHS. People give you a
chance and they employ you for who you are. ”
Outreach charge nurse
Francis Cruz
The Heart Hospital
Philippines
“Nurses are very well respected in the Philippines as
professionals but they are very poorly paid compared to
the UK. So, in 2002, I left behind my family who I love
very much. But it made it easier knowing I would be able
to support them – making life a little easier for all of us.
"People at work are very friendly and I have been given
the same opportunity as any other candidates who have
applied for the same job. London is a very expensive
place to live, but I find the people friendly and the NHS is
an open and diverse place to work.”
The business manager
Bozena Corbett
Eastman Dental Hospital
Poland
“ When I was a student I stayed with a Polish family in
Ealing in 1972. I loved the atmosphere, the culture,
double-decker buses, the Royal family, red phone boxes
– every little bit of London. I only stayed for a few months
but I dreamed of coming back to live.
“I met my English husband in a ski resort where I was
working as a receptionist and it was love at first sight. We
married in 1976. British people in the 70s were very
reserved and less accepting of foreigners.
“These days we see a very different London, an
integrated multicultural society. It is my privilege to work
at UCLH Eastman dental hospital and assist patients with
different needs including interpreting."
From left: Francis Cruz, Mary Rose Falzon, Ogechi Anodu, Celine
Delanoue, Nacho Ponce Rosas, Bozena Corbett
Nigeria
Outpatients manager
Ogechi Anodu
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Wing
“I came to London in 1992 from Nigeria. We moved here
for a better education and economic stability. Back home
we were a middle-class family with a good lifestyle. Here
we went to a comprehensive school, where education
and superiors were not respected.
“The biggest challenge was getting used to UK culture,
the way people speak, and trying to adjust my behaviour
to fit in without losing who I am and where I came from.
“The healthcare provided in the UK is first-class."
Malta
The consultant
Dr Mary Rose Falzon
UCH, Pathology
“Coming to London from a small island was daunting and
lonely but I was made very welcome by the Middlesex
Hospital Medical School. It was 1978 and I came as a
student to do my clinical studies.
“I worked very hard as I felt I had to be better than good,
being a woman and foreign. But it paid off – I’m now the
only female divisional clinical director on the Medicine
Board."
Spain
The midwife
Ignacio “Nacho” Ponce Rosas
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Wing
“I first came to the UK in 2006 as a nurse in A&E in
Bridgend, South Wales. As a newly qualified nurse, it
was difficult finding work in Spain. Over there, you only
get short contracts, like holiday cover. Spain’s a bit oldfashioned
and you’re seen as a freak if you leave to
develop your career.
“A year in Bridgend was enough! It was the same pub,
the same karaoke every night. So I came to London!
“Midwifery gives you a lot of satisfaction. I’ve delivered
about 130 babies and participating in that special
moment is great. The NHS is awesome – we’re 20 years
behind in Spain. Here, women have so much more
choice over childbirth.”
6

Device pioneered at UCLH could save NHS millions
our trust
A medical device developed at UCLH
has won support from the NHS
Standards Authority.
The minimally-invasive technology
could save the NHS £850 million a
year: patients recover from their
surgery more quickly, are mobile, have
fewer complications and can be
discharged sooner. There is also
evidence that it saves lives.
Oesophageal Doppler Monitoring
(ODM), used in major surgery and in
acutely ill patients, involves a thin
ultrasound probe being placed down a
patient's throat.
ODM accurately measures the
patient's blood flow, which affects the
delivery of oxygen. If the flow drops,
the clinician can then accurately
measure how much fluid and drugs
need to be given to ensure adequate
oxygen supplies to vital tissues and
organs are maintained or quickly
restored.
Healing on the move
Two consultants have been crucial to
its development. Professor Mervyn
Singer, Professor of Intensive Care
Medicine at UCL/UCLH, invented the
device. Professor Monty Mythen
(pictured right), consultant in
anaesthesia and critical care and
director of research and development
at UCLH, carried out the first clinical
trial in heart surgery patients.
Professor Mythen’s ongoing research
into outcomes from surgery is funded
by our National Institute for Health
Research Comprehensive Biomedical
Research Centre.
Professor Mythen said: “UCLH can be
rightly proud of its role in developing
ODM which has culminated in the
guidance published today. I have
worked with ODM for over 20 years
and my patients have enjoyed the
benefits from better management of
their fluid levels during surgery.”
Recent guidance published by the
National Institute for Health and
Clinical Excellence (NICE) supports
the use of ODM during surgery.
A new ‘mobile healing’ device which
could reduce length of stay, save NHS
money and improve patient outcomes
is being pioneered at UCH.
The recyclable portable device –
known as the VAC® VIA – helps
speed up the healing process for
From left: Patient Tawfik Shahin with Rosemary Fosah and
Toby Richards
patients with surgical wounds and
means they can return home from
hospital more quickly.
The new device just launched in the
UK is smaller, quieter and costs a
fraction of the price compared to
existing equipment which is expensive
and bulky.
UCH has developed a
dedicated clinic where
complex wounds and ulcers
can be assessed and cared
for by a team including
surgeons, specialist nurse
and podiatrists.
Toby Richards, vascular
surgeon, said: “Because it
is a portable and
disposable system, it
reduces NHS costs and
frees up hospital beds
relieving pressure on the
system. Ultimately it is
better for patients to be at
home recovering with their
families.”
A special foam dressing is
placed over the wound and
then connected to a
lightweight disposable vacuum pump.
Vacuum therapy is then applied which
enhances the cleaning of the wound
and helps it close.
Patient Tawfik Shahin, who had a
gangrenous foot infection, was one of
the first in the world to benefit: he was
back at home within two weeks. A golf
ball sized wound was quickly reduced
in size and has now completely
healed.
Tawfik said: “This device is beautiful. It
means I don’t have to stay in hospital
and can go home. My independence is
really important to me and because of
this device I still feel alive.”
The device has benefits for community
health funds too – 75 per cent of all
district nursing time is spent on wound
care.
Rosemary Fosah, clinical nurse
specialist, said: “It’s much more
convenient for patients and people
who need walking aids can use it with
ease as it leaves their shoulders free
of any strappings. It is also far less
noisy which encourages patients to
use it more, improving compliance ,
speeding up their recovery.”
7

the back page
Secret lives
Silver-haired Derek Mason is a
walking, talking encyclopaedia of facts
and figures. Want to know about Lead
Belly, Woody Guthrie, or the history of
skiffle and its influence on the rock ‘n
roll greats down the decades? Well,
Derek is the man to ask.
Booted-and-suited in his office just off
Queen Square, the softly spoken
project architect is far removed from
the world described by Fifties blues
singer Lead Belly: a world of chain
gangs, racial segregation in the Deep
South, murder, poverty and the
penitentiary. Yet the Louisiana legend
has inspired not only Derek but The
Beatles, Van Morrison and Bruce
Springsteen, among many.
Derek and his semi-professional
Lonnigans Skiffle Group have just
released their fifth album – a jolly,
upbeat tribute to Lead Belly – which
features Ralph ‘Streets of London’
McTell and American folk Legend Pete
Seeger. They’ve
been booked to
play in the Town
Hall Theatre New
York this autumn
with other Lead
Belly fans
including Neil
Young, Paul
Simon & Suzanne
Vega.
When playing
skiffle, Derek will
grab a set of
bongos, congas or
a washboard –
harking back to its
musical roots when street-corner
groups would spring up, making music
with whatever everyday objects they
could lay their hands on.
“It started with Skiff parties in America.
Poor people would try to raise money
to pay the rent by playing on tea
chests, cardboard boxes,
anything really. It became a
craze in Britain for a while
… and then Bill Hayley and
the Comets and rock ‘n roll
swept in,” he said ruefully.
Derek has been playing in
bands since he was a
teenager and he's appeared
at the 100 Club, Royal
Albert Hall, The Festival
Hall,as well as on Breakfast
TV and the Gloria Hunniford
show.
“You see someone at work
in their hospital ‘uniform’ -
but there’s another side you
rarely find out about. That’s why I like
Secret Lives,” he said.
Derek has worked as project architect
for 18 years at UCLH. Currently based
just off Queen Square, he designed the
new Molly Lane Fox brain tumour unit
at the NHNN.
Archives
Picture entitled, Two Old Friends, 1908.
Sir John Bland Sutton (1855 - 1936) and friend! He used
this photograph as a Christmas card in 1908. Sir John
Bland Sutton was a surgeon to the Middlesex Hospital
from 1886 - 1920 and a lecturer in Anatomy. A student of
the day wrote:
'When other men were in the fields,
At pastimes not a few,
John would be found dissecting seals
Or Monkeys at the Zoo.'
UCLH is a winning team!
The Trust’s first netball team has shot to the top of the
Euston first division league table– just one year after
launching.
Tahlita Mabuza, a specialist in neurophysiology at UCH,
formed the “All Blues” after posting a message on the
Insight staff room . Nurses, physiologists and
administrative staff signed up.
She said: “It’s been hard work – blood sweat and tears. I
dislocated a thumb, another team member twisted her
ankle – but we have been determined to win!”
8