August 2012 - University College London Hospitals

Inside Story
August 2012
Follow us: @uclh
Celebrity visits – page 3
AND
Olympic torch relay – pages 4 & 5
PLUS
New staff awards – page 7
Inside Story is the UCLH staff magazine

news
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Driving down C.diff rates
The number of haematology patients
developing clostridium difficile (C.diff)
whilst in UCLH has fallen following
an intensive drive to reduce rates of
infection.
Cancer treatments put patients at
increased risk of developing the
debilitating bug in their gut, causing
severe diarrhoea and stomach
cramps. The infection can be
transferred to others via hand contact,
environmental contact or even airborne
spores.
Prompted by a review of the number
of C.diff cases in the cancer speciality,
nurses, doctors, microbiologists
and pharmacists worked together to
scrutinise every aspect of care and
to identify particular risks: antibiotic
usage, cleaning techniques and hand
hygiene.
Dr Vanya Gant, consultant
microbiologistand clinical director,
infection, said: “The fall is likely to
represent the combined efforts of
many including the infection control,
haematology and cancer, consultant
Liberating sisters to lead
Ward sisters will spend less time
on corporate and admin work and
more time on leading their teams
and improving the care their patients
receive. The Trust aims to increase
clinical leadership time to 75% in the
next few years.
The new initiative – believed to be the
first of its kind in the NHS – supports
The “liberating sisters to lead” project team
Clostridium
difficile
(C.diff )
Wash
your
hands
of it
the Trust’s vision to put ward sisters at
the heart of patient care.
UCLH won £420,000 from The Health
Foundation to establish a ‘concierge’
style service to support ward sisters
with requests or information they need
on HR, ICT, finance, procurement
and estates and facilities issues. The
support team will simplify and improve
Contact us
If you have any information you would like included in Inside Story, or on Insight,
contact: Communications Unit, 2nd Floor Central, 250 Euston Road, London NW1
2PG. Email: communications@uclh.nhs.uk, Tel: ext 79897, Fax: ext 79401.
and nursing teams. This is based
on an overarching approach relating
to delivery of care in an evercleaner
environment, as well as very
close daily scrutiny of all antibiotic
prescribing on that unit.
Stephen Rowley, lead cancer nurse,
said they worked with the infection
control team to re-look at practices.
He added: “We found some gains in
areas where we didn’t think there was
potential for improvements.”
The type of cleaning agent used on
the haematology wards was changed
and all staff were reminded of the risks
of bacterial transference including
common touch points such as door
handles.
The level of scrutiny during the
monthly hand hygiene audits was also
increased.
Even more stringent government
thresholds come into force this year
and Trusts face penalties if they
exceed them. The C.diff threshold for
UCLH is 44 cases or under compared
to 59 in 2011/2012.
ward sisters’
interactions with
these corporate
functions. It will also
establish more streamlined ways of
working by reviewing processes.
Michelle McIntosh, a ward sister at
the NHNN David Ferrier Ward and a
member of the project group, said:
“It will create more time for us to be
visible on the wards: carrying out
daily rounds, listening to patients at
the bedside and being part of the
multi-disciplinary team ward rounds to
ensure continuity and quality of care.”
They will also have more time to lead
teams on initiatives such as 11am
discharges, coding sheets, intentional
rounding, falls and pressure ulcer
prevention.
UCLH will share its learning with other
hospital Trusts.
Front cover: An Olmypic torch
comes to the Heart Hospital

news
Comedy, magic and music: the perfect combination
A trio of celebrity guests visited UCLH this month to
support the work of the Trust and spread some cheer on
the wards.
Multi-million selling singer Dido (pictured top) said she
was ‘eternally grateful’ to UCLH for the treatment her late
father received as he battled a debilitating illness.
The recording artist said she had been given ‘extra years’
with her dad William because of the expert treatment he
received for lupus at University College Hospital.
She was speaking after unveiling a plaque announcing the
UCLH Centre for Rheumatology as a LUPUS UK Centre
of Excellence.
Lupus is an unpredictable and potentially fatal autoimmune
disease in which the immune system is out of balance,
causing inflammation and tissue damage to any organ
system in the body. There is no cure.
The health effects of lupus include heart attacks, strokes,
seizures, and organ failure. At least five million people
worldwide have a form of lupus.
Dido’s father was diagnosed in 2001 and was treated by
UCLH consultant rheumatologist Professor David Isenberg,
a world-leading expert on the condition, at the University
College Hospital Lupus Clinic.
Dido said: “My dad was looked after by Professor Isenberg
and my family and I have always been eternally grateful to
him because we got so much extra time with dad. We have
always felt a connection with Professor Isenberg because
we have so many brilliant memories because of him.”
UCLH works very closely with UCL to research new
treatments and different combinations of treatments to
improve the outcomes and care for patients with lupus.
Meanwhile, comedian and TV presenter Harry Hill (pictured
bottom with 17-year-old Shauna Glynn) helped launch this
year’s National Play in Hospital Week by judging an art
competition for young patients on T12.
Irene O’Donnell, play services manager, said: “We were
delighted that Harry agreed to judge the competition for us as
the children really enjoyed taking part and sharing their views
of play in hospital.”
National Play in Hospital Week is organised by Starlight
Children’s Foundation, and aims to promote and ensure the
provision of appropriate therapeutic and stimulating play
facilities in hospital.
Gasps of disbelief greeted magician Dynamo (pictured
centre with Leo Schubaeh) when he displayed some of his
mesmerizing tricks during his visit to the UCH Teenage Cancer
Trust unit.
The ‘Magician Impossible’ treated staff and patients to some
mesmerising tricks which have stunned A-list celebrities
around the world.
Dynamo made headlines following a 10,000-1 prediction on
how Spain would win Euro 2012. He guessed correctly every
winner from the quarter-finals onwards, he even predicted two
penalty shootouts, including England’s quarter-final defeat to
Italy. He donated his £10,000 winnings to Teenage Cancer
Trust.
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4
Olympic torch
Olympic torch comes to UCLH
UCLH has hosted its own Olympic torch relay during a
whistle-stop tour around all our hospital sites.
Accompanied by security, a photographer and Elke
Tullett from the communications unit, the gleaming
torch attracted crowds of staff, patients and public – all
wanting to be photographed with the iconic emblem.
First stop was the Eastman Dental Hospital courtyard,
where a glimpse of the torch proved a magnet for
droves of Olympic lovers. “It looks lovely. What a great
start to the week,” said head dental nurse Pamela
Parker as she held the torch aloft.
“Who’s that man? Is he in the Olympics?” said passerby
Javid Taebiaso, the first of many to question the
identity of the torch bearing guardian.
That man was Rod Townley, Trust’s head of security
charged with protecting it. Ok – he may not be an
Olympian but he did cycle 500 miles from Paris to
Geneva up and over the Pyrenees in a gruelling four
day competition – so as good a chap as any to guard
the prized torch.
The aluminium torch is perforated by 8,000 circles
– representing the inspirational stories of the 8,000
torchbearers who have been transporting the flame the
length and breadth of Britain.
Then a quick sprint to the Royal National Throat Nose
and Ear Hospital along Gray’s Inn Road where staff
were waiting for its arrival. Time for a few quick snaps –
then off to the NHNN.
Among the staff was senior staff nurse Ana Marta-Vidal.
Matron Liz Davies said Ana lived the Trust values. “She
is kind, caring, always see the bigger picture but always
puts the patient first.”
A saunter to the Royal London Hospital for Integrated
Medicine – and staff and patients had already
assembled, mobile phone cameras ready and waiting.
Then The Heart Hospital – a very civilised, quiet affair
in leafy West Moreland Street – followed swiftly by the
University College Hospital Macmillan Cancer Centre.
At the Hospital for Tropical Diseases, clinical scientist
Colin Sutherland, who had tickets to watch the women’s
water polo, rocked up on his cycle – just in the nick of
time to join his colleagues.
Outside the emergency department at University
College Hospital in Euston Road, chairman Richard
Murley joined the emergency services team.
Rachel Maybank, associate director of communications,
said: “The communications unit spoke to the London
Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic
Games about having the torch for a day and were
delighted when they said yes. We were really pleased to
see such enthusiasm across the Trust.”
First stop at the Eastman Dental Hospital
Staff at the Royal National Throat, Nose and Ear Hospital
At the Heart Hospital
At the National Hospital fo
At the Royal London Hosp

Olympic torch
All smiles at the University College Hospital Macmillan Cancer
Centre
Then onto the Hospital for Tropical Diseases
r Neurology and Neurosurgery
Trust head of security, Rod Townley protects the torch
ital for Integrated Medicine
And last but not least at University College Hospital
5

interview
Making sense of the biggest buzzword
Integration, integration, integration.
It’s difficult to think of a bigger
buzzword in the NHS at the moment.
And much as Tony Blair made
education his priority in Labour’s
battle for office in 1996, the NHS has
catapulted integration to the top of
its ‘to do’ list as it looks to meet the
challenges that lie ahead.
UCLH is no different. The Trust has
recently set up a Clinical Integration
Group with senior management
engagement and recruited a divisional
clinical director for integration,
Professor Mike Roberts.
But speak to most people about
integration and you may well be
greeted with a blank stare. Few
people, it seems, quite know exactly
what it means.
“Integration means lots of different
things to different people,” says Prof
Roberts, a respiratory physician and
Dean at Barts and the London School
of Medicine and Dentistry.
“If we start with the patient, it means
care that’s joined up between
providers and better meets the
patient’s needs.”
Imagine a frail, elderly patient who
finds it difficult to get out of the house
but manages to live independently.
She has diabetes, chronic kidney
disease and hypertension and is
admitted to hospital following a mild
stroke.
She is discharged home with a
package, much of which requires
multiple providers who don’t have a
shared patient record. The patient is
given outpatient appointments to see
a diabetologist, cardiologist and stroke
consultant – impossible challenges for
somebody who is not mobile.
Things start to go wrong. Work is
duplicated with multiple agencies
sending care workers to her home.
Then her social care package
does not appear and the patient is
readmitted.
The alternative is an example of
how integration should work well in
healthcare.
The patient is managed through a
team which includes a geriatrician
working with a stroke physician,
a team of community nurses and
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a social worker. They discuss the
patient’s needs and implement an
agreed package of care in liaison with
her GP. They have a shared electronic
record so everybody is aware what the
care plan is and discuss the patient at
a weekly community multi-disciplinary
team meeting until she is stable. Care
is delivered to the patient in her own
home and specialty care delivered by
the GP who has the care plan and the
direct phone number and email for the
relevant specialists at UCLH. This is
truly joined up care.
Doing integration well is a genuine
‘win win’. Patient care improves – they
are more likely to stay at home and
less likely to re-present to A&E – as
does the Trust’s relationship with GPs
and commissioners.
Prof Roberts said: “Commissioners in
Camden and Islington have taken a
very positive and cooperative view of
the future and really want to engage
with us and other providers.”
The focus on integration is already
paying off in some areas where
the Trust is working closely with
community and GP services. For
example its new integrated services
in heart failure, chronic obstructive
pulmonary disease (COPD), frail
elderly and diabetes with chronic
kidney disease.
Significant effort is being made to
ensure communication with GPs
is improved – one of their biggest
bugbears with the Trust. Providing
strong access to clinicians and
services via telephone or email,
timely and accurate discharge
information and outpatient letters, sent
electronically wherever possible and
making IT systems with test results
more accessible are just some of the
areas of focus. A new web ‘app’ has
been developed for mobile phones
to give GPs access to service and
consultant details at the tips of their
fingers.
Prof Roberts says: “It’s important to
concentrate on our relationship with
GPs because it’s the best way of
improving patient care.”
He wants the Trust to be setting the
agenda for integration in the coming
year, rather than playing a passive
role.
“At present it’s pretty much a blank
page but we have a great opportunity
to get clinicians and managers actively
engaged in this process and free
them up to think about how we can
better deliver care and break away
from the historic ways that have been
perpetuated since the NHS was
established.”

UCLH will next month launch
its new Celebrating Excellence
Awards which will culminate in
a glittering award ceremony to
honour the winners.
The awards, funded by UCLH
Charity, will formally recognise
the achievements of Trust staff.
The awards can be split into three
categories; ‘Contribution to our
Vision’, ‘Living the Values’ and
‘Going Above and Beyond’. The
Celebrating Excellence Awards
will build on the Trust’s Service
Commitment Awards.
Sir Robert Naylor, UCLH chief
executive, said: “UCLH’s success
depends on amazing people
delivering exceptional results
and our awards are intended to
recognise at least some of these
individuals and teams. It is right
that we have an opportunity to
celebrate their achievements in this
way.”
The award ceremony will celebrate
the success and contribution of
each shortlisted finalist and will
be held on February 28 at One
Moorgate Place, and will be
hosted by a special celebrity guest.
Shortlisted finalists will be treated
to a private drinks reception in the
members’ room with celebrity host,
drinks with a wider audience and
three course dinner.
You can find details of how to
nominate your colleagues as well
as the prize for each award on
the new Celebrating Excellence
Awards Insight pages.
Nominations for all awards will
open in early September and close
in late-October.
Top award – and blessings – for cancer centre!
Buddhist monks were among
those of different faiths who
gave their blessing to the new
University College Hospital
MacMillan Cancer Centre
during a special roof garden
ceremony.
Representatives from Biha’i,
Jewish, Muslim, Christian
and Sikh faiths were all
represented, including staff
and patients who did not have
an affiliation to any particular
faith. Candles were lit to
symbolise hope for the new
building.
Meanwhile, the cancer
centre has also won a top
architecture award: the New
London Awards honour the
capital’s very best in design,
planning and development.
Hopkins Architects and
Skanska Construction won the
health category.
our trust
Coming soon: new-look awards to celebrate staff excellence
The awards are:
Contribution to our Vision’ Awards
Contribution to world-class research
award
Chairman’s medal and Chairman’s
award for contribution to excellence in
education
Gwyneth Griffiths award for contribution
to top-quality patient care
‘Living the Values’ Awards
Safety award
Kindness award
Teamwork award
Improving award
‘Going Above and Beyond’ Awards
Chief Executive’s award for outstanding
leadership
Chairman’s lifetime achievement award
Chief Nurse’s prize
Best UCLH trained newly qualified
nurse
UCH Nurses’ League-Christine
Harcourt-Smith awards
Going the extra mile – volunteer award
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the back page
Our staff at the Olympics opening ceremony
UCLH staff featured in
the opening ceremony
Gillian Basnett, lead nuse urooncology,
Rohan Nauth-Misir,
urology consultant and Sue Fell,
urology continence nurse advisor
UCLH volunteer Louise
Pout in front of the
‘cauldron’ at the Olympic
Stadium
Archives
Bowling at Clacton:
male patients bowling
in the grounds of The
Middlesex Hospital’s
Convalescent Home at
Clacton. Circa 1916.
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