BHT Voice July 2022

A note from our Chief Medical Officer, Andrew McLaren

I am writing this issue’s introduction to BHT Voice while our CEO Neil Macdonald takes a rare and well-deserved holiday.

Firstly, you may already be aware that the Care Quality Commission (CQC) has released their report on the Trust. Having worked here for 18 years myself, I have witnessed how tirelessly people work to do the right thing for our patients and I am proud of each of them for helping us maintain our ‘Good’ rating. You can read more about the CQC report below.

I would also like to draw your attention to the fact that, due to the rise in COVID-19 cases, we are once again asking patients, visitors and staff coming onto our hospital and community sites to wear face masks in clinical areas to help contain the spread of the virus.

Now for a couple of shout outs for our teams. You may recall that in January we opened the Olympic Lodge hotel at the back of the Stoke Mandeville site to help us relieve some of the pressures in the hospital. As we now hand that back to the stadium, a huge thank you to our teams who came together to put it in place when we first got news of omicron. We’ve helped over 150 residents who no longer needed an acute hospital bed but required further support as they prepared to return home. You can see in the infographic below how staff our staff made a difference for people at this interim facility. One person transferred to the Lodge said “The two weeks I stayed here helped me find my feet” while another commented that they felt “more independent”. This is the sort of thing that can only be done in an organisation like ours and I am really proud of the combined expertise and strength we have in both community and hospital services.

Olympic Lodge Infographic

Finally, a team of people at the Trust has been working with Bucks County Council to support refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine, with regards to their health and wellbeing. There have already been more than one thousand beneficiaries of the ‘helping hand for Ukraine’ and ‘Ukraine to UK village response’ initiatives in the county and I hope we can continue to support the people who need us.

With that, I hope you find this newsletter interesting and informative and wish you all a fantastic British summer.

Take care,

Andrew

CQC confirms Trust continues to provide ‘GOOD’ care

Neil Macdonald, Chief Executive of Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust, paid tribute to the Trust’s 6,500 employees following a report published today from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) which has maintained the Trust’s overall ‘Good’ rating with ‘Outstanding’ for caring as well as improving the Trust’s well-led rating from ‘Requires Improvement’ to ‘Good’. He also committed to supporting staff to implement any improvements highlighted in the report, particularly regarding safety, following the three-day inspection in February 2022.

Visitors and patients asked to resume wearing facemasks

Patients, staff and visitors attending our hospitals or our community sites are being asked to wear face masks again in clinical areas (for example, on wards, in A&E and in outpatient areas), as cases of COVID-19 have risen significantly. This will apply at all Trust hospitals and community healthcare locations with immediate effect.

Buckingham and Aylesbury community midwives honoured with Alison Heffernan award

Two community midwives at Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust were given the Alison Heffernan award, celebrating excellence in maternity services. The joint winners, Hannah Tuson and Becca France, were voted for by women and families who have had a baby under the care of the Trust in the last year.

Read more

Buckinghamshire Junior Doctor wins prestigious national award for ground-breaking research into pancreatic cancer

A junior doctor at Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust has gained a top prize in the prestigious 2022 Dr Falk-Pharma/Guts UK Charity national awards.

Dr Edward Arbe-Barnes won the F1/F2 Research Award for his research into the biology of pancreatic cancer.

Scalp coolers to be provided by cancer charity

Thank you to the Cancer Care & Haematology Fund (CCHF) charity which has agreed to fund the purchase of new scalp coolers to be used by patients in our Trust cancer units to minimise hair loss during chemotherapy. The charity, which supports cancer units at Stoke Mandeville and Wycombe hospitals, has committed £52,000 for the purchase of scalp coolers developed by specialist company, Paxman.

Hayley’s horse visits her hospice bedside

A patient receiving care in Florence Nightingale Hospice at Stoke Mandeville Hospital had a very special visitor. Hayley Golding was visited in the hospice by her beloved horse Passion on Thursday 30 June. The pair had a very emotional reunion in the hospice garden with family, friends and staff around to witness the love between them.

Chief Nurse, Karen Bonner, recognised as a Burdett Hero

The Burdett Trust held its 20th Anniversary Celebration on Wednesday 29 June. The event brought together special guests to honour representatives of projects the trust had funded over the last two decades.

Our Chief Nurse was recognised for her work with HelpForce to support and enable the development of a series of interventions that will ultimately benefit NHS Staff and primarily the nursing workforces, patients, families and volunteers.

One Team One Goal award winners revealed

We’ve revealed the winners for the Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust One Team One Goal (OTOG) 2021 Awards at a special ceremony held at Wycombe Hospital – highlighting the great work of the Trust’s healthcare professionals, support teams and volunteers over the last year.