Connections Newspaper Issue 19 - Mar/Apr 2007

THE NEWSPAPER FOR NHS LOTHIAN STAFF MARCH/APRIL 2007 ISSUE 19
Connections
YOUR AWARD-WINNING NEWSPAPER
WIN A FAIRTRADE
HAMPER
PAGE 20
SMART
MOVE
PAGES 6 & 7
Pic: The Fairtrade Foundation
‘Delighted’ NHS Lothian leaders welcome increase in funding to £930 million
£1bn FUNDING BOOST
FOR PATIENT CARE
We welcome the
increase in our
annual allocation
Bob Anderson (above),
interim chair, NHS Lothian,
Inpatient waiting
times decrease
NHS Lothian announced
in December that no
patient who needs
treatment for inpatient
procedures now waits
longer than 18 weeks to
get it. That is dramatically
below the position in
January 2006 when the
figure stood at 1,393.
The total number of
people on the inpatient
waiting list had dropped
by 23 per cent to just
over 7,700 at the end of
November 2006 – down
from 10,127 in May 2005.
The number of patients
waiting for outpatient
treatment in NHS
Lothian at the end of
November 2006 was
28,626 – a 14 per cent fall
on the position at the
end of May 2005.
NHS Lothian has been
allocated a budget of almost
£1 billion to care for
patients and provide more
community services in its part
of Scotland.
The new figures were
released by the Scottish
Executive at the beginning of
February, with funding for
Scotland’s health boards
increasing by around six
per cent as the country’s
h e a l t h b u d g e t re a c h e s
£10bn a year.
A n d t h e y b ro u g h t a
delighted reaction from NHS
Lothian leaders as they
considered this year’s budget
allocation statement.
Professor James Barbour,
chief executive said: “This
increase in funding is great
news for NHS Lothian and
the communities we serve.
“The additional £60m
funding, representing a
6.91 per cent increase on
last year’s allocation, takes
NHS Lothian’s allocated
budget to £930m.
“This additional income
comes at a time when we are
continuing to make efficiency
savings, while raising
productivity and treating
record numbers of patients, all
against a backdrop of lower
management costs.”
He added: “We have
already been able to cut
waiting times for inpatients
to less than 18 weeks,
achieving a key Scottish
Executive target a full year
ahead of schedule, and
these funds will allow us to
continue to reduce waiting
times for patients.
“We will also press ahead
with moves to deliver more
healthcare services at locations
in the community, close to
where patients live.”
Among the other priorities
already identified by
NHS Lothian for action this
year are:
• children’s cancer services
• foetal anomaly scanning
• child protection
• breast cancer services
• community mental
health services
• bowel cancer screening
• Positron emission
tomography (PET) scanning.
Bob Anderson, interim
chair of NHS Lothian, added:
“We welcome the increase
in our annual allocation
which will allow us to
continue to improve services
for the people of Lothian
and south-east Scotland.
“While Lothian is home
to Scotland’s capital city,
and has a strong economy
and growing population,
it also has pockets of
serious deprivation.
“We are committed to
trying to end the situation
where the life expectancy of
WHY is staff nurse Sarah Loughran
looking so pleased with herself? Can
it be that bottle of bubbly she’s clutching
so tightly? Maybe the set of keys in
her hand will give you a clue.
people from deprived
backgrounds can be several
years shorter than that
expected for people from
wealthier areas.”
Health minister Andy
Kerr, MSP, said: “The
growing investment in our
NHS is leading to a
quicker service, and shorter
Sarah is the first NHS Lothian employee
to move into a new affordable housing
development in the capital.
Turn to page 5 for the full story…
waits for treatment. We’ve
also seen significant
reductions in deaths from
our biggest killers, cancer,
heart disease and stroke,
and record numbers of
staff. Now we want to go
even further.
“We’re already on track
to meet even lower
HOW WE’RE TACKLING WORKPLACE BULLYING IN CONFIDENCE
waiting times targets. Tough
new targets on diagnostics
and A&E waits are
also being introduced – all
at a time of fundamental
change in the way we
deliver healthcare.
“We’re no longer waiting
Continued on page 3 >>
PAGES 10 & 11
2
NEWS
Comment Jenifer Stirton
A SMART way to
give patients a
better service
W
elcome to the latest edition
of Connections, which is
once again packed with the
latest news and developments in
NHS Lothian.
Among them is the official
opening of the £7.5 million
SMART centre at Astley Ainslie
Hospital. On pages 6 & 7, you can
read about the extensive – and
innovative – mobility and
rehabilitation ser vices this
state-of-the-art facility will provide.
Another smart idea is NHS
Lothian’s joint project to provide
affordable housing for its employees.
Working in partnership with
the City of Edinburgh Council
and Live Smart @ Home, this
scheme will help ensure that
employees who may otherwise
have found it difficult to find a
suitable home in the city can live near
their workplace. Read the full story
on page 5.
Staff are also benefiting from an
expanded transport service between
Edinburgh sites. Two new mini-buses
have been added to the service, which
it’s hoped will cut down on the use
of taxis.
a confidential contact network.
Turn to pages 10 & 11 to read more.
OUR CARING STAFF
We know that NHS Lothian staff are
caring, but one employee is going
above and beyond the call of duty
– by working as a volunteer for the
International Rescue Corps. Read
Derek Jolly’s story on page 20.
Derek is just one of many unsung
heroes in NHS Lothian – and now
you have an opportunity to have
them publicly recognised at the
Institute of Healthcare Management’
national awards.
As always, we have some great
prizes to be won. Mums-to-be can
win one of four £50 vouchers from
the maternity clothing website
www.funmum.com
And there are also four Fairtrade
hampers, each worth £50, to be won.
Turn to page 17 for details of how
to enter. Good luck!
Finally, I am delighted that
Connections has once again been
recognised, winning a certificate of
excellence at the CiB Scotland
awards. I hope you enjoy reading your
award-winning staff newspaper.
New bus links for
RIE and St John’s
THE NHS Lothian Transport and
Access Group has recently reviewed
the Healthlink transport service
between St John’s Hospital,
Livingston, and the RIE.
While this service has been
of significant benefit to the
1415 passengers who have used it
St John’s Hospital
Livingston Bus Terminal
Dedridge East
Mid Calder Spottiswoode
Mid Calder Bank Street
East Calder Main Street
Wilkieston
Ratho Wilkieston Road
Roddinglaw Road End
Hermiston p and r
Gilmerton Drum Street
RIE
*Sats and Suns 3 mins earlier
Editorial board:
Jenifer Stirton, Robert Aitken, Gillian Amos, Morag Barrow,
Duncan Blyth, John Boyce, Alexis Burnett, Shona Cameron,
Stewart Cameron, Noreen Clancy, Grahame Cumming, Eddie Egan,
Wendy Fenemore, Anne Gilchrist, Linda Haggarty, Jean Harnes,
Shirley Johnston, Anne Laing, Karen Lee, Angela Lindsay, Gordon Lynch,
Isla Mair, Dave Proudfoot, Lesley Reid, Jim Sherval, Kathryn Sinclair,
Tom Waterson, Moira Wainwright, Sally Westwick, John White.
Contact the editor:
communications@lhb.scot.nhs.uk
0131 536 9432/9355
0131 536 9013
Staff Newspaper, Communications Dept, Deaconess House,
148 Pleasance, Edinburgh EH8 9RS
Editorial and production:
Connections is written, designed and produced by:
Connect Communications, Studio 2001, Mile End,
Paisley PA1 1JS 0141 561 0300 0141 561 0400
www.connectcommunications.co.uk
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SERVICE 400 – ROYAL INFIRMARY to ST JOHN’S HOSPITAL (DAILY)
RIE
Gilmerton Drum Street
Hermiston p and r
Roddinglaw Road End
Ratho Wilkieston Road
Wilkieston
East Calder Main Street
Mid Calder Bank Street
Mid Calder Spottiswoode
Dedridge East
Livingston Bus Terminal
St John’s Hospital
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Connections
Printing:
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Jenifer Stirton, editor
over the last 11 months, the cost
of the subsidy has not been value
for money.
The service was retendered
and NHS Lothian has agreed
that, for a further subsidy of
£9000 per year, a commercial
bus service should be introduced.
SERVICE 400 – ST JOHN’S HOSPITAL to ROYAL INFIRMARY (DAILY)
EQUALITY FOR ALL
Ensuring that our staff work in a safe,
environment is a priority for NHS
Lothian and in this issue of
Connections, we report on two
ongoing initiatives.
The first is our Equality and
Diversity Strategy (see page 12),
which is out for consultation.
This aims to ensure that all
our staff are treated equally. To
that end, all employees have access
to a number of resources, including
March/April 2007 Connections
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Bringing about
changes in care
A PARTNERSHIP event in
March highlighted the
importance of working
together for those involved
in the care of older people.
Working in Partnership
to Bring About Change took
place at the Quayside,
Musselburgh.
It highlighted the work
carried out by two wards
at Astley Ainslie and
associated hospitals that
involved staff and relatives
working together to improve
the care of older people.
The event tackled
questions such as what
partnership working
involved, if it could
be applied across the board,
if it’s feasible and practical
and what its benefits are.
E For further information
about the event, call Ria
Tocher on 0131 537 9026
or e-mail:
ria.tocher@lpct.scot.nhs.uk
No service Dec 25, 26, Jan 1 and 2
Connections makes the
award headlines - again
CONNECTIONS has been awarded
a certificate of excellence at the CiB
Scotland Awards. The award was
made in the best internal newspaper
category. It’s the second time in just
It is planned to introduce the
bus service in April. The
routes and timetable are below.
This joint initiative between
N H S L o t h i a n a n d We s t
Lothian Council will be of
significant benefit to many
more Lothian residents.
a few months that the newspaper has
won recognition. At the end of
last year, Connections won a
silver award in the best
newsletter, newspaper or magazine
category at the CIPR awards .
Jenifer Stirton, director of
communications said: “I’m absolutely
delighted Connections has received
this award especially coming so soon
after our CIPR Award. We work
hard to make Connections a ‘must
read’ for staff and I’d like to thank
everyone involved, especially our
staff, as its success is also due to their
input and support.”
A snappy way to teach oral hygiene!
AN interactive CD which aims to
teach young children the benefits of
having a healthy mouth in a fun
and educational way is being launched
this month.
Crunchy the Croc has been
produced by the Oral Health
Promotion Team in the Primary Care
Dental Service in conjunction with
design company, OUI3.
It is funded through the Scottish
Executive’s Action Plan for
Improving Oral Health and is being
distributed to all nurseries, nursery
classes and child and family centres
across Lothian.
The CD is also a valuable resource
for P1 and P2 children.
The CD consists of several activities
which engage children in finding out
about making healthy choices,
including educational games which
not only impart knowledge, but
also improve memory and hand-eye
co-ordination.
There are worksheets which can be
printed off and used either in the
classroom as part of the children’s
everyday learning outcomes, or taken
home to reinforce the oral health
messages to parents and carers.
The launch of the new resource
will take place at Broomhouse/
St Joseph’s Primary Schools on
Tuesday 27 March between 9.30am
and 11am.
The guest speaker will be Andy Kerr
MSP, Minister for Health and
Community Care.
NEWS
Connections March/April 2007
3
Events show NHS Lothian’s health professionals are at the forefront of healthcare provision
Bringing experts
together improves
service to patients
BRINGING professionals together in
one place has proved to be a successful
way of providing patients with
information on health problems.
Senior physiotherapist Geraldine
Fergusson, who is part of the
Edinburgh community physiotherapy
s e r v i c e , s a i d : “A t e a m o f
physiotherapists – Annette Bornemann,
Claire Henderson and I – decided to
bring together a whole range of
different health professionals in one
place to talk to people about
osteoarthritis in the lower limbs.
“We arranged for physiotherapists,
a joint replacement specialist,
pharmacists, podiatrists and
dieticians to attend, along with a
homeopathy expert from Napier
University to talk about homeopathy
and complementary therapies.”
The day, which was jointly
Patient care
Continued from page 1 >>
for people to get ill, then rushing
them to hospital for urgent
treatment. Instead, we’re doing
more than ever before to
encourage people to lead healthy
lives, and spotting and dealing with
poor health before it can develop
into something more serious.
“When people do need
treatment, we’re delivering more
of it closer to home in their
local communities.”
New home for
Edinburgh CHP
EDINBURGH’S Community
Health Partnership is
moving in the spring – to
new headquarters at St
Roque, in the grounds of
Astley Ainslie Hospital.
The CHP – which serves
the primary health care
needs of citizens across the
capital – will move from its
current base at Mill Lane in
Leith to the more central
location in Edinburgh.
NHS Lothian and its main
partner, the City of Edinburgh
Council, were recently given
permission by Scottish
Health Minister Andy Kerr to
combine the existing North
and South Edinburgh CHPs
into a single unit.
The CHP also takes
over responsibility for
hospital-based services
at Astley Ainslie in April
from NHS Lothian’s Primary
Care Organisation (see
Connections February issue
for more details).
organised with Edinburgh Leisure,
took place at Meadowbank stadium
and included a tour of the gym so
that patients could find out about
the benefits of exercise in treating
such conditions.
Geraldine continued: “About 30
patients attended and the feedback
from the day was that it had been very
useful and relevant.
“We’ll now be holding another
day about the same health issue in
May, although we could use this format
for different problems such as women’s
health, back and neck pain.”
Community physiotherapy
manager Morag Barrow added:
“Edinburgh community physiotherapy
service is developing the role of
self-management for people with
long-term conditions to help them
manage their own problems.
Edinburgh first for
pharmacy conference
MEET THE EXPERTS: patients
had a chance to talk to NHS staff
“Self-management conferences
aim to support people living with
long-term conditions in developing the
confidence, skills and knowledge
they need to manage in order to have
more control of their lives.
“Self-management is not intended
to replace medical treatment, but to
help people to use their skills and
expertise alongside the skills and
expertise of the medical professionals.”
IN May, Edinburgh hosts the
7th Spring Conference on
Clinical Pharmacy and hundreds
of delegates from Europe
will descend on the capital to
discuss the issues of tackling
inequalities in the delivery of
pharmaceutical care.
The European Society of
Clinical Pharmacy runs the
conference, which will be chaired
by Pat Murray, director of
pharmacy, NHS Lothian. Anne
Gilchrist, a pharmacist with NHS
Lothian’s Medicines Management
Team, is one of the organisers.
“The programme includes lots
of workshops and it will be an
important event to meet and
discuss the issues both formally
and informally,” said Anne.
It’s the first time it has been
held in Edinburgh and Anne
said it was a nice opportunity to
show off the city and for the
visitors to learn about the work
going on in this sector in the UK
and the rest of Europe.
She said: “We’ve developed an
exc i t i n g p ro g r a m m e w i t h
eminent speakers from the
world of pharmacy, medicine
and health economics.
“We have Harry Burns, chief
medical officer for Scotland, as a
keynote speaker to explain how
clinical pharmacy fits into the
public health arena.
“It’s a great opportunity for
UK pharmacists who have not
been able to attend conferences
in European venues to meet
colleagues from abroad
and network.
“It also helps to stimulate
enthusiasm for the discipline
and to attract post-graduates to our
schools of pharmacy in Scotland.”
GIVING YOUNG GIRLS
A HEALTHIER FUTURE
Scots scientists hope to lead the
way in tackling cervical cancer
A DEBATE in the Scottish Parliament
has raised hopes among health
workers that the country
may soon lead the way in
vaccinating young women against
cervical cancer.
Scotland’s politicians have already
introduced a law banning smoking in
public places…now they are turning
their attention to another major killer
– the second most common cancer
affecting women under 35 in the UK.
NHS Lothian research and
development director, Professor
Heather Cubie, pictured, said:
“Cervical cancer is caused by the
human papilloma virus (HPV) and
over the decades, cytologists have been
looking for abnormal cells which are
a reflection of that virus infection.
“Until recently, we didn’t have the
tools to be able to look for the virus
itself. Now we can. Molecular
technology has brought a new range
of tests and we do a lot of them here
in our research labs.
“Scotland has a very good cytology
screening service, based on a call and
recall programme for women at risk
every three years. Our GPs have a
commitment to try three times to
encourage women to take part in the
screening service and it’s very
wasteful of resources if people don’t
turn up. But if women don’t respond,
that’s their choice. The latest research
suggests that the uptake is slipping,
so we need to reinforce the message
that women must continue to be
screened regularly.”
Using HPV testing would make it
easier to determine when minor
cytology changes represent early
disease. NHS Lothian is at the
forefront of this research and Professor
Cubie suggests that the service
could be upgraded readily to offer HPV
testing for the whole of Scotland for
women with borderline smears.
Liquid-based cytology (see
Connections March/April 2005) has
hugely reduced the number of
unsatisfactory samples from smear
testing in the Lothian area.
She said: “Having the samples put
in liquid rather than on a glass slide
has reduced inadequacies from about
10 per cent to about two per cent. It
also provides the right sample to test
for HPV.”
The third big development in the fight
against cervical cancer is research that
has produced one new vaccine with
at least one other on its way.
“HPV is an interesting virus. It has
lived very happily with its host for
millennia and only
very occasionally
causes disease.
“About 80 per
cent of people
who’ve ever been
sexually active
have probably had
UNDER DEBATE: cervical cancer vaccinations
have been discussed in the Scottish Parliament
an infection with HPV and cleared it
through their body’s immune system.
“Men are also infected, but they
don’t seem to get the disease, so we
don’t look for it there. But if the virus
gets into a woman’s cervix and isn’t
cleared, there’s a chance that over
several years, pre-cancerous cells could
develop which could lead to cancer.
“The aim of HPV vaccine is to
prevent a woman becoming infected
with HPV. The idea is that we should
vaccinate young girls around the age
of 11 to 13. It is still too soon to say
if the vaccines would offer long-term
protection – it simply hasn’t been
around long enough.”
MSP Ken Macintosh
raised the debate in the
Scottish Parliament during
Cervical Cancer Awareness
week last month.
He told Connections:
“The possibility of eradicating
cervical cancer is within our
grasp and there is no doubt
the new HPV vaccinations
have grabbed the imagination
of politicians and public alike.
“We have to pursue that goal, while
ensuring there is no let-up in the
cervical cancer screening programme.
“The decision on a vaccination
programme is imminent and we have
to prepare for that while reinforcing the
message that women need to come
forward for screening. That message
comes best from health professionals.”
4
Health checks
while you shop
MAKING health services more accessible
to everyone is part of a new development
set up by West Lothian CHCP.
Body Checkout is available in
shopping centres, aimed at helping
individuals improve their health by
identifying potential problems at an early
stage. Customers can use the mobile
health stall for free health checks,
including blood pressure, cholesterol and
body mass index measurements.
Body Checkout is currently being
offered in the Mill Centre, Blackburn, West
Lothian and in Almondvale Shopping
Centre, Livingston. Plans are in place to
offer the service in other venues,
including a supermarket and community
pharmacy. The initiative has proved very
popular, with 178 people having a
Body Checkout in the first five sessions.
Helen Yewdall, the public health
practitioner for West Lothian CHCP, said:
“This is a great opportunity for people
who don’t regularly visit their GP to have
a free check-up in their everyday
environment. It is also a real chance for
the West Lothian CHCP to promote a
healthy lifestyle.
“We have a small team consisting of
a physician assistant, a nurse and an
administrative assistant carrying out the
checks. They pass the test results on to
GPs for follow-up care, providing the
patients give their consent. The team will
also be able to offer patients advice and
information on health services and health
improvement initiatives.”
Body Checkout is part of a two-year
pilot set up by NHS Lothian called Access
to Health, aimed at residents in some of
the most deprived areas of West
Lothian, offering comprehensive health
checks in five local communities.
Correction
PLEASE note correction to car parking
story in the February issue:
Barriers and car parking systems will
not be in place at Astley Ainslie and the
Royal Edinburgh hospitals until a
traffic survey has been carried out to
determine the appropriate system.
Barriers and car parking charges at
all other NHS-managed sites are now
due to be installed from 1 May.
NEWS
March/April 2007 Connections
NHS staff help stamp out fraud
FRAUD does not just cost the NHS
money – it deprives patients of
valuable care services. That’s
why it’s important for employees
to be aware of the issue and to
report any suspect behaviour to
NHSScotland Counter
Fraud Services (CFS).
CFS works in
partnership with other
NHS organisations to
raise awareness of the
detrimental effects of fraud
on the health service in
Scotland.
NHS employees are behind the antifraud initiative, as several thousand
questionnaires were completed in the
CFS’ last campaign, which coincided
with European Fraud Awareness
month late last year.
Stephen Frier, communications
liaison officer with NHSS
Counter Fraud Services,
said: “The response to
this initiative was
excellent, due in no
small part to the support
re c e i v e d f ro m t h e
boards.”
CFS staff visited NHS
centres and special boards
throughout Scotland and asked staff
to complete a questionnaire.
This asked about their awareness
of fraud within the health service,
what they would consider to be
the best methods to promote
the issue and by what means
would they consider reporting a
suspected fraud.
The results are currently being
analysed and will be reported back
to everyone in due course.
“Only a very small number of
healthcare professionals, staff and
patients seek to defraud the NHS,
but our aim is to identify those
areas of misuse of resources and
reduce this to an absolute
minimum,” added Stephen.
orted
Suspected fraud can be rep
via
line
on
her
anonymously, eit
the
ling
cal
the CFS website, or by
16
15 28.
Fraud Hotline on 08000
For further information
on the work of CFS, go to
www.cfs.scot.nhs.uk
Rezoning admissions
Patients involved
in developing plans
PATIENTS and members of the
public were invited to help
NHS Lothian develop plans for
emergency medical admissions to
its three acute hospitals.
A workshop took place on
1 Februar y at the Thistle
Foundation, Craigmillar, where
delegates looked at the present
zoning arrangements in place for the
Western General Hospital,
the Royal Infirmar y of
Edinburgh and St John’s Hospital
in Livingston.
Participants included individuals
from the public partnership
forums set up by the Community
Health Partnerships and the
Community Health and Care
Partnership, patient networks at
the three hospitals, the minority
ethnic community and voluntary
organisations.
NHS Lothian is considering
the impact of current arrangements
as part of its Improving Care,
Investing in Change strategy,
looking at the need to ensure
that services are accessible,
responsive and meet targets for
emergency admissions.
Sarah Sinclair, head of patient
focus and public involvement at
NHS Lothian, said: “Involving
patients, carers and members of the
public early on in the development
of services helps us to plan services
appropriately.”
Jackie Sansbury, director of
strategic planning and modernisation
at NHS Lothian, added: “The
workshop helped NHS Lothian to
find out what principles are
important to patients when
they are admitted to hospital in
an emergency.
“Among the principles patients
stressed as important were the
public transport travel times in
determining where they should be
taken to when they require an
emergency admission, as this
affected their relatives.
“Another consideration was the
importance of clear communication
to patients and relatives when
patients are being taken to hospital,
particularly taking account of the
needs of certain groups, eg ethnic
minority communities.
“The principles were then applied
to the current zones that potentially
could be changed.”
The results will be fed back to
participants and taken to the
working group in Better Acute Care
in Lothian to take this forward,
following which further public
discussion will take place.
Delivering effective care
A P P L I C AT I O N S f r o m
staff members are being
sought for a major clinical
governance and risk
management conference on
15 May.
The event is being held at
Our Dynamic Earth in
Edinburgh and either oral or
electronic presentation
submissions would be most
welcome.
The event is entitled:
“Delivering safe, effective
person-centred care in
NHS Lothian” and a major
part of the day will provide
an opportunity to share
good practice and
concentrate on:
■ reducing risk
■ learning from incidents/
complaints/feedback
■ improving the patient
experience
■ addressing the equality
and diversity agenda.
Sue Gibbs, NHS Lothian
clinical governance manager
(primary & community),
s a i d : “ We w o u l d b e
delighted to receive as many
applications as possible
and I would encourage
staff to come for ward
and participate.”
E For an application form,
please contact your
local clinical effectiveness
facilitator or Steve
Richer on 0131 537 8525
or e-mail
steve.richer@lpct.
scot.nhs.uk
The closing date for
applications is 30 March
NEWS
Connections March/April 2007
NHS Lothian staff nurse Sarah
Loughran is one of the first people
to move into one of Scotland’s
n e w e s t a f f o rd a b l e h o u s i n g
developments.
Sarah, who is based at the
Royal Hospital for Sick Children in
Edinburgh, was handed the key at
the official opening of the
development in February – the first
of its kind in Scotland.
Working in partnership with
Edinburgh City Council and NHS
Lothian, Live Smart @ Home – the
market rental arm of leading
affordable housing provider Home
– has taken ownership of 36 one
and two-bedroom flats in the
centre of Edinburgh.
The development, in Brunswick
Road, is aimed mainly at NHS
employees who, due to the high cost
of living in central Edinburgh, have
found it difficult to find suitable
homes in the city.
Sarah said: “A lot of people I
know have to move quite frequently
and that’s not good when you are
working long days and just want
somewhere to call home. It is a
lovely place to live and I’m looking
forward to staying here.”
The flats will be available to
rent from £395 for a one-bedroom
flat and £515 upwards for a
two-bedroom flat.
To date, 18 flats have been let to
5
Transplant
patient’s ‘debt
of gratitude’
LEFT: Sarah Loughran is
handed the keys to her new
Smart home in Edinburgh
Nurse Sarah makes
a very smart move!
NHS employees, with other
homes being targeted at people
working locally and earning
£15,000 to £25,000, who would
otherwise not be able to afford to
live in central Edinburgh.
Heather Tierney-Moore, director
of nursing, NHS Lothian, believes
such projects are crucial for NHS
staff in Edinburgh.
She said: “We need to find
different ways of recruiting and
retaining staff. Part of that involves
trying to make sure they can
afford to live in the city.”
Live Smart @ Home managing
director Alan Prole said: “We are very
excited about this, our first
development in Scotland, particularly
as it is ensuring that working
households on modest incomes are
being given access to high-quality
homes at very affordable prices.
“We are delighted to be able to
work in partnership with Edinburgh
City Council and NHS Lothian to
deliver this very worthwhile scheme
and are already looking forward to
rolling out further developments
across Scotland.”
ABOVE: Andrew McCafferty,
left, presents the cheque to
surgeon Murat Akyol
Shuttle
service
expands
Orthopaedic pilot
is a great success
A PILOT project to reduce
orthopaedic waiting times has
achieved incredible success.
The orthopaedic assessment
clinic at Mountcastle
Healthcare Centre is staffed by
physiotherapy clinical
specialists, extended scope
practitioners, a GP with a
special interest in musculoskeletal problems and a
specialist podiatrist.
The aim was to cut waiting
times for orthopaedic
consultations and surgery
by taking those who did not
need surgical procedures off
waiting lists.
The assessment clinic aimed
to see people within six weeks
of a GP referral, but has
managed to average a two-week
waiting time.
Eddie Balfour, the clinic’s
project manager, said: “The
clinic has been a massive
success. We’ve seen more than
750 people since it opened and
of those, we have only referred
on 34 per cent, meaning that
about 500 people have been
treated more quickly and have
not needed to wait for an
orthopaedic consultation.”
TWO new mini-buses have entered
service to transport staff between
NHS Lothian locations in Edinburgh.
The modern Ford Transit
Tourneos offer a comfortable,
frequent and speedy journey
between the Western General and
RIE, between Monday and Friday.
This service is offered in addition
to the staff shuttle bus and the
timetables are integrated to minimise
the interval between journeys.
The drivers are also able to
carry packages between
scheduled sites, but it is asked that
they are taken to and collected from
the vehicle.
In our effort to speed the journey
even further, NHS Lothian is in
discussion with the council to make
use of the Greenways.
Iain Sneddon, transport and
travel manager, said: “During a
recent survey of the service, users
said they found the previous
vehicles hard to identify. To resolve
this, our new vehicles carry the
corporate logo.
“Also, they provide an additional
two seats and have much better
access for passengers.This work is
in an effort to further drive down
the use of taxis, by providing
alternative modes of transport to
support staff working across sites.”
NHS STAFF INTER-SITE MPV TIMETABLE
(Please note this is a Monday to Friday service and does not operate on public holidays)
WESTERN GENERAL HOSPITAL to ROYAL INFIRMARY OF EDINBURGH
WGH (Anne Ferg Bus Stop)
Lauriston Place
Deaconess
RHSC (Sciennes Rd)
REH (Andrew Duncan Ent.)
AAH (Nursery Ent.)
RIE (Turn Circle Main Ent.)
09:35
09:45
09:48
09:53
10:01
–
10:17
10:20
10:39
10:42
10:47
–
10:51
11:02
11:05
11:15
11:18
11:23
11:31
–
11:47
11:50
12:09
12:12
12:17
–
12:21
12:32
12:35
12:45
12:48
12:53
13:01
–
13:17
13:20
13:39
13:42
13:47
–
13:51
14:02
14:05
14:15
14:18
14:23
14:31
–
14:47
14:50
15:09
15:12
15:17
–
15:21
15:32
15:35
15:45
15:48
15:53
16:01
–
16:17
16:20
16:39
16:42
16:47
–
16:51
17:02
15:35
15:51
–
15:59
16:04
16:07
16:17
16:20
–
16:31
16:35
16:40
16:43
17:02
ROYAL INFIRMARY OF EDINBURGH to WESTERN GENERAL HOSPITAL
RIE (Turn Circle Main Ent.)
REH (Andrew Duncan Ent.)
AAH (Nursery Ent.)
RHSC (Sciennes Rd)
Deaconess
Lauriston Place
WGH (Anne Ferg Bus Stop)
A FORMER patient has donated
almost £2,000 to the Royal Infirmary
of Edinburgh (RIE) to thank staff who
helped him through his transplant
operation.
Andrew McCafferty, from Greenock,
handed over cheques totalling
£1,812.50 to the transplant unit as a
“debt of gratitude” to those involved
in his kidney and pancreas transplant
in March 2004.
He also wanted his donation to act
as a way of raising awareness of the
importance of organ donation.
In Scotland, 27 per cent of the
population have joined the NHS organ
donor register, one of the highest
percentages in the UK – but there is
still a critical shortage of organs.
Andrew, who is also deaf, had been
09:35
09:51
–
09:59
10:04
10:07
10:17
10:20
–
10:31
10:35
10:40
10:43
11:02
11:05
11:21
–
11:29
11:34
11:37
11:47
11:50
–
12:01
12:05
12:10
12:13
12:32
12:35
12:51
–
12:59
13:04
13:07
13:17
13:20
–
13:31
13:35
13:40
13:43
14:02
14:05
14:21
–
14:29
14:34
14:37
14:47
14:50
–
15:01
15:05
15:10
15:13
15:32
on haemodialysis since 2002 after his
diabetes brought about kidney failure.
The complex transplant procedure,
carried out by surgeon Murat Akyol,
brought about a complete change to
his standard of life.
Andrew said: “I was constantly in
and out of hospital every few months
and wasn’t able to do much. Now, I
find I can lead almost a normal life.
“I decided to raise money for the
transplant unit because I felt that I
needed to give something back to
everyone who had done so much for
me. I owe a big debt of gratitude to
everyone concerned.
“If only people knew how much
hope comes out from a transplant and
the improvement to a life that a
transplant brings. I also hope that there
will be some comfort to the donors’
families in that their loved ones have
helped to make such a difference to
another person’s life.”
Christine Jansen, donor
co-ordinator at the RIE, said: “This is
a very kind gesture and we are
happy to know Andrew’s life has
been significantly improved by
his transplant.”
Log on for info
IF you are a member of West
Lothian Community Health and
Care Partnership, don’t forget to
take a look at the new website –
www.westlothianchcp.org.uk
You’ll find information and
news about services and what’s
happening in the partnership. If
your service area is part of the
CHCP and you would like more
information included about what
you do, or if you have any
comments about the site, e-mail:
E info@westlothianchcp.org.uk
6
NEWS
March/April 2007 Connections
Lorna’s
lottery
winners
THE main winners of
the February Lorna’s
Lottery draw are:
FIRST PRIZE – £3,500
Marion Croy, catering
assistant, RIE
SECOND PRIZE –
£1,250
George Graham,
laundry supervisor,
St John’s
THIRD PRIZE – £750
Catherine Marshall,
domestic assistant,
Lauriston Building
FOURTH PRIZE –
£500
Thelma Williamson,
nursing auxiliary,
Western General
E For more winners,
see www.yourbenefits.co.uk/
lornaslottery/lornas
_lottery.htm
Tell us about
your global
healthcare
experiences
ARE you involved
in overseas health
programmes?
We’ve all heard and read
about the good work
being done by NHS Lothian
staff to help people
throughout the world as well
as right here at home in
the Lothian area.
NHS Lothian plans to
update its database of
names and contact details
for those people who
volunteer to take their skills
to faraway places like
Malawi, Ethiopia, Zambia
and other developing
countries across the globe.
If you have already
played your part in
helping the international
health effort – or are
planning to go overseas on
such a worthwhile trip,
we’d like to hear from you.
Please contact Liz
Grant, project co-ordinator
of the Zambian project,
with your name and
contact details.
E Liz can be contacted
on: 0131 536 9413
or email:
elizabeth.grant@lhb.
scot.nhs.uk
NO IFS, NO BUTTS,
IT’S TIME TO STOP
– SEE PAGE 16
OFFICIAL OPENING: Lewis Macdonald and NHS
Lothian chief executive James Barbour
A SMART
NHS Lothian’s brand
new state-of-the-art
SMART Centre has been
formally opened by deputy
health minister, Lewis
Macdonald.
STAFF VIEWS ON THE NEW FACILITY
I THINK this is the best centre
in Scotland as far as facilities
go. Some of the services are
unique. The building has style.
It has been extremely well
thought out in its architecture
and design and has the kind
of facilities you’d hope
everybody could enjoy in the
health service.
We looked round Scotland’s
other centres for examples of
best practice and got most of
it into the design brief. We
wanted all of the clinical
groups to work close to each
other, and their proximity to
the workshops was also
important so that patients
could spend the minimum
amount of time here in
efficient
surroundings.
Patients don’t feel
that money’s been
invested in their
care when they
go into an old,
rundown hospital.
It may have good
people inside,
offering very good
ACCESS: the
centre is ideal for
disabled visitors
services, but when you look at
it and it’s decaying, and old…
Here we hope people will
see that the health service is
investing money to show that
these services are important.
David Gow, head of
rehabilitation technology
I THINK the new building
is wonderful. David Gow
and I were involved from
the beginning when the
architects and project team
were appointed.
We, and our staff, have been
able to say “this is what we
want in each room and this is
how we want the rooms to
locate with each other”.
We have meeting rooms
and have plans to form user
groups where patients of the
different services can meet
and discuss anything that’s
relevant to the service we
provide. Lots of people
who have one need
also have another.
A prosthetic
patient may need
a wheelchair and
may have
problems that
a visit to the
disabled
living
PRAISE: Lewis Macdonald,
centre, with Cathy
Dowell and David Gow
centre would help. The centre
is going to be a one-stop shop
for patients.
Cathy Dowell, head of
mobility service
THE new building is fantastic.
The mobility centre where we
worked before was in two old
huts and the comparison with
the SMART Centre is night
and day. Here we have a
dedicated reception area,
people are made welcome,
they understand what’s
happening and we have plenty
of space to work in.
In the past, we did the
majority of our work in people’s
homes and hospitals. We went
to them and took the
equipment with us. Now we
can bring patients to the
SMART Centre and do as
much as we can in a
single visit. And if patients
want to visit the disabled living
centre, or have a prosthetics
appointment, we can
co-ordinate that under one roof.
Karen Muir, physiotherapist
with the wheelchair service
THE new building is making
a big difference. There’s a
massive improvement in our
scope and opportunity to
provide a better service for
patients. Our recent open day
attracted 190 visitors,
including patients and people
from the community, as well
as nursing colleagues, social
workers and physio and
occupational therapy staff.
Sarah Sutton, senior
occupational therapist in the
disabled living centre
The South-east Mobility and
Rehabilitation Technology
(SMART) Centre is based at
Astley Ainslie Hospital, and
it will provide mobility and
rehabilitation services to
around 25,000 patients each
year from Lothian, Fife and
the Borders.
Mr Macdonald unveiled a
plaque to formally open
the £7.5 million centre,
which incorporates mobility
services that were until
recently provided at Astley
Ainslie Hospital, and
rehabilitation engineering
services from the Eastern
General Hospital.
The mobility service
provides a wheelchair service,
disabled living centre and a
national driving assessment
service.
The rehabilitation
engineering service offers
prosthetic, bio-engineering
and children’s mobility service
(Enabling Technology for
Children) and adult and
children’s seating services.
The 4,000 square-metre
building has been partly
NEWS
Connections March/April 2007
New imaging suite
opens its doors
WARM WELCOME:
deputy health minister
Lewis Macdonald with
patient Fiona Scott
ABOVE AND BELOW: the state-of-the-art SMART Centre at Astley Ainslie Hospital
INVESTMENT
NHS Lothian’s £7.5 million
rehabilitation centre offers
state-of-the-art facilities
constructed below ground
level to blend in with
the surrounding Blackford
Hill landscape.
The building incorporates
a number of environmentally
friendly features, including
a zinc-covered roof with a
life expectancy of about
100 years.
The roof is also 90 per cent
7
recyclable and the main
corridors of the centre have
rubber floors produced from
recycled car tyres.
Bob Anderson, interim
chairman of NHS Lothian,
said: “It is fitting that
the Astley Ainslie
Hospital celebrates its 30th
anniversary as a specialist
facility in providing patient
mobility and rehabilitation
services this year.
“The new SMART
Centre demonstrates the
continuing commitment to
provide these services and
acknowledges the expertise
and quality of care provided
within NHS Lothian.”
Murray Duncanson, chief
operating officer of NHS
Lothian’s Primary Care
Organisation, added: “It is
exciting to see the building
open and be able to provide
both mobility and
rehabilitation services under
one roof.
“This is an excellent
service for our patients and
the integration of both
services will enable more
effective and efficient patient
care, serving both the local
and wider community.”
The deputy health minister
added: “I am delighted to
open this state-of-the-art
facility and see patients
across south-east Scotland
being put at the heart of an
integrated, flexible and
multi-disciplinary service
that
makes
their
rehabilitation journey
as smooth as possible.”
ABOVE: James Barbour, Robert Aitken, Cathy Dowell, Lewis Macdonald MSP and David Gow
DELIGHTED: Andy Kerr, centre, with Bob
Anderson, interim chair, right, Maureen Harrison
of the SKFF, Maeve McPhillips, consultant
radiologist, Barbara Nugent, superintendent
radiographer, and patients and staff
HEALTH and Community
Care Minister Andy Kerr
officially opened the
new imaging suite of CT
and MRI scanners at the
Royal Hospital for Sick
Children.
He also met patients
who will benefit from the
£1.8 million investment at
the hospital before
unveiling a plaque.
The suite will enable
doctors to make quicker
diagnoses and track the
impact of the treatment of
a wide range of conditions,
from cancer and cystic
fibrosis to brain injuries,
for more than 1,800
children a year.
NHS Lothian purchased
the new MRI scanner for
£1.25m in partnership
with the independent
charity, the Sick Kids
Friends Foundation, who
donated £535,000 for the
purchase and installation
of the CT scanner.
Andy Kerr said: “This
new imaging suite is a
fantastic facility which
is substantially improving
the care available for
thousands of seriously
ill children.
“This state-of-the-art
centre demonstrates how
the NHS is constantly
improving the patient
experience using
innovative solutions.”
Bob Anderson, interim
chair of NHS Lothian,
said: “We are delighted
the minister opened
this vital new facility
which will keep the
Royal Hospital for
Sick Children at the
forefront of paediatric
medical technology.”
Graeme Millar, chair
of the Sick Kids Friends
Foundation (SKFF),
was also delighted to be
involved in the project and
praised everyone involved.
He said: “We are
very grateful to the
Armstrong Foundation,
who made a major
gift to this appeal for
a new CT scanner,
and to the many other
people who have
fundraised hard to make
sure that we were able
to benefit sick children.”
New guidelines for CENT
SOME 200 adults in the NHS
Lothian area are fed via tubes
at home and ensuring their
nutritional needs are met is an
important part of the
Community Enteral Nutrition
Team’s (CENT) work.
The team held an event in
Februar y to launch the
publication of new guidelines
on best practice for tube-fed
patients at home.
The guidelines were the
result of work by a multidisciplinary team that included
dietitians, nurses, pharmacists,
paediatricians and biochemistry
and infection control experts.
Those fed through tubes at
home and who are seen by the
CENT team include all age
ranges from 18 upwards.
Examples include people
suffering from head or neck
cancers and those with
neurological problems such as
multiple sclerosis.
Other specialist dietitians
deal with cystic fibrosis
patients and adults with
learning difficulties who are
living at home. The feed
prescribed caters for varying
nutritional needs.
The team’s job is to ensure
that patients are adequately
nourished and, when
appropriate, they support
patients in their progress back
to eating normally.
The new guidelines –
L o t h i a n E n t e r a l Tu b e
Fe e d i n g B e s t Pr a c t i c e
Statement for Adults and
Children 2007 – are in line with
evidence from the British
Association of Parenteral and
Enteral Nutrition and other
medical research.
Joanna Saunders, the acting
team leader for CENT, said:
“The new guidelines now
apply to patients across the
Lothian area, apart from
neonates at Simpson’s
Reproductive Centre, and the
Royal Infirmary and St John’s
Hospital. We hope to put the
document on the intranet in the
near future.”
8
PARTNERSHIP FORUM NEWS
CONTACTS
Eddie Egan
Chair, Lothian Partnership Forum
01506 523000
David Forbes
UNISON regional officer
0870 7777006
Mick McGahey
UNISON secretary, Lothian Branch
ext 46681
Tom Waterson
UNISON chair, Lothian Branch
ext 22740
Alex Joyce
UNISON representative, PCOs and CHPs
ext 46681
Anne Buchan
UNISON, Deaconess House
ext 89162
Maureen Day
UNISON, Deaconess House
ext 89180
Trudi Slawson
Physiotherapist, RIE
Lynn Masson
RCN full-time officer
0131 662 1010
Sue Lloyd
RCN lead steward – UHD
ext 22742
Jackie Mitchell
RCM lead steward
Stuart McLauchlan
RCN lead steward, CHPs and PCO
ext 46754
Partnership Forum: working
together delivers benefits
FREE parking permits for members of
staff who earn less than £15,000 a year.
Parking permits for staff
earning more than £15,000 being
related to their ability to pay.
Streamlined mechanisms for appealing
gradings under the Agenda for
Change framework. A much better
industrial relations climate than in many
other industries.
These are some of the benefits
of NHS Lothian’s commitment to
partnership working.
Through a number of partnership
bodies, staff have a real say in
decisions affecting their careers and the
service being offered to our patients.
Managers and staff-side organisations
all agree that decisions made in
partnership are “better decisions”: the
process of discussion means that
changes are better thought out, more
Gillian Smith
RCM full-time officer
0131 225 1633
Robert Anderson
Community District Nurse Association
08444 773186
Paul Cawood
Associate of Clinical Biochemists, RIE
ext 26851
Claire Duff
Podiatrist
0131 536 9746
Shirley Johnston
Amicus, lead steward
ext 22741
Gordon Casey
Amicus regional officer
✁
ABOVE: John Jack, NHS
Lothian director of facilities
Sally is a
champion
SALLY BROWN shows that age is
no barrier to learning. The 70-yearold domestic supervisor, who joined
the NHS in 1973, has successfully
completed the Cleanliness
Champions course.
The Cleanliness Champions
programme gives NHS staff skills
and knowledge in infection control.
It is their role to educate their
colleagues in best practice and
challenge unacceptable
behaviours to ensure risk
reduction and to maintain a clean
working environment.
Sally explained: “My manager
encouraged me to take the course
March/April 2007 Connections
A commitment to partnership
working ensures staff have a real
say in decisions affecting them
likely to be achieved successfully and
have a beneficial impact rather than
have a negative effect.
One of the main partnership bodies
is the corporate support services
partnership forum, which is cochaired by John Jack, the
director of facilities for NHS Lothian,
and Mick McGahey, the Unison
branch secretary.
Decisions such as the move to
link the payment for a staff car
parking permit to the ability to pay were
made by the corporate support
services partnership forum.
The membership of the forum is
drawn from managers for facilities,
HR, finance, strategic planning,
estates, communications and
public health, alongside Unison
representatives from the areas making
up corporate services.
The key to the success of the process
lies in the dialogue that occurs
between managers and the staff-side
representatives.
Mick McGahey said: “Although the
Partnership Forum does not support
the principle of car parking charges,
we also recognise we are where we are
and it was important that we were
involved in how this should be
implemented. The trade unions on the
staff side have been able to make
changes, through the decision-making
process, to proposals which have
created real benefits for our members,
like the car parking situation, for
instance.
“By taking part in this forum, we
have been able to influence how this
process has been dealt with.”
He continued: “In areas such as
training and development, we have
had a great influence, while in areas
such as health and safety issues, we
have been able to influence how policies
have been developed.
“Indeed, all the HR policies are
now cleared through the various
partnership bodies.
“We have become more proactive as
opposed to reactive. Previously,
managers would take decisions and we
would react, but now we are part of
the decision-making process.
“While we obviously still react if
required, we generally have less to react
to because the worst excesses, as it
were, will already have been dealt
with through the partnership
approach. Generally, we tend to find
common ground.”
Greater dialogue also means that the
staff-side organisations have a
greater understanding of why
management suggest certain
changes – for instance, external
factors such as directives from the
Scottish Executive Health Department
or European working time regulations,
he added.
The active participation of staff also
makes for better, more informed
decisions, according to John Jack, the
director of facilities.
“What partners bring to the table is
the operational reality of making things
work. This can sometimes lead to
critical challenges to proposals – leading
to compromises where we
achieve win-win situations for everyone.
“By engaging with two partnership
forums, we achieve a much better and
more detailed understanding of
work-related issues and working
practices and are able to make
changes to processes that benefit staff
as well as the organisation.”
ABOVE: Mick McGahey,
Unison branch secretary
Ann’s ‘hands-on’ role will
improve hygiene awareness
and it was very enjoyable. I liked
the pressure of being in a learning
environment again.
“It helped to reinforce what I
already knew and has helped me to
explain infection control issues to
my staff.”
So how does Sally enjoy her new
role as Cleanliness Champion? “It’s
given me confidence about infection
control and hopefully this is
reflected in how I approach my work
and resolving cleaning issues.
“It just shows you that you are
never too old to learn,” she added.
Domestic services has launched its own video to inform hospitalbased staff about infection control in the laundry and the problems that
laundry staff can encounter if dirty linen is not disposed of correctly.
Mary Kelly, head of domestic services, said: “ We developed the video
to help with our Cleanliness Champions programme. It features many
people from across the whole of the hospital who are part of the laundry
chain, such as staff from the wards, laundry and estates, as well as porters
and drivers.
“Cleanliness Champions will show the video and explain the issues of
infection control in relation to dealing with dirty laundry.”
ANN McQUEEN has a real “handson” job – she has swapped her duty
manager role at the Western General
to become the new hand hygiene
co-ordinator for NHS Lothian.
This is a new 15-month
secondment role that has been
created to promote the £2.5 million
hand hygiene awareness
campaign recently launched by
the Scottish Executive.
Anne will build on similar work
previously carried out by the
infection control teams, focusing on
the need to ensure that the practice
of hand washing is carried out
effectively in all healthcare settings
across Lothian.
Ann said: “My job will involve
raising awareness throughout NHS
Lothian and instilling a change of
culture by improving current hand
hygiene practice, as well as working
with our partners in the local
authorities, health and social care,
nurseries and care homes, GP
practices and clinics.”
Ann added: “It is also important
NEW ROLE: Ann McQueen is
a hand hygiene co-ordinator
that healthcare workers do not feel
targeted as it can sometimes come
across that they are being told
they have not been doing their
jobs properly.”
With almost 28,000 NHS Lothian
staff to target, it is a big challenge
to get the message to everyone, but
Ann said she was looking forward
to the role: “One of my earlier roles
was as a nurse in the infectious
diseases unit at the old Edinburgh
City Hospital.
“Infection control is something
that I’ve always been enthusiastic
about and it played a major part
in my BSc and MBA studies
in healthcare management,”
she added.
Simon White, hand hygiene
project manager, Health Protection
Scotland, said: “The project
welcomes Ann’s appointment as
the NHS Lothian local health board
co-ordinator (LHBC).
“The appointment of LHBCs
within each NHS board is vitally
important in helping to ensure the
success of the campaign.
“We look forward to working with
Ann and the other LHBCs over the
course of the coming year.”
E For more information, visit
www.washyourhands
ofthem.com
NEWS
Connections March/April 2007
9
Pioneering partnership is paying dividends for patient care in NHS Lothian
SPEEDING UP THE
PATIENT JOURNEY
CHANGES: The Kaizen workshop is
expected to bring about significant
improvements in colorectal procedures
INTENSIVE work, which involved
key members of staff in improving
working practices, will bring significant
improvement in the journey for
patients with colorectal symptoms.
The results came about following
a Kaizen event held in early February,
the fourth such since NHS Lothian
entered into a six-month partnership
agreement with GE Healthcare to help
it deliver step change improvements
in cancer care and for patients
whose discharge has been delayed.
The five-day Kaizen workshop
brought together GPs, consultants,
nurses and administrative staff to
discuss how the whole process
worked at present and what could be
done to cut down the length of time
it took from the initial referral to
patients being diagnosed and their
treatment started.
A lot was achieved in the five days
Kaizen workshop demonstrates
to staff how improvements can
be made in colorectal care
and for changes that needed a little
bit longer to put it in place, a 30-day
plan for action was agreed with
participants taking for ward
specific actions.
SO WHAT HAS HAPPENED?
Referral protocols and guidance
notes for urgent cases were revised
to give the best possible information
and the benefits of sending
the referral electronically were
re-emphasised to those GPs who can
send referrals this way.
Together, this will result in a
referral being sent, received and
acted upon on the same day
KAIZEN IN PRACTICE
LORNA SEVILLE is a single system
development manager and has been
involved in the work on new ways to
improve the allocation of beds across
NHS Lothian sites, activities recognised
by the Kaizen workshops.
She said: “The work we identified
was mainly to do with improving
efficiency, resulting in the more timely
declaration of beds. We’ve developed
a new intranet system that shows where
there are empty beds across Lothian,
which together with the new
teleconferencing procedure allows a
more joined up way of identifying and
controlling the movement of patients.
“We’re still updating this system, but
we hope to go live with it very soon.”
The management team are also
working on developing a control
room as a single point of contact for
each of the acute sites.
They are also pulling together a
referral document that will list the
criteria for referral, clarifying procedures
so that patients are referred to the
correct specialty for treatment.
The delayed discharge waiting lists
will all be administered by one
manager, making the process smoother.
rather than it taking up to seven days.
An “advice only” protocol was
established to give GPs the option of
seeking advice first and then deciding
whether a referral would benefit the
patient rather than an appointment
being made on all occasions.
A single point of contact was
established for GP referrals and
enquiries regarding the status
of referrals.
Because some patients do need to
be seen quickly, a new triage pathway
has been set up and arrangements put
in place to review referrals twice a day
instead of it taking up to nine days.
A delay of what could be up to 11
days to triage and to send out a
colorectal outpatient appointment was
reduced to one day and delays
identified in the postal service were
addressed to ensure patients received
their appointment more quickly too.
Patients with urgent colorectal
symptoms should be seen as an
outpatient within two to four weeks
of referral, but capacity to see these
patients is tight.
The team identified further areas
where nurse practitioners could be
used in clinics, finding a potential 24
additional clinic slots a week.
The delay between making a
request for a diagnostic test and it
FOCUS: Staff discuss how the Kaizen process can be used in their
department for the benefit of patients and employees
being placed upon the waiting list
could be anything between a few days
and a few weeks.
As part of the Kaizen, staff
redesigned the communication and
administrative process to ensure
this can now always be done within
24 hours.
The team worked out where more
colonoscopies could potentially be
performed at the Royal Infirmary of
Edinburgh and the Western
General Hospital.
This could allow up to 15 more
patients to have these diagnostic
procedures per week, which could
reduce maximum waits from what is
currently up to 26 weeks for a routine
patient to nine weeks by September.
Regrettably, a high number of
patients do not attend their diagnostic
test (approximately 15 per cent). This
is an area of concern.
It was not unusual for patients
to be offered appointments again
and again, which they still did
not attend.
NHS Lothian has agreed a new Did
Not Attend policy (DNA) for patients
attending for diagnostic tests or as day
or inpatients.
A new DNA protocol for patients
attending for repeat colonoscopies has
also been agreed.
Dr Ian Penman, clinical lead
for gastroenterology in Lothian,
said: “From a clinician's point of
view this may seem like a large
time investment in a busy schedule
but a huge amount of progress has
been made in streamlining and
shortening patient pathways.
“Having a broad range of staff
involved and focusing on a single issue
such as this allowed us all to gain a
greater understanding of the problem
we all faced.
“Using lean methodology allowed
us to question the status quo, try out
proposed changes immediately and
see the huge benefits they could bring.
“Having senior management
involved every day was crucially
important in helping to make things
happen and all the staff greatly
appreciated this.”
10 NEWS
Connections
NHS Lothian is tackling the issue of harassment in
Volunteers offer
their services
VOLUNTEER numbers are up
across NHS Lothian after an
event organised as part of
National Volunteering Month.
On 20 January, the outpatient
department at the Western
General Hospital played host to a
“Wellbeing Surgery” that
attracted numerous potential
volunteers from as far away as
Penicuik and Livingston.
Members of the public and
NHS staff were given sessions in
reflexology, Tai Chi and seated
exercises, as well as blood
pressure checks and advice
on volunteering opportunities
across NHS Lothian.
As a result of the event,
even more people signed up
on the day to volunteer in areas
ranging from wards, clinics,
cafés and shops.
Not only will patients benefit,
but also volunteers could
become healthier for their
efforts, said Diane Lockhart,
voluntary services manager for
University Hospitals Division.
“There is a lot of recent
research on the health benefits of
volunteering, such as lowering
blood pressure and contributing
to a general sense of wellbeing.
“For someone who has been
out of the workforce for an
extended period, volunteering
offers a way of gradually
returning to work or connecting
again with society in a caring
environment,” said Diane.
A range of people attended the
event, from 14-year-old pupils
looking to complete the Duke of
Edinburgh award, to doctors,
dentists, university students,
retired people, unemployed
people and mums.
Aiveen Ryan, WRVS people
support manager Scotland,
said: “People were amazed at the
range of volunteering on offer
with WRVS, the NHS and with
other groups in Edinburgh and
some participants signed up for
more than one voluntary
opportunity.”
Organisers from NHS Lothian,
WVRS and the Volunteer Centre
Edinburgh hope to run a bigger
event next year.
E If you would like to get
involved in volunteering,
call 0845 601 4670,
visit wrvs.org.uk or
www.nhslothian.scot.nhs.uk/
getinvolved/volunteer
New manual published
to help cardiac patients
A NEW manual is being
introduced for patients
recovering from bypass surgery
and coronary angioplasty.
The “Revascularisation
Edition” will be similar to
the internationally acclaimed
Heart Manual for cardiac
rehabilitation.
This new manual will
provide health professionals
with information to help
patients who have undergone
coronary artery bypass graft
surgery (CABG) or
percutaneous transluminal
coronary angioplasty (PTCA).
The Heart Manual team is in
the final steps of completing
this project, and the new Heart
Manual – Revascularisation
Edition for patients with CABG
will be available from March.
The success of a major
four-year trial in Birmingham
(Jolly et al. British Cardiac
Society, Glasgow October 2005)
and in Dumfries and Galloway
(Royal Infirmary) has provided
the clinical evidence to support
this manual.
Heart Manual training to
incorporate both manuals
(Myocardial Infarction (MI)
and Revascularisation) will
start in March.
Facilitators will have the
ability to incorporate either
or both manuals with people
who have had an MI and those
who have had angioplasty
and/or heart surgery.
The 3,000 existing Heart
Manual facilitators will be
able to convert via distance
learning and a competency
framework so that they can
also use either manual.
E The Heart Manual Project,
Astley Ainslie Hospital,
Tel: 0131 537 9127,
heart.manual@lpct.scot.
nhs.uk
DON’T SUFFE
IN SILENCE
WHEN NHS Lothian introduced
its policies on dignity at work, equal
opportunities and race equality in
January 2006, it was partly in
reflection of NHSScotland
guidelines on good employment
practice and partly in response to
workplace issues identified in the
national staff survey.
The policies aim to:
■ promote fair treatment and good
working relations
■ promote a climate of confidence
where staff feel able to raise issues
without fear of victimisation
■ actively promote a working
environment free from bullying,
harassment and discrimination
■ ensure all staff are aware of the
types of behaviour which constitute
bullying, harassment or discrimination,
and are aware of their responsibilities
to prevent it
■ address all forms of bullying,
harassment and discrimination
at work
■ respond positively to all allegations
with assurance of confidentiality
and sensitivity.
By harassment, we mean any
unwanted behaviour that a person finds
intimidating, upsetting, embarrassing,
humiliating or offensive.
By bullying, we mean persistent,
offensive, abusive, intimidating,
malicious or insulting behaviour
or abuse of power, which makes the
recipient feel upset, threatened,
humiliated or vulnerable, which
undermines their self confidence
and which may cause them to
suffer stress.
By discrimination, we mean treating
people less favourably on any grounds
that cannot be justified.
In terms of legislation, there are six
main equality strands – age, disability,
gender, race, religion or belief and sexual
orientation – but our equal opportunities
policy goes wider than this and covers
any conditions or requirements which
cannot be shown to be justifiable.
Copies of the policies are available
on the intranet or in the employment
policies manual, which can be found
in all main workplaces.
If you have difficulty finding a copy,
ask your line manager or human
resources department.
Readily available sources of advice
and support for staff include staff
representatives, human resources
and line managers.
Individuals who
feel the need for
additional support
may wish to access
the confidential
counselling service
o f f e r e d b y
occupational health.
We also have in
place a network of
confidential contacts
from across NHS
Lothian, appointed
on a voluntary basis
and provided
with special
training.
They can
act as a
There are almost
source of
30 confidential conta
support to
in NHS Lothian who w
staff who
in a variety of departm
may feel
If you need advice, y
they have
can call any of
been subject
the confidential
to bullying,
contacts
harassment or
discrimination.
They will not give advice
to staff on what they should do, but
will listen to their concerns and
DID
YOU KNOW
CASE STUDY – STEVEN ROSS-BELL
STEVEN ROSS-BELL has been one
of NHS Lothian’s “confidential contacts”
since the service began just over a
year ago.
The procurement liaison manager told
Connections: “I have worked in
the NHS for 21 years and experienced
bullying in my younger days.
“For me, it was intimidating and in its
cruellest form came from close working
colleagues. In today’s world, what I
experienced would not be tolerated in
any workplace.”
He added: “Nineteen years on, with
maturity and experience, I came forward
to assist colleagues who may be
“My primary role
is to listen to
the particular
problem the
person may be
experiencing”
Steven Ross-Bell
experiencing problems in
the workplace.”
He added: “As confidential
contacts, we are not a counselling
service or a substitute for the other
services such as human resources or
occupational health. We are another
source of assistance.”
If a colleague
approaches him
with a problem,
he suggests
they meet
somewhere
neutral and
conducive
t o w o r k
commitments.
“My primary role is to listen to the
particular problem that the person may
be experiencing and I remind them that
our conversations are confidential.
“The only exception would be serious
misconduct allegations where anonymity
cannot be guaranteed.”
S t e v e n s a i d : “ We p r o v i d e
information on the different formal or
informal routes people may choose
to take, without being judgmental.
“People have to bear in mind this
is a service for everyone – from
those who may feel like a victim
to someone who faces being
accused of bullying. The approach
is the same.”
Steven and his fellow confidential
contacts are required to fill in an
anonymised audit form that
provides a brief summary of the
contact and the outcome.
“These forms are kept in confidence
within human resources, enabling
NHS Lothian to monitor the
uptake and effectiveness of the
service,” added Steven.
CONFIDENTIAL CONTACTS 11
March/April 2007
n the workplace by offering a confidential counselling service to all staff
ER BULLYING
Who to contact to
speak in confidence
Ann Buchan, business
co-ordinator, public health,
Deaconess House
536 9162 (89162)
ann.buchan@lhb.scot.nhs.uk
Yvonne Perry, education
co-ordinator, transplant unit
(Ward 206/117), RIE
242 1710
yvonne.perry@luht.scot.nhs.uk
Maureen Day, PA, public health,
Deaconess House
536 9180 (89180)
maureen.day@lhb.scot.nhs.uk
Caroline Pretty, bereavement
co-ordinator, bereavement suite
(Room G1420), RIE
242 6995 (26995)
caroline.pretty@luht.scot.nhs.uk
Linda Haggarty, PA, public health,
Deaconess House
536 9409 (89409)
linda.haggarty@lhb.scot.nhs.uk
Val Stewart, public health
researcher, Deaconess House
536 9188 (89188)
valerie.stewart@lhb.scot.nhs.uk
Alison Bagan, community midwife
Midlothian Community, Bonnyrigg
Health Centre
537 9886 (49886)
Mobile: 07808 654787
alison.bagan@lpct.scot.nhs.uk
Yvonne Beeby, gynaecology
secretary, outpatients department,
Western General Hospital
Ext 31117
yvonne.beeby@luht.scot.nhs.uk
W
acts
work
ents.
you
help them decide what
they want to do.
They are not professional
counsellors and do not
have a formal role within
disciplinary or grievance procedures,
but they can help during a potentially
stressful period, advise on the
options available under the policies
Joan Bell, clinical nurse specialist,
infection control, clinical
microbiology, Royal Infirmary of
Edinburgh (RIE)
242 6867
joan.bell@luht.scot.nhs.uk
and provide support in the decision
making process.
They carry out their role entirely
independently from line management
and human resources.
Names and contact details for the
confidential contacts are listed right.
This list is also available on the
intranet and in copies of the employment
policies manual, which can be found
in all main workplaces.
It is assumed that most staff will
wish to approach a confidential
contact who works within their own
division and site, but in circumstances
where this is not thought appropriate,
any other confidential contact
may be approached.
CASE STUDY – CAROLINE PRETTY
CAROLINE PRETTY is bereavement
co-ordinator at the Royal Infirmary
of Edinburgh. She’s also a member
of the NHS Lothian confidential
contact network that was set up to
provide support to staff who
might need it.
Caroline said: “Bullying and
harassment can affect anyone at any
time – at school, at home, in
the workplace – even in the Big
Brother house!
“It can have a devastating effect on
people’s lives and careers, affecting
their self-esteem, relationships and
performance. It can also have a
serious impact on organisational
effectiveness.
“Every year in the UK, almost 19
million working days are lost because
of bullying, at a cost of £1.8 billion.”
She added: “I’m proud of the fact
that here in NHS Lothian, we are taking
this problem seriously and are
committed to tackling it through
robust policies and procedures, backed
up by supportive services.
“I was keen to volunteer as a
confidential contact, to use my listening
and counselling skills to help
colleagues individually and in doing so,
play my part in improving our
organisation as a whole.”
When a work colleague approaches
her with a problem, she talks to them
about the service and her part in it, and
listens to their concerns.
Caroline said: “It’s not my job to
judge people, or tell them what they
should or shouldn’t do.
“What I can do is offer a
listening ear, impartial support
and practical information to help
“What I can do is
offer a listening
ear, impartial
support and
practical
information”
Caroline Pretty
them choose the path that’s right
for them. I guess that sounds
very simple, and in some ways it is.
“But it’s also a really powerful
thing to be able to offer to someone
who’s feeling victimised, confused,
frightened or alone.
“I hope people find this service
helpful. I think they will.”
Stephen Boyce, specialist registrar
(LAT), department of surgery, RIE
07905 164568
stephen.boyce@ed.ac.uk
Eric Brown, intensive care nurse,
critical care, Ward 118, RIE
242 1181
eric.brown@luht.scot.nhs.uk
Shona Finch, charge midwife,
labour ward, Simpson Centre
for Reproductive Health, RIE
242 2542
shona.finch@btinternet.com
Philip Graham, OD practitioner,
day surgery, RIE
Ext 23165
philip.graham@luht.scot.nhs.uk
Catrina Hendry, transfusion
practitioner, BTS offices, RIE
242 7531
catrina.hendry@luht.scot.nhs.uk
Sheila Lochrie, surgical secretary,
combined assessment area, RIE
242 1441
sheila.lochrie@luht.scot.nhs.uk
Ann Mackenzie, PA,
cardiothoracic surgery,
room F2310, Ward 104, RIE
242 3901
ann.mackenzie@luht.scot.nhs.uk
Mary Parkhouse, lead nurse,
practice, research, development
and education nursing,
Western General Hospital
537 3215
Mobile: 07766 366583
mary.parkhouse@luht.scot.nhs.uk
Carolyn Rae, site co-ordinator,
department of nursing, Western
General Hospital
537 1355
carolyn.rae@luht.scot.nhs.uk
Steven Ross-Bell, procurement
liaison manager, procurement/
finance, Astley Ainslie Hospital
537 1223
steven.ross-bell@luht.scot.nhs.uk
Kenneth Deed, travel expenses
officer payroll services,
Stevenson House
536 5246
kenneth.deed@lpct.scot.nhs.uk
Jenifer Paterson, head of health
records, primary and community
division information services,
Royal Edinburgh Hospital
537 6649 (46649)
jenifer.paterson@lpct.scot.nhs.uk
Bernadette Scott, occupational
health adviser, occupational
health service, Morelands,
Astley Ainslie Hospital
07747 631305
bernadette.scott@lpct.scot.nhs.uk
Neville Singh, clinical supervisor/
retired staff counsellor, Royal
Edinburgh Hospital
446 0146
Iain Smith, health and
homelessness co-ordinator,
Edinburgh Homeless Practice
07747 095857
iain.smith@lpct.scot.nhs.uk
Marina Copping, clinical
information manager, information
services, St John’s Hospital
01506 523483 (53483)
marina.copping@wlt.scot.nhs.uk
Gill Cottrell, primary care and
community manager, West Lothian
Community Nursing, Howden
Health Centre, Livingston
01506 423873
Mobile: 07753 851745
gill.cottrell@wlt.scot.nhs.uk
Pauline Macdonald, child
protection training lead,
Vega Building, c/o training and
development department at
Western General Hospital
0131 316 2271
Mobile: 07785 345427
pauline.macdonald@
lpct.scot.nhs.uk
Shirley Seabury, midwife
counsellor, midwifery,
St John’s Hospital
01506 524393 (54393)
Mobile: 07740 841639
Pcss01@wlt.scot.nhs.uk
12
EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY
March/April 2007 Connections
Draft consultation aims to prevent discrimination in the workplace
PROMOTING EQUALITY
ABOVE: HR director Jim
McCaffery and a member of staff
Fairness for
all employees
IN addition to the Equality
and Diversity Strategy and
in line with legislative
requirements, there are
individual schemes
covering race equality and
disability equality.
The disability equality
scheme was produced in
December 2006 and
comments on the content of
this scheme would be
welcomed as part of the
consultation on the Equality
and Diversity Strategy.
Copies of these two
schemes are available on
the NHS Lothian internet site
(www.nhslothian.scot.nhs.uk)
and on the intranet.
In addition, there is a
requirement to have a gender
equality scheme in place by
29 June and an equal pay
statement by September.
We will shortly be
consulting with staff through
Connections and the Lothian
Report as to what should be
included in this scheme.
NHS Lothian’s draft Equality
and Diversity Strategy is out
for consultation until 30 April.
The strategy, approved by
the board at the end of January,
s e t s o u t N H S L o t h i a n’ s
continued commitment to
e n s u r i n g t h e p ro v i s i o n o f
both healthcare and employment
opportunities that are sensitive
to the needs of individuals
and communities.
M u c h w o r k h a s a l re a d y
been done within NHS Lothian
in support of the different
equality and diversity strands,
but there are still many
challenges ahead.
HR director Jim McCaffery,
the executive lead for equality
and diversity, said: “NHS
Lothian recognises that the
population it serves is diverse
and a person’s gender, age,
race, disability, religion and
sexual orientation will have an
impact on their needs. Getting
our approach to equality and
diversity right is not only important
for our minority communities.
“Ensuring everyone is treated
individually and that services
are sensitive to different needs
and requirements means
thatall of our population will
receive higher quality services
from NHS Lothian.”
In producing this strategy,
NHS Lothian is committed to:
■ Meeting its moral and
legal responsibilities as a
service provider and employer
within the NHS and the public
sector to tackle all forms of
discrimination
■ Promoting equality, recognising
diversity and tackling social
inclusion in the population it
serves, its staff, its partners and
the wider community
■ Showing evidence of a
culture change within NHS
Lothian towards equality and
diversity being mainstreamed;
that is, considered in everyday
actions and incorporated into
the main functions and policies
of the organisation.
The strategy includes a detailed
action plan outlining the short,
medium and long-term objectives
for NHS Lothian in relation to the
equality and diversity agenda.
Jim added: “Some of the issues
to be addressed include ensuring
that all new and revised policies and
functions take account of the six
equality strands and the needs of
marginalised communities.
“We will use data to identify gaps
in uptake of our ser vices
in priority health areas and monitor
equality and diversity issues to
ensure health needsare integrated
into the planningof local services.
“We will also provide equity
of public access to information and
services by ensuring information is
available in arange of formats and
languages, and that the public and
staff have access to interpreters and
translated information.”
He added: “We will increase
awareness of the equality and
diversity agenda among all
managers, staff and service providers
through training, and monitor
the profile of the NHS Lothian
workforce and consider any action
required to address inequalities and
promote equality.”
Other issues to be addressed
include:
■ Ensuring “reasonable
adjustments” are made to support
employment and improve
representation of employees from
diverse groups
■ Involving our diverse groups
in our planning processes
■ Ensuring community groups
and individuals are able to
express views and needs across
all the diversity areas.
We are now asking for your input
to the consultation. Copies of the
Staff invited to
complete survey
NHS Lothian is committed to
supporting and promoting
dignity at work by creating an
inclusive working environment.
Staff should be able to fulfil
their potential in a workplace
free from discrimination and
harassment where diverse
skills, perspectives and
backgrounds are valued.
In order to achieve this, it
is important that we collect,
store and analyse data relating
to our workforce.
The Scottish Workforce
Information Standard System
(SWISS) survey took place
across NHSScotland last
year to gather information
on staff to enable the
organisation to work towards
providing a safe workplace.
Without workforce
monitoring, we will never know
whether our equal opportunities
and human resources policies
and practices are effective.
We do not want to intrude in
someone’s personal life, but the
organisation does want to
ensure that all its staff can
work in a safe and welcoming
environment that allows
them to fulfil their potential
strategy and also a summary
document are available on the
internet and intranets or can be
obtained by contacting Sheila
Clark on 0131 536 9038.
If you have any comments or
suggestions that you feel should
be incorporated into the
final Equality and Diversity Strategy,
please send these to:
Sheila.Clark@lhb.scot.nhs.uk
or in writing to Ruth Kelly,
associate director of HR, Deaconess
House, 148 Pleasance, Edinburgh
EH8 9RS.
free from visible or invisible
forms of discrimination.
Agreement has been reached
in partnership with staff
representatives to conduct a
short survey over the coming
months. Questionnaires will be
issued to all staff during March.
This is part of a national
project for NHSScotland as a
whole and will help to create
a more comprehensive picture
of the workforce.
Every member of staff will
be asked to complete a simple
form, either online or on
paper, providing details in
respect of disability, ethnicity,
gender, religion and sexual
orientation.
Providing this information is
not mandatory and staff will be
given the choice not to disclose
their information by selecting
the “prefer not to answer”
option on the form.
The information provided
will be treated with the
highest standards of
confidentiality. It will only
be used to improve
employment practice to
ensure that staff can work
in an environment free
from discrimination.
E Further information is
available on the intranet.
LGBT launch spring programme of courses
EDINBURGH’S LGBT Centre for
Health & Wellbeing has launched its
spring programme of courses aimed
at exploring issues that affect
lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender
people (LGBT) in the Lothian area.
The centre, in Howe Street, aims
to achieve lasting improvements in
the physical, mental and social
wellbeing of LGBT people living in
and travelling to Edinburgh, West,
East and Midlothian.
Its training courses are designed
to raise awareness of LGBT health
inequalities, highlight barriers to
equal access and promote good
LGBT practice, set within the
context of the Scottish Executive
Health Department’s “Fair for All –
the Wider Challenge”.
The next course, Introducing
LGBT Health Inequalities, for people
with little or no prior knowledge or
experience of LGBT issues, is on
Friday 23 March.
Developing Good LGBT Practice,
aimed at practitioners who have
some prior knowledge and
experience of LGBT issues, will take
place on Friday 22 June. The
programme for the second half of
2007 will be published later.
Attendance is free to employees
of NHS Lothian and colleagues in the
voluntary sector, other than a
£7.50 charge for refreshments and a
light lunch.
E For further details, contact
Neil Richardson on:
0131 523 1100 or email:
admin@lgbthealth.org.uk
For further information
on the centre, log on to
www.lgbthealth.org.uk
ACHIEVING IMPROVEMENTS: a training group at the centre
NEWS
Connections March/April 2007
13
Milestone as site is
purchased for Midlothian’s
new community hospital
IN BRIEF
Institute is centre
of excellence
MEPs Andy Kerr and Rhona
Brankin visit the Midlothian
hospital site with Bob Anderson,
NHS Lothian interim chair.
LEFT: Eddie Egan, Midlothian
CHP interim chair,
and Bob Anderson
PROGRESS IS MADE
ON NEW HOSPITAL
NHS Lothian has secured the site
for the new Midlothian Community
Hospital. The site at Mayshade
South, near Bonnyrigg, has been
purchased for about £750,000.
The building programme is
anticipated to be completed by the
end of 2009.
The new community hospital will
provide 88 beds – 40 frail elderly
continuing care beds (of which 20
will be registered as care home
beds), 24 assessment beds for
older people with mental health
problems, and 24 continuing care
beds for older people with mental
health problems.
The new community hospital
will also include a day hospital for
older people with mental health
problems, an out-patient department
with an X-ray service, child
health clinics, physiotherapy and
a range of other health services.
Bob Anderson, NHS Lothian
interim chairman, said: “This is
New medical
centre opens
at Slateford
A NEW medical centre has been built
in the Slateford area of Edinburgh,
bringing together the Slateford
Medical Practice and NHS Lothian
community services in one facility.
Slateford Medical Centre will
accommodate the six GPs from the
medical practice, as well as community
services – district nurses, health
visitors, midwives, physiotherapists,
school nurses and podiatrists.
The facility was built using the thirdparty private developer scheme,
where the practice agrees to rent the
property, built to its and NHS Lothian’s
specifications, from a specialised
primary care developer for a period of
25 years. This is funded from the
General Medical Services Rent and
Rates Scheme.
The practice, which serves 6,600
patients, now has use of a dedicated
minor operations suite and individual
rooms for the two nurse practitioners,
as well as for visiting psychologists and
psychiatric nurses, dieticians and other
visiting clinicians.
There are also modern suites for
excellent news. We are delighted
to have now purchased the land
and that we can continue to
progress with what will be an
excellent healthcare facility for
the area.
“I am looking forward to seeing
residents being able to access
improved healthcare provision
within their own community.”
Adam Montgomery, leader of
Midlothian Council, said: “We are
delighted the planned community
hospital is moving forward and that
our partnership with NHS Lothian
will enable us to provide dedicated
care home beds.”
He added: “The central situation
of the site, together with local
transport facilities, will make the
hospital easily accessible to
Midlothian residents.”
The next stage is to begin
negotiations with the bidder to agree
a development contract for
the hospital.
Team spirit is praised
ABOVE: the new medical
centre at Slateford
physiotherapists, podiatrists and
midwives and rooms to host patient
groups and classes. The building
opened to patients on 12 February.
Campbell Kerr, primary care
premises facilitator for NHS Lothian,
said: “The previous surgery for the
Slateford Medical Practice was not fit
for purpose – it was in a flatted
development, so there was no scope
for expansion.
“There is also a lot of population
growth in the local area. The new
purpose-built centre will alleviate
the practice’s space and
accommodation issues and there are
real benefits for patients in bringing
more services, such as physiotherapy
and podiatry, together under one roof.”
Dr Fraser Wells, one of the GPs at
the practice, said: “We are delighted
with the new premises. The new
environment has been received
positively by all practice and trust staff
and will improve patient care for many
years to come.”
SENIOR managers from the
Edinburgh Community Health
Partnership (CHP) were very
impressed with the city’s homeless
health services when they paid a
recent visit.
The CHP’s chief nurse Sally Lee
told health and homelessness
co-ordinator Iain Smith: “I was really
enthused by the positive attitude
and culture demonstrated by
your team.”
Sally and CHP clinical director Dr
Ian McKay visited the Edinburgh
Homeless Practice in Cowgate to
talk to staff who are providing a
range of healthcare services to about
700 vulnerable homeless people at
any one time.
The homeless practice is the
health partner in a joint venture
between NHS Lothian and the City
of Edinburgh Council called The
Access Point, which has its main
base in Leith Street where health,
housing and social work staff
provide a one-stop service for
vulnerable homeless people.
Iain Smith said: “Both Ian and
Sally were keenly interested in the
work that the practice undertakes
and mentioned how impressed they
were with the team spirit, positive
approach to the task and
commitment shown by everyone
they met.”
Ser vices provided by the
practice include GP surgeries,
comprehensive health assessments
for new and returning patients, and
a substance misuse team involving
health, social work, housing and
voluntary service partners.
Iain added: “We also provide
mental health services in association
with the city’s Homeless Outreach
Project, and women and children’s
services including a weekly GP
surgery with a visiting health visitor
and midwife.”
Other facilities include a Hep C
outreach clinic, the services of a
clinical psychologist and hygiene,
dental and podiatry care.
Iain said: “We are a teaching
practice and our work takes us
increasingly into research areas. We
also contribute to Edinburgh’s
health and homelessness planning
via our representation on the
Homelessness Planning Group
and review groups, and network with
a variety of other agencies supporting
vulnerable homeless people.”
QUEEN’S Medical Research Institute is
one of the few institutions in the UK
that has been officially recognised
as a Hypertension Excellence Centre
by the European Society of
Hypertension (ESH).
The ESH launched the Centre of
Excellence programme to help identify
hypertension specialists in Europe so
that they can contribute to teaching and
training courses on hypertension,
improve treatment of the condition and
develop better understanding of the
prevention of cardiovascular disease.
Professor David Webb, Professor of
Therapeutics and Clinical Pharmacology
and Consultant Physician at the Centre
for Cardiovascular Science in the
University of Edinburgh, was delighted
by the recognition of ESH.
“I understand we are one of a
handful of centres awarded this status
within the UK. It is an important
status as it recognises both our clinical
activities in research and the care of
patients with hypertension, as well as
underpinning the quality of our
basic science.”
Leading the way
ROODLANDS Hospital has introduced
a new one-way traffic system and
signs with department symbols to
make it easier for patients to find their
way around.
Tom Davidson, estates manager,
said: “We invited a partially sighted
person to tell us if they had any
difficulties getting around. One of the
problems was that there were three ways
into the hospital. There is now a single
main entrance and a one-way traffic
system for cars, and pavements have
been built to improve safety.”
Memorial plaque
is unveiled
GOGARBURN Hospital closed in
1999, but recently a plaque was
unveiled in memory of everyone who
lived and died there over the years.
The plaque, above, was presented by
the Royal Bank of Scotland, who built
their new headquarters on the site of
the former hospital.
Former staff and residents were
invited to the ceremony that included
a tour of the impressive headquarters
building. The event was made possible
thanks to the work of Richard Crosse,
a former social worker at the hospital
who devoted a lot of time and effort
to the project.
14
NEWS
RENAL WEBSITE IS A
HIT WITH PATIENTS
Vital information is available at the click of a button
A MILLION hits a year! That’s the
measure of the success of an
innovative website designed by
NHS Lothian staff for patients
who suffer from kidney disease.
It was the brainchild of the Royal
Infirmary of Edinburgh’s renal unit
and was developed by members of
medical, dietetic and social work staff
after they became increasingly aware
that patients needed more information
on their illness.
The website, www.edren.org, offers
kidney patients information and a
greater understanding of their
condition. It is now recognised as a
valuable teaching tool for patients,
staff and students.
Neil Turner, professor of nephrology
at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh,
said: “By providing patients with
access to the information they need
Memories
of the
bard help
patients
THE occupational therapy
rehabilitation service for over-65s at
Liberton Hospital held a very
successful event on a traditional
Scottish occasion that will pave the
way for future therapeutic sessions.
Occupational therapy (OT) staff
brought together three of their
rehabilitation groups on 25 January
to celebrate the life and works of
Robert Burns. Groups are used as
a medium for assessment and
treatment of patients.
For the special event, members of
the breakfast group baked
shortbread, the gardening group
prepared Scottish-themed floral
displays and the reminiscence
group helped jog participants’
memories on the work and life of
Robert Burns.
The event also encouraged
participants to recall their experiences
of past Burns’ Nights, and to share
in music, poems and stories.
o n l i n e , w e a re m o v i n g
forward to a future where
patients can access vital
medical information at the
touch of a button.
“The fact it is accessible to
patients and health workers all over
the world has contributed to the
success of the site. Everyone in the
unit is delighted with its progress.”
Innovative site helps patients keep
up to date with their treatment
PROFESSOR Neil Turner is also
involved in another pioneering UK
patient information website:
www.renalpatientview.org
This provides online information
to renal patients about their diagnosis
and treatment, allowing them to
access individual pieces of
information including their latest test
results the day after they are done.
The Edinburgh Renal Unit was
among the first of the four centres to
pilot the service for its patients
since its launch two years
ago. Now nearly
500 renal
patients
f r o m
Lothian and
Borders use
the site.
One patient
who is delighted
with the website
is Stuart Sime,
from Edinburgh.
He had a
kidney transplant in 1996 and is keen
to monitor his progress after his
regular three-monthly check-ups.
He said: “I can log on to the site
at home and access my personal
details about 10 days after my
check-up. I check to see my results
for creatine levels, blood pressure,
diabetic sugar levels as well as
cholesterol.
“Before, I would have to wait to the
next check-up to see my results.
“It’s an excellent system and a
great move forward. However, I
think people new to the system would
benefit from a short training course
as there is a lot of information to
access and understand,” he added.
ONLINE INFORMATION: renal
patients can log on to check progress
Focusing on the provision of care for
dementia sufferers and their families
SUCCESS: The Burnsthemed event was popular
The response has been very
positive and, following the success
of this group, the OT department at
Liberton Hospital hopes to plan
future seasonal events.
Occupational therapist Jane
McDonald explained there is
evidence that suggests group
work is a highly effective intervention:
“One of the purposes of such
events is to help orientate people
to the time of year that they are
in the hospital.”
She added: “People don’t feel
they are being assessed when
they are in a group setting and they
often relax and start to interact with
others while engaging in a task.”
The breakfast group has been so
successful that it is to form the basis
of a poster presentation on good
practice at the college for
occupational therapists’ national
conference to be held in Manchester
later this year.
Advice for employees on
qualifications framework
A NEW range of leaflets has
been launched by NHS Education
for Scotland (NES) to help NHS
employers and staff to better
understand the Scottish Credit and
Qualifications Framework (SCQF).
All five leaflets have been
designed to promote greater
understanding of the potential
benefits of SCQF for people in
March/April 2007 Connections
the health service.
The leaflets are being distributed
to NHS Lothian and other Health
Boards across the country with
additional copies available from:
angela.mcculloch@nes.scot.nhs.uk
E Copies can also be downloaded
from: www.nes.scot.nhs.uk and
www.scqf.org.uk
H E A LT H a n d s o c i a l w o r k
professionals who care for people with
dementia and their families came
together recently for a focus group
day in Edinburgh.
The venue for the stakeholders’
meeting was Eden Ward at the Royal
Edinburgh Hospital and it attracted
psychologists, social workers,
psychiatrists, nurses, carers, nursing
home managers and other
professional workers.
Speakers included Dr Jacqueline
Wilson from Edinburgh Psychological
Services for Older People, Barbara
Scott from Alzheimer’s Scotland, and
Katie James and Beth Grant from
Circles Advocacy Services.
Working in four groups, they
considered questions raised by the
Anne Jarvie report, published last year,
on the quality of care provided by
NHS Lothian for older people.
These included:
■ How do we ensure this vulnerable
client group are treated with respect
and dignity?
■ What resources are required to
provide such a service?
■ What difficulties are stakeholders
coming across in this area in the
Lothians?
Dr Wilson said: “Information
collected from the focus groups
included the feeling that in order to
provide a person-centred, flexible
service inclusive of service users and
carers with a holistic rather than
crisis-led approach, dementia care
should be recognised as a specialty.
“That would require dedicated
resources linked with good training,
valuing all levels of staff. Groups
also identified the need for
cultural change to provide the kind
of quality care required by people with
dementia and difficult behaviour.”
A final report on group data with
collated results of findings will be
produced shortly.
This initiative is the second
organised by Edinburgh Psychological
Services For Older People and
it is hoped it will underpin future
service development initiatives
and research.
CARING: dementia patients and their families have special
requirements and this was addressed by the focus group
Update on services transfer
A NEW website is being
launched on NHS Lothian’s
intranet to update staff on
how the reprovision of services
of the Royal Victoria Hospital
is progressing.
The website will keep staff
informed of the reprovision of
the rehabilitation services that
the hospital currently provides for
the older population of North
Edinburgh and South Queensferry.
The move of services is part of
the Improving Care, Investing in
Change programme and followed
public consultation.
The intranet site will update staff
on the transfer of the hospital’s
psychiatric and rehabilitation
wards, three day hospitals and
other services.
Project manager Sue Gardiner
said: “Because it is such a
complicated project, we felt it was
very important to communicate
with staff and let them know
what is going on.”
NEWS
Connections March/April 2007
Women celebrate
healthy success
Partnership course
focuses on health
in the community
MEMBERS of two women’s groups
have cause to celebrate after
completing a course examining
health in the community.
Twelve women from the NKS and
Pakeeza women’s groups have
completed Part 1 of a challenging
Community Health Issues in the
Community course (CHEX), run
jointly by Naina Minhas from NKS
and Jill Alexander from Khush Dil
(South Asian Heart Health Project).
The course ran over 10 weeks and
is a partnership project involving
Lothian Health, Health Scotland and
Moray House (Edinburgh University).
Some of the women have indicated
they want to continue with Part 2 of
the course, which will lead to an
accreditation through Moray House
and could provide future opportunities
either in the job market or in
further or higher education.
The aim of the course is to explore
and understand the educational,
social, political and community
development processes that are
involved in addressing health
ROLE PLAY: some of the health in the community students
issues in the community.
All the students prepared small
role-plays for the 30-strong audience,
using experiences from their own
lives to represent how depression,
poor housing and unhealthy lifestyle
can affect health. They also provided
some solutions.
Graham Walker, the director of
training at the Royal Environmental
Institute for Health (REHIS),
presented the certificates.
He commented afterwards that a
lot of thought had gone into the
scripts and the acting and how
presenting them to other audiences
would help people understand the
complexities of health improvement.
Four members of the NKS group
have also been awarded with
Elementary Food and Health
Certificates from REHIS.
The new Elementary Food and
Health course on nutrition
complements the REHIS Elementary
Food Hygiene course and was
completed by 16 men and women
from black and minority ethnic
community organisations.
The course included one practical
cookery session to reinforce healthy
eating messages, using simple recipes
from a recently produced Scottish
community health recipe book.
Open days
at Maggie’s
WOULD you like to find out more about the
work of the Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centre?
Maggie’s Edinburgh runs visitors’ mornings for
healthcare professionals and students in and
around Edinburgh on the first Monday of every
month from 9.30-11.30am.
The centre is based in the grounds of the
Western General Hospital and is one of a network
across Scotland.
The aim of Maggie’s Centres is to help people
with cancer to be as healthy in mind and body as
possible and enable them to make their own
contribution to their medical treatment and recovery.
The friendly environment of the centres, close in
each case to a major cancer hospital treatment
centre, invites people to take time out and gives them
a non-institutional place they can call their own.
The centre services are free and those working in
them are professionals with oncology and
psychology training.
E To book a free place on a visitors’ morning,
call Seonaid Green on 0131 537 3131 or email
seonaid@maggiescentres.org
Iron lady needs hard cash!
KIRSTIN THOMPSON and her mum Catriona are
hoping to make the trip of a lifetime in aid of
Maggie’s Centre cancer care in June.
But to do so, Kirstin first has to raise nearly
£3000, so she has embarked on a series of
fundraisers starting with a disco on 9 March
at Gilmerton Bowling Club.
Kirstin, a secretariat support officer at
Deaconess House, has also begun offering her
prowess as an ironing lady to raise cash.
She said: “I recently held a cake sale and as
well as the disco, I’ve put up a poster outside the
canteen at Deaconess to offer my ironing services
for £10 per load! I’ve also sold hand-made cards,
and gift tags.
“We will be
going to the
Buddhist
Kingdom of
Ladakh, taking
in the Hemis
Kirstin with Elaine Racionzer,
Festival, the Taj
Mahal and Agra. Lyndsay Baird and Joyce Clearie
My mum had
treatment at Maggie’s Centre and has done walks
before, but this time I want to go with her.”
E To donate, go to: www.justgiving.com/kirstin
andcatriona or e-mail kirstin.thompson@lhb.
scot.nhs.uk Tel: 0131 536 9065
15
Global diabetes
award for Lubna
DR LUBNA KERR, right, has
received a top global award for
her work in helping patients to
manage their diabetes.
T h e D AW N ( D i a b e t e s
Attitudes, Wishes and Needs)
award is given by the International
Diabetes Federation (IDF) and
this year recognised initiatives that
support disadvantaged minority
populations with diabetes.
Clinical pharmacist Lubna is
bilingual and can communicate
with patients from a south
Asian background and, with
the help of her team, she set
up a culturally sensitive
diabetes service.
Lubna said: “Patients who need
access to culturally appropriate
care or medication review can be
referred to the service by any
health care professional.
“Patients are seen either at
home or in their place of work or
at a hospital clinic, whichever
location suits them best.”
The service also uses trained
diabetes management link
workers for other non-English
speaking patients and it also
provides patients with an
outreach service in a sports centre
offering three types of therapy –
traditional, holistic and exercise.
Dr Kerr, who is also a trustee
of Diabetes UK, was presented
with her award at the IDF’s
annual conference in Cape Town
in January.
She hopes to use the €15,000
award to expand the service to
other minority ethnic groups.
Connections letters
Dear Editor,
I AM grateful for the opportunity
to praise the excellent quality of
services which my partner and I
have had at St John’s Hospital
in Livingston.
Although I may have thanked
some individual staff for their
kindness and professional
consideration, time and
circumstances prevents one
from doing this at all times to all
levels of staff.
In recent months, I have had
cause to access the following
outpatient services:
■ eye department
■ neurology department
■ X-ray department.
My partner, Muriel McDonald,
in recent years also required the
services of St John’s hospital’s
X-ray department and currently
Dear Editor,
ABOUT 12.30pm on Sunday
11 February, we attended the A&E
department at the Royal Infirmary
of Edinburgh as our daughter had
fallen and sustained a cut to her
chin. Her name is Jenna Ward.
We would like to pass on our
gratitude to the staff at A&E for a
fast, efficient and friendly service.
attends a smoking-cessation
group there.
My partner and I are both
retired local government middle
management staff in Edinburgh
City Council social work
department.
Consequently, we understand
how challenging it can be for
teams of administrative, clinical
and technical staff to provide
adequate services, far less the
excellent services which we
have received.
We have both had excellent
services at St John’s and we would
hope that staff who work at St
John’s obtain positive feedback
that they are highly valued and
appreciated by patients such as
ourselves, whom we suspect
represent the overwhelming
majority of patients.
Robert Black
Even though they did explain that
they did not normally deal with
children, they took time to take
care of her.
Moreover, although the reception
area was quite busy at the time, we
were seen within a matter of
seconds of arriving and treated
within 10-15 minutes.
Thanks very much and well done.
Mr & Mrs Iain Ward
Is there an issue you would like to comment on?
If so, write to: Connections Letters, Communications
Department, Deaconess House, 148 Pleasance,
Edinburgh EH8 9RS or e-mail: communications@
lhb.scot.nhs.uk
The writer of the best letter will receive £25 of
Love2shop vouchers courtesy of Connect
Communications, publishers of Connections.
Please note letters may be edited.
16
LIFESTYLE
AFTER HOURS… with Dr Tom Gardner
Dr Tom Gardner, video network
manager for NHS Lothian at
Lauriston Building, is a keen
adventure traveller who indulges
in his other major passion when
in foreign climes – photography
How did you first get
into your hobbies?
I’ve always liked travel and
I’ve always been interested
in photography. It was a
natural combination
linking the two. My last
major trip was to Bolivia in
2005 to cycle up Uturunco,
a 6000m high volcano,
claimed to have the
world’s highest road. I
have also done a lot of
photography travelling in
the Alps and the Pyrenees,
not to mention Scotland.
What drives you to
do these?
It’s a sense of adventure.
Exploration is always fun –
the more wild and remote
the destination, the better.
With my photography, I
feel tuned into my
environment a lot more.
I see a lot more, looking
for good lighting and
details that you may
ordinarily walk past.
How do you balance
your day job with
your hobbies?
I never have much time
left between them. I go to
a camera club twice a
week. My weekends are
often spent going out
taking pictures or working
on them on the computer. I
also put a lot of work in to
do is to try and make
healthy food more
affordable and accessible.
We have a mobile fruit
and veg shop that runs
one day a week and
stops at 11 places across
south Edinburgh. The
shop is very popular –
people tell us that if the
bus wasn’t there, they
wouldn’t buy fresh
fruit and veg.
Tell us about a typical
day…
How many people are
involved in the project?
Every day is different, but
there are things we do on a
weekly basis such as
themed cookery sessions.
We’ll vary these to attract a
wide range of people, so
one day we might be
making soup, the next onepot meals or traditional
food. The sessions take
place across South
Edinburgh in community
centres, church halls and
school kitchens.
There are five sections
within the South
Edinburgh Healthy
Living initiative – Healthy
Homes, Family Life,
Community Health
Action, Active Lifestyles
and ourselves. As
well as me, we also
have an information
worker, project manager,
admin person and a
number of other staff.
There are 18 of us
altogether.
What are the main
aims of the Healthy
Eating programme?
What are the best bits
about what you do?
One of the key things we
Meeting lots of new people
A MILLION
TO GIVE UP
1.2 million people have stubbed out
the habit thanks to No Smoking Day
the whole circuit of
international exhibitions
throughout UK and Europe
and I am a very active
member of the Edinburgh
Photographic Society.
What would be your
perfect shot?
The Scottish mountains
are still my favourite
location – you get these
beautiful lighting
conditions and good
weather (plenty of clouds)
for interesting and
atmospheric pictures.
E To view Tom’s
photographs, visit
www.lightpainter.co.uk
DAY IN THE LIFE OF… Tracy McGillivray
Tracy McGillivray
is a community
dietician. Since
2003, she has been
working as a healthy
eating development
worker for the
South Edinburgh
Healthy Living
initiative
March/April 2007 Connections
NO Smoking Day, which
took place this year on
Wednesday 14 March, aims
to help people who want to
stop smoking by creating a
supportive environment
for them and by
highlighting the many
sources of help available to
people who want to quit.
Now in its 24th year, it is a
firm fixture in our calendar
because of its popularity
among smokers and its
continued success.
Three quarters of smokers
would like to stop and on
national No Smoking Day,
more than one million try.
No Smoking Day isn’t
just about the day itself, of
course. Stopping smoking
requires
planning,
encouragement, support
and motivation.
Helping others to prepare to
quit can be done all-year
round, but the day provides an
excellent focus and motivation
for many smokers to stop.
The No Smoking Day
charity has a very clear vision
and mission:
■ To reduce tobacco-related
illness and death
■ To support smokers who
want to stop
■ Provide an opportunity to
do so
■ Highlight the effective help
that is available.
THE MAIN MESSAGE OF THE
EVENT IS:
• No Smoking Day is a good
opportunity to stop
• Smokers can get help when
they want to stop
• There are health and
other benefits to stopping
smoking.
WHAT THE DAY DOES:
• Spurs smokers into action
• Appeals to smokers of all
types – whatever their age, sex
or social class
• Publicises and explains the
help that smokers can get
when they want to stop
• Captures the attention
of the media with lots
of supportive TV,
newspaper and radio
coverage.
WHAT IT
DOESN’T DO:
• Try to force
smokers to
stop – it’s for
people who
are already
interested in doing
something about their
smoking
• Harass smokers – it’s not
about banning smoking, or
picking on smokers
• Work in isolation – smokers
need support before and after
the day too.
WHAT DOES NO SMOKING
DAY ACHIEVE?
No Smoking Day is one of
the biggest annual health
awareness campaigns in
Committed to helping you quit
is good. You also get
to watch people blossom.
It goes from “I can’t
cook anything” to
“now I can make a
meal”, which is great.
It’s good to be able to
give people the chance
to learn new skills.
Do you feel you are
making a difference
to people’s lives?
I think that we are. If
we can give people
the confidence to cook,
say to make a white
sauce from scratch
instead of from a packet,
that’s a real skill that
they can take on for the
rest of their life.
NHS Lothian is committed
to supporting smokers who
want to give up smoking,
and a wide range of
stop-smoking services
is available throughout
Lothian in the city of
Edinburgh, West
Lothian, Midlothian and
East Lothian.
Many of these groups are
based in community
centres, health centres, the
LGBT Healthy Living Centre
and pharmacies.
For NHS Lothian
staff who wish
help to stop,
they can obtain
details of stop
smoking
support from
0131 537 9494.
The following
numbers give details of
where anyone working or
living in Lothian can go to
for stop-smoking support:
West Lothian:
01506 523871
QUIT: NHS Lothian offers support to stop smoking
Midlothian:
0131 536 8971
East Lothian:
01620 827363
North West
Edinburgh: 0131 537
9494
North East
Edinburgh: 0131 536
6247
South West Edinburgh:
0131 537 7446
South Central Edinburgh:
0131 536 9759
South East Edinburgh:
0131 672 9532
For details of stop-
smoking support for young
people, pregnant women or
those from the LGBT
community, log on to
www.nhslothian.scot.nhs.uk
/YourHealth/healthylifestyle/
smoking.asp
Attending support
group sessions can
double the chances of
quitting smoking.
E For more information on
stopping smoking:
www.canstopsmoking.
com or Smokeline –
0800 848484
LIFESTYLE
Connections March/April 2007
REASONS
SMOKING
Tobacco policy
the UK. With more than 20
years of campaigning, it has
helped some 1.2 million
smokers stop for good.
E For more information,
go to: www.nosmoking
day.org.uk
THE NHS Lothian tobacco
policy was reviewed by the
executive management team
and board members at the
end of last year.
The decision was taken for
it to remain unchanged from
the implemented version in
March 2006.
The policy clearly states
that “from March 26 2006,
smoking will not be
allowed in any NHS Lothian
premises, around entrances
or buildings, or in vehicles”.
The only exemptions are
“designated room(s) for
psychiatric inpatients within
residential psychiatric
units/hospitals” and
“designated room(s) for
inpatients within specified
residential accommodation”.
A large number of
complaints from staff
suffering from passive
smoking (second-hand
smoke) as a result of smoking
taking place around
entrances, doorways and
near windows on larger
hospital sites, continue to be
recorded by the Tobacco
Policy Hotline to which
people report breaches of the
policy such as this.
In order to address this
issue, and to ensure the
health protection of staff
and patients, smoking
shelters are to be relocated.
Some shelters at the RIE
will be moved further away
from the hospital building.
Several shelters at St John’s
Hospital and the Western
General Hospital sites will
also be relocated.
These will be clearly
designated as smoking
shelters rather than being
confused with, for example,
bus shelters.
NHS Lothian smoking
cessation co-ordinator
Fiona Moore said: “While
we would discourage
smoking altogether in the
grounds, we recognise the
difficulty that this poses on
larger sites.
“These changes provide
a location in which smoking
may take place on these
larger sites without
breaching the policy.”
THE MISSING WORD IS…
Name
Job title
E-mail
Work tel. no.
Fairtrade hampers
competition
How to enter…
For a chance to win this great prize, simply answer the question below:
How many brands of Fairtrade tea are there?
The answer can be found by visiting the Fairtrade website at:
http://www.fairtrade.org.uk/products_tea.htm
Send your answers to Connections,
NHS Lothian, Deaconess House,
148 Pleasance, Edinburgh EH8 9RS,
by Friday 13 April. The first four
correct entries drawn out of the
hat will each win one of the
Fairtrade hampers.
Answer
Name
Job title
Email address
Work tel. no.
Treat your bump
to a make-over
Give your “bump” a spring make-over with this fantastic competition from
www.funmum.com, who are offering four expectant mums the chance to win
£50 of clothes from their spring/summer collection.
Funmum.com is a leading online maternity wear website offering stylish and trendy clothes
for mums-to-be. It stocks a range of clothes for work, weekends and special occasions, allowing
women to be fashionable and stylish throughout their pregnancy and beyond.
Funmum clothes are designed with an emphasis on cut and fit and will grow with the
bump. Check out the fantastic range of slogan T-shirts – with messages such as Baby Love
and Push to Eject, mums-to-be are bound to stand out.
To see the full range, log on to www.funmum.com
N
V
L
B
O
G
F
X
A
E
I
W N
S
U
U W N
T
How to enter…
N
E
E
J
V
T W G
V
S
For a chance to win this great prize, simply answer the question below:
I
N
A
I
N
O
M M A
E
T
O
O
M
G
B
C
O
G
N
O
T
X
F
Y
A
T
U
I
I
C
E
T
A
R
C
H
G
N
C
I
C
V
B
I
C W
L
Z
D
N
A
G
B
Q
O
K
Y
O
E
R
I
Y W B
X
P
V
H
F
E TAR E AMMONIA
E ARSENIC E ACETONE
E TOBACCO E NICOTINE
D
Pic: The Fairtrade Foundation
We have four Fairtrade hampers up for grabs in an exclusive
Connections competition. The hampers are each worth £50
and contain a host of Fairtrade products for you to enjoy.
Wordsearch smoking
Can you find which word from
the list is missing from the
wordsearch? There’s a £25
Love2Shop voucher up for
grabs, courtesy of our
publishers, Connect
Communications. Send your
answer to Connections, NHS
Lothian, 148 Pleasance,
Deaconess House, Edinburgh
EH8 9RS by 13 April.
The first correct entry drawn
out of the hat will win.
17
Can you name one of the messages on
funmum.com’s slogan T-shirts?
Answers should be emailed to
liz@funmum.com, stating your name
and full email address, or posted to
Liz Lafferty, Funmum, Wilson
Business Park, Unit 24B, 1 Queen
Elizabeth Avenue, Hillington, Glasgow
G52 4NQ by Friday 13 April.
Answer
Name
Job title
Email address
Work tel. no.
Issue 18 competition winners
The winner of last issue’s £400 room makeover competition was Carol Crowther, chief
nurse, Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh.
The winner of the £25 voucher is D.W. Mackie of Edinburgh.
18
LIFESTYLE
March/April 2007 Connections
100 days to
a healthy new
life for Fiona
IF you are looking for some
inspiration to continue a
weight-loss programme, why
not let Dr Fiona Watson’s story
inspire you?
Fiona is the clinical director of
Midlothian CHP and the clinical
lead for substance misuse at
NHS Lothian, but her own addiction
was to food.
In July last year, she decided to
tackle this by embarking on a very
low-calorie diet only suitable for those
who have three stones or more to lose.
Fiona said: “I have a fairly
stressful job and a history of heart
disease in the family. I didn’t want
my son to be without his mother
before he got to the age of 10. My
weight was also beginning to affect
my joints, my knees and my back.
“I signed up for the 100-day
programme of the diet and was
provided with all of my meals for that
time on a weekly basis. I also had to
stop drinking alcohol and drink
four litres of water a day.”
By signing up to the programme,
“I didn’t want my
son to be without
his mum before
he was 10”
Dr Fiona Watson, clinical
director of Midlothian CHP
Fiona also had to take part in weekly meals out, so I just took my meal
sessions with a trained therapist – a packs with me and asked the waiter
process she found very interesting to heat them up. I thought I would
given her own work background.
miss alcohol, but I didn’t at all.”
“I’m a psychiatrist and I work
Fiona has maintained her weight
with people who have
loss and the joint pain has gone.
addictions.
Her clothing size has
“I knew a
decreased from a 22
lot of the
to 12/14.
techniques the
So how did she
therapist was
celebrate her
using, such
achievement?
To calculate your body
as cognitive
“My mum and
mass index, log on to
behavioural
I went to New
www.healthyliving.
therapy and
York so I could
gov.uk and click
transactional
buy an entire new
on the ‘how
analysis. I
wardrobe. A few
healthy are
had just never
of my size 22
you?’ link
applied them to
clothes had been
myself,” she said.
stretchy, so I thought
“After the 100-day
they would shrink to fit,
programme, I embarked
but they didn’t.
on the route to management part,
“I’m five foot nine, so people used
where you get to reintroduce normal to tell me I carried the weight really
food and drink into your diet.
well, but when I looked back at my
“The therapist taught me to think ‘before’ photos, I didn’t think that was
about food differently and to eat in the case at all.
a different way, taking my
“Reducing obesity is one of the
time over meals. I had always targets for NHS Lothian and I’d like
wolfed things down.
to see programmes such as the one
“She also got me to identify the I followed available on the NHS on
‘trigger’ foods that set off bingeing a means-tested basis.”
– mine is chocolate.”
You might think that such a regime E For advice on a healthy diet
and becoming more
would have killed off Fiona’s social
physically active, visit
life, but this wasn’t the case.
www.healthyliving.gov.uk
“I had a few family celebrations and
DID
YOU KNOW
TRY THESE TOP TIPS
Make some simple changes
Make sure you include five portions of different-coloured fruit and vegetables
a day as either part of your meals or as a snack in-between – swap crisps and
sweets for fruit
Watch labels – when shopping, choose foods that are lower in fat and sugar.
Use this as a guide:
For a complete meal or 100g of a snack:
A lot – this amount or more
A little – this amount or less
10g sugar
20g fat
0.5 g sodium
2g sugar
3g fat
0.1g sodium
Don’t get too hung up about weight.
Your waist measurement is a much better
indicator of health risk. For men, try to
keep your waist measurement below 37
inches and for women, 32 inches
Plan ahead – make sure you think
ahead when shopping and eating
Don’t skip meals – this will only
reduce your energy levels and
your willpower.
LEFT: Before Fiona
started on her weight
loss programme,
she was a size 22
and her weight was
affecting her health.
Now she has slimmed
down to a size 12/14,
above, and celebrated
by heading off to
New York to buy a new
wardrobe of clothes!
FIONA’S diet isn’t for everyone – very
low-calorie diets such as the one she
followed are only recommended for those
who need to lose a serious amount of
weight to bring their body mass index (BMI)
down to the accepted normal weight
range for their height.
If someone is seriously overweight,
very low-calorie diets are believed
to be better for their health than
remaining at that weight.
For people who do not need to
lose this amount, a very lowcalorie diet would deprive them
of the essential vitamins and
minerals needed for their health.
However, if you need to lose
weight, making a few simple
changes to your eating pattern
and becoming more physically
active can make all the difference.
Changing the type of food and
drinks you normally buy, the type of meals
you normally eat (and your portion sizes), your
pattern of eating and the amount of physical
activity you do can make all the difference.
NEWS
Connections March/April 2007
19
Drug action
team’s prize
is in the bag
PRIZE WINNERS: Lucy
Alexander, left, with
West Lothian Drug Action
team members Hilary
Smith, Joni McArthur
and David McGrouther
Binge-drinking pamphlet tackles the issue
of binge drinking among young women
WEST Lothian Drug Action Team’s
innovative binge-drinking pamphlet
for women received a runners-up
award at the 2006 Association
of Public Service Excellence
service awards.
The pamphlet, called Everything
You Need For A Good Night Out,
targeted young women and their
attitudes to binge drinking and was
produced in partnership with West
Lothian Drug & Alcohol Service and
Lothian and Borders police.
The awards ceremony took place
at West Ham United’s Upton Park
stadium, hosted by TV personality
Lucy Alexander.
The leaflet, in the shape of a pink
handbag, was nominated in the Best
Healthy Living Initiative category of
the UK-wide awards, alongside
three other finalists and selected out
of 500 entries.
Originally launched in March
2005, the leaflet was devised
because of the increasing number
of young women in Scotland who
are drinking excessively.
It folds out to reveal a comic strip
illustrating the health and personal
safety risks that come with drinking
large amounts of alcohol.
Hilary Smith, research and
development officer for the West
Lothian Drug Action Team, said:
“ We w e r e d e l i g h t e d t o b e
nominated for the award.
“The leaflet proved extremely
popular with young women in West
Lothian and we have attracted
That cheque’s worth a lot of cups of tea!
GENEROUS: Ian Morrison gives the cheque to Catherine Crombie
VOLUNTEERS from the WRVS recently
presented a cheque for £12,000 to
Liberton Hospital.
The handover came as hospital
managers and admin staff served up
afternoon tea to 30 of the hard-working
WRVS volunteers.
The hospital-based service serves
patients, their relatives and staff
at the hospital – in the shop or
café or from the trolley – 364 days a
year. The only day they have off is
Christmas Day.
The afternoon tea gave the
volunteers a chance to catch up with
each other and to spend some time
with hospital staff.
Site and clinical nurse manager
Catherine Crombie said: “It was
a delight to be able to give
something back to the volunteers who
provide such an excellent service.”
WRVS shop manager Ian Morrison
handed over the cheque to Catherine,
who told the volunteers that the money
will be spent on medical monitoring
equipment, and thanked them for their
hard work and continued support.
The shop sells everything from the
daily paper to silver jewellery. A
trolley service takes a selection of items
from the shop to the patients on the
ward and daily papers are also
delivered to patients who order them.
The café provides hot drinks and
light snacks ranging from hot paninis
to freshly prepared sandwiches.
Fresh flower displays are also
provided at the main entrance and café
seating area on a weekly basis.
Music for MUMs
A FUN night of music and words,
featuring talented children and
adults from around Scotland and
beyond, is set to hit Edinburgh
in April.
That’s the treat in store for
culture vultures as the Music for
MUMS concert takes the stage
at Edinburgh’s Usher Hall on
Friday 20 April (7.30pm).
The purpose of the concert is to
raise funds to help build a new
high-risk maternity hospital in the
Malawian capital Lilongwe, and to
refurbish the city’s Bottom Hospital
to cater for the “normal” birth needs
of local women.
E d i n b u rg h m i d w i f e L i n d a
McDonald has been raising funds for
almost two years for Bottom
Hospital and last summer she and
her husband spent their summer
holiday helping to clean and paint
the hospital.
Linda, who works at the
Simpson Centre for Reproductive
Health at the Royal Infirmary
of Edinburgh, wrote a MUMS
recipe book and a calendar that
has already raised an astonishing
£120,000.
She said: “We printed 20,000
recipe books and have only 100 left.
And the Royal Bank of Scotland,
which sponsored the first
MUMS book, has agreed to
sponsor a second recipe book
which we will publish this autumn.
“The new high-risk hospital is
being built in the grounds of the
central general hospital in
Lilongwe with backing from the
To m H u n t e r / B i l l C l i n t o n
Foundation.
“It will play a huge role in
helping mothers and babies with
birth complications.”
Linda added: “The needs of
African women are desperate,
because the state of Bottom Hospital
now is unacceptable.”
Master of ceremonies at the
fundraising concert is Stephen
Jardine from Scottish Television.
Appearing on stage will be The
massed choirs of Craigmount
School, Broughton High School and
Beeslack High School, Moyenda
African Band, Eagles tribute band
Hotel California, a reading by Tom
Pow, written by Alexander McCall
Smith, UK theatre school, Inverclyde
School Choir (runners up to choir
of the year), Craigmount Jazz
Band, Japanese Drummers,
Craigmount Ceilidh Band, Strathspey
Fiddlers, The Dance School
of Scotland and author Liz
Lochhead.
The Scottish Executive and the
Lord Provost have given their
support for the evening.
THE FACTS
MUMS is the Malawi
Underprivileged Mothers charity,
which was set up in Edinburgh in
2005 to help raise awareness of the
plight of local women and their
babies in this African country.
Linda also has her own
c h a r i t y, L i n d a M c D o n a l d
Charitable Trust, which was set up
to raise money specifically for
Bottom Hospital.
interest from several other drug and
alcohol action teams throughout the
UK as a result.”
E If you are interested in
purchasing copies of the
resource, please contact
Hilary Smith directly on 01506
777135 or email: Hilary.Smith
@westlothian. gov.uk
Help Lesley
walk the Wall
for charity
AUCTIONS, sponsored
slimming and boot sales –
one Livingston health visitor
is putting her all into
fundraising efforts for the
Scottish Cot Death Trust
this year and next.
Lesley Hunt, who is based
at the Howden Health
Centre, will be undertaking
a sponsored trek of the
Great Wall of China in the
spring of 2008 on behalf of
the trust.
In the meantime, she is
raising money towards her
fundraising goal of £2,375.
Lesley said: “I chose to
raise money for the Scottish
Cot Death Trust because I
can’t imagine anything
worse than having your child
die of a cot death.
“I’m holding a charity
auction night on 12 May at
the East Calder Bowling
Club coinciding with Cot
Death Awareness Week. I’ll
be offering prizes such as
family tickets for Edinburgh
Zoo, theme park tickets and
membership of a gym. I’ve
also got lots of raffle prizes.”
Lesley and colleague
Jackie Hilton are also on a
sponsored slim. Their weighin is on 9 March. Lesley
has also held a car boot sale
and brought in books for
sale to raise money.
E If you have any prizes you
could donate to Lesley’s
charity night or if you
would like to attend or
sponsor her, please phone
her on 01506 423839.
Lesley also has a charity
donation website –
www.justgiving.com/
lesleyscubatrek
20
NEWS
March/April 2007 Connections
Easter egg
bike ride
for charity
HERE TO HELP: Derek, front row, third from left, with the rescue team
FAB: International Rescue
DEREK JOLLY is used to helping
save lives in his day job – he’s a
paediatric intensive care nurse at
the Royal Hospital for Sick
Children in Edinburgh.
But while there, he doesn’t have to
tunnel through rubble to find
earthquake survivors or fight off wild
dogs. He reserves that for his work
with the International Rescue Corps.
For years, Derek had looked for a
worthwhile outlet for his energies
while away from the ward. And after
seeing a TV programme in which
members of the Grangemouth-based
corps were interviewed, he realised
he had found the ideal project.
It was in October 1999 that
Derek first contacted the UNaccredited international search-andrescue charity. Within a month, he was
in training with them. It took three
Do you know an
unsung hero?
ACROSS NHS Lothian, many
people play an important part
in making sure patients and
communities receive
excellent health services.
The Institute of Healthcare
Management wants to play its
part in acknowledging the
work of these unsung heroes.
It is looking for nominations
for people who you think
consistently go above and
beyond the call of duty, or who
have made a significant
difference to an organisation
or people’s lives.
All you need to do is send
the IHM the name of the
individual and up to 300 words
supporting your nomination,
saying why that person
deserves an award.
Your nomination should also
contain the name and contact
details of two other supporters
for your candidate.
The presentations will
be made in Harrogate on
9-10 May.
E The deadline for
submitting your
nomination is 20 April.
You can download a copy
of the nomination form at
www.ihm.org.uk/
downloads
years, passing through three stages of
training, now accredited by the
Open College Network, before he
became qualified to travel abroad to
help rescue disaster victims.
His first mission was to Bam in Iran,
which had been devastated by an
earthquake in December 2003.
“It was a tough mission,” Derek said.
“We didn’t find anyone alive – all we
did was search rubble. Aftershocks were
happening all the time and wild dogs
were trying to attack us. There are a
lot of things that go through your head.”
The work has its share of its strains.
The reason the training is so long,
explained Derek, is “to make sure you
are not going to crumple in a heap or
lose the plot. But if it does happen on
a mission, you are able to spot the
signs of stress in yourself and your
team members and talk it through”.
Derek came close to suffering posttraumatic stress after searching for
survivors from the Stockline plastics
factory explosion in Glasgow. But
within hours of recognising the
symptoms, he was on the phone to
the operations director and within two
days was being given counselling.
He said such experiences are
beneficial to his day job. “I have found
stress management techniques are
helpful in recognising stress in
yourself and others. And you really
appreciate that you need to look out
for other people in your team.
“Junior members of the Intensive
Care Unit can be terrified when they
first start, but you can play a role in
helping them get through it.”
The volunteering, although unpaid
and despite its stressful nature,
keeps Derek “happy and balanced”.
For him, such demanding volunteer
work is all about the “human
connection”.
“If my house collapsed, I would
hope that someone would come along
and have a dig about to see if I am
there,” said Derek. “You think ‘this
could be me, this could be my family’.
“It’s the same as what drives me in
nursing. It’s that human connection.
It doesn’t matter where someone is
from – they have all the stuff
going on that you have. They have a
family, a life and a job. If you
don’t dig them out of the rubble, that
doesn’t carry on.”
E If you would like more
information or would like to
join the International Rescue
Corps, visit www.intrescue.org
or call 01324 665011.
NEVER mind the Easter
bunnies, what about the
Easter bikers?
Andrew Valentine, a
diabetic retinal screener at
the Princess Alexandra Eye
Pavilion, is also a keen
motorcycle enthusiast.
Along with the fellow
members of the Dunbar
and District Motorcycle
Club, he gets involved with
a charity Easter egg run
every year.
Andrew said: “The
run takes place on
7 April, leaving from the
high street in Dunbar, and
there are usually about
10 bikes. We take all the
donated eggs to the Royal
Hospital for Sick Children
in Edinburgh. We are
always keen for donations
so please get in touch if
you can help.”
E For donations, contact:
Andrew Valentine,
Diabetic Retinopathy
at: Andrew.Valentine
@luht. scot.nhs.uk
Sheila’s special
Hike for Hope
SHEILA LIGGAT wanted to do
something special in the few
years before her retirement – and
she’s chosen an African fund-raising
adventure as the way to do it.
Sheila works in the Heba Centre
at the Western General and the Hike
for Hope that she will be undertaking
in November/December will raise
money in aid of gynaecological and
prostate cancer charities.
She will need to raise at least £2,700
in sponsorship to take part in
the trip and is planning a number
of fundraising events over the next
six months.
As part of her efforts, she will be
having an ongoing sale of unwanted
CDs and books. If you have any CDs
or books you could contribute, you
can leave these in the marked red
box at the Heba Centre or contact
Sheila for collection.
Sheila will also be offering talks
on prostate cancer – its symptoms
and its treatment – to men’s groups
in return for donations to her Hike
for Hope.
Sheila said: “The Hike for Hope is
very challenging. It’s a week of day
treks around the Rift Valley in Kenya
and a visit to an extinct volcano. The
maximum we’re going to do in one day
is about 28 kilometres, but the
terrain is very rough, so the organisers
recommend we prepare for it by
taking seven-mile walks on
consecutive days.”
Sheila will be reporting back about
her trip afterwards and letting everyone
know how much money she raised.
If you would like to contribute
to her appeal, contact Sheila on
0131 537 3186 or email sheila.liggat
@luht.scot.nhs.uk
HIKE FOR HOPE: Sheila
Liggat is heading to Africa
ON YOUR MARKS: runners in the Edinburgh marathon
Pull on your running shoes!
PEOPLE from all walks of life, from
within NHS Lothian and beyond,
will be picking up the pace this year
to raise money for the Royal
Hospital for Sick Children.
Members of the public, as well
as NHS Lothian staff, have been
given the chance to run in the
Forthside Half Marathon on 1 April,
as well as the Edinburgh Marathon
on 27 May and the Great Scottish
Walk on 10 June, to raise money
for the hospital.
Children under five can also get
in on the action with the Teddy
Toddle, also on 10 June, which will
see the youngsters make their way
down a 150-metre soft track at the
Meadowbank Stadium.
For primary school kids, there is
the Great Wee Scottish Walk on 15
April at Inverleith Park.
Last year, all four events raised
£46,800 for the Sick Kids Friends
Foundation, which funds extra
medical equipment, improvements
to facilities, specialist research,
training and a range of comforts for
the hospital’s young patients.
This year, the charity hopes to do
even better, said Carolyn Thornton,
corporate and community fundraiser
for the Sick Kids Foundation.
“Our purpose is to make a child’s
stay in hospital as comfortable as
possible and to ensure we do that,
we are looking for good citizens
wanting to run round the streets
of Edinburgh.”
E To secure a place in the
forthcoming fundraising
events, telephone Carolyn on
0131 668 4949 or
e-mail carolyn.thornton
@luht.scot.nhs.uk