Spring 2015 - NHS Dartford, Gravesham and Swanley CCG

Spring 2015
PatientNews
Leading the way in A&E
Bank holidays always add pressure on hospital Accident and Emergency units,
as many GP surgeries close over this period. We saw the result at Christmas and
the New Year, and there are more holidays coming up during Easter and May.
But the A&E unit at Darent Valley
Hospital serving the Dartford area,
has been performing better than
most. One of the reasons is that NHS
Dartford, Gravesham and Swanley
Clinical Commissioning Group,
which plans and pays for most of the
area’s healthcare, has been working
hard behind the scenes with hospital
staff, GPs, community medical
teams, voluntary organisations and
social care professionals from the
county council.
As a result, an Integrated Discharge
Team now works within the hospital
to assess patients, often the elderly
and frail, as they enter A&E. Staff
decide if patients need to be
admitted to hospital or if they can
recover better at home or elsewhere
in the community with the right kind
of support.
It is estimated the team prevents up
to ten emergency admissions a day
which means A&E and the hospital’s
beds are only used by those who
really need them. The team arranges
support, from community nurse visits
to special equipment, so patients can
be safely sent home, or to another
appropriate place, as soon as they
are well enough.
The pioneering project has been
so successful it has been featured
on BBC Radio Four’s World At One
programme. Among those
interviewed was the CCG’s
accountable officer, Patricia
Davies.
She said: “Darent Valley
Hospital was under extreme
pressure, like many
hospitals in the country,
over Christmas and the
New Year. But unlike
some, it did not need to
declare a major incident.
The Integrated Discharge
Team is not a silver bullet
but if we did not have
coordinated working between
primary and secondary care, the
local authorities and the hospital
trust, then we would have been in
a much worse position. It is the type
of scheme which can make all the
difference between a hospital going
into crisis or not.”
The programme featured Victor
Bishop, 89, a former RAF Second
World War rear gunner in a bomber
crew, who had been admitted the
previous evening after falling at his
home in Gravesend. Listeners heard
Sister Amanda Fry asking Mr Bishop
what help he needed at home.
Sister Fry told reporter Andrew
Bomford: “It used to be that patients
were admitted and could sometimes
wait days for their assessment to
Joined-up working: Sister Amanda Fry
of the Darent Valley Hospital’s Integrated
Discharge Team speaks to patient Victor
Bishop, 89, from Gravesend as Radio 4
reporter Andrew Bomford listens in.
get them home safely. Now we act
quickly to prevent inappropriate
hospital admissions and also help
with safe discharges.”
This project is one of the priorities of
the CCG’s five-year plan, which was
devised following a series of Better
Care Together events involving
patients, the public and other
stakeholders.
How can YOU help make A&E better? – turn to page 2
How
make it be
One of simplest ways to cut down
queues at A&E is to only use it when
you really need it. This means being
aware of the alternatives. If your
GP surgery is closed in the evening,
at the weekend or during a bank
holiday, there are still plenty of other
options.
GP Dr Elizabeth Lunt, who chairs
NHS Dartford, Gravesham and
Swanley Clinical Commissioning
Group (CCG), said: "If you know
a bank holiday is coming up and
you are on medication, you should
request a repeat prescription in
plenty of time. But make sure
you only order what you need.
Stockpiling medicine can be risky
and also wastes NHS resources.”
She added: "Take time to restock
your medicine cabinets while
shopping. It is much better to have
painkillers or plasters in the house
rather than to have a last-minute
dash to the shops.”
Those with smartphones or a
computer should download the
Health Help Now web app – www.
healthhelpnow-nhs.net – or get
the Health Help Now app from
Google Play or the App Store.
Health Help Now can help you find
the right treatment, day or night,
wherever you are in Kent. It can
identify the nearest open chemist
and give you directions there. It has
already been used more than 47,000
times.
The downloadable version features a
‘health wallet’ to make notes about
symptoms, jot down questions
to ask a GP, keep a list of health
appointments and contacts, and
save favourite pages from Health
Help Now.
If you don’t have internet
access or a smartphone, call
NHS 111 for urgent health
advice, 24 hours a day.
MEDICINE CABINET
A well-stocked medicine cabinet should include:
• Thermometer
• Rehydration salts
• Plasters, bandages and sticking tape
• Antiseptic cream
• Sunscreen
• Indigestion treatments
• Painkillers (paracetamol and ibuprofen –
including child versions if you have children
under 12)
• Antihistamines (such as hay fever tablets and
insect bite creams).
w to
etter in A&E
MENTAL HEALTH
DENTIST
Free confidential emotional advice and
guidance is available 24 hours a day, every
day, from the Mental Health Matters helpline
on 0800 107 0160 from landlines and
03003 305486 from mobiles. The Samaritans
are on 08457 909090.
For emergency dental care, contact
your own dentist first. At evenings,
weekends and bank holidays (8.30am
to 1.25pm) you can call DentaLine on
01634 890300.
PHARMACIES
Some pharmacies are open on bank holidays. Pharmacists
can provide advice on many common illnesses and
advice on medication. See Help Health Now, your local
newspaper or the CCG’s website for opening hours.
MINOR INJURIES AND
WALK IN CENTRES
Trained nurses at minor injury units (MIUs) can assess and
treat cuts, sprains, minor burns, minor dislocations of the
fingers and toes, minor eye injuries and remove foreign
bodies from, for example, ears and noses. Minor injury
units cannot treat babies under a year old. Walk-in centres
are staffed by GPs. MIUs and walk-in centres are open
every day of the year.
• Minor Injury Unit, Erith Hospital, Park Crescent,
Erith, DA8 3EE. 01322 356116. 8am – 10pm
• Minor Injury Unit, Gravesham Community Hospital,
Bath Street, Gravesend, DA11 0DG.
01474 360500. 8am – 8pm
• White Horse GP-led walk-in centre, Vale Road,
Gravesend, DA11 8BZ.
0300 030 0000. 8am – 6.30pm
Free P
NHSWEBASPITE
AND
The Francis Report:
Who Cares?
After ‘appalling care’ was uncovered at the Mid Staffordshire General
Hospital NHS Trust, barrister Sir Robert Francis QC published a damning
dossier in February 2013 demanding a return to a caring and safer
culture in the NHS. He made 292 recommendations.
At the end of his report he wrote:
“It is respectfully suggested that the
subject matter of this Inquiry is too
important for it to be allowed to be
forgotten.”
Geoffrey Wheat, the Chief Medical
Officer at NHS Dartford, Gravesham
and Swanley Clinical Commissioning
Group, took up the challenge
and this year staged what he
dubbed a Francis Day to keep the
recommendations alive in the minds
of all NHS organisations in north
Kent.
He teamed up with NHS Medway
CCG and NHS Swale CCG and
invited providers to tell each other
what they were doing to ensure
the safety of patients. He said: “It
is vital the health service continues
to take notice of, and react to
those recommendations. The clear
message is that more of the same is
not good enough.”
He added: "Our providers have
been very responsive. We have been
monitoring their action plans. The
day was about celebrating some of
those successes.”
His team also staged an awards
ceremony with special guest Sam
Sherrington, the head of Stakeholder
and Cultural Transformation at
NHS England. She said: “Patient
experience must be at the heart of
everything we do. Events like this
help to remind us of why we are
here. We must focus on value for
money and ways to make the health
service work.
“What I saw was the tremendous
commitment and passion of
individuals who are working very
hard in our different organisations
Judges at the Francis Day event, from the left, GP Bhaskar Bora, Principal Clinical
Lead for quality at NHS Dartford, Gravesham and Swanley Clinical Commissioning
Group (DGS CCG); Sam Sherrington from NHS England; Deputy Chief Nurse Gail
Locock and Chief Nurse Geoffrey Wheat from DGS, Medway and Swale CCGs; and
Dr Fiona Armstrong, who chairs Swale CCG.
to make Francis part of everyday
business. We must learn and share
best practices from across the health
economies, not just in Kent but
across England as well.”
GP Dr Bhaskar Bora, Principal Clinical
Lead for quality at NHS DGS CCG,
said: “It is important to celebrate
the good things happening within
the health service. It felt like these
projects were just the tip of the
iceberg. It makes sense to reflect on
the Francis Report which reminded
us of the standards patients expect.”
There were presentations from:
• Dartford and Gravesham NHS
Trust
• Medway NHS Foundation Trust
• Kent Community Health NHS
Trust
• Kent and Medway NHS and
Social Care Partnership Trust
(KMPT)
• South East Coast Ambulance
Service NHS Trust (SECAmb)
• The Will Adams NHS Treatment
Centre in Gillingham and
• Medway Community Healthcare
To see highlights, watch this twoand-a-half minute Mainstreaming
The Francis Report video at
www.youtube.com/
watch?v=Q4FZB8mjDpQ
How working together gives better care
Find a dentist
Enter postcode or town...
Members of the public have been helping shape
the area’s health services. They took part in
a Better Care Together forum at the Princes
Stadium, Dartford to discuss commissioners’
plans for improving community care, urgent
care and mental health.
Dr Bhaskar Bora, the CCG’s
Principal Clinical Lead for quality,
said: “We are investing in
community services to keep people
living healthier at home for longer.
We asked patients and public
groups what is important to them
and they told us they want choice
and to be more in control of their
care. They want their care to be
planned; with health and social
care staff working together. These
principles are at the heart of this
new way of working.”
The half-day event included a
question-and-answer session
hosted by Dr Bora and Debbie
Stock, the Chief Operating Officer,
plus table-top discussions on
urgent care, community services,
sharing of computer health records
and mental health and dementia
services.
Delegates discussed:
Integrated Primary Care Teams:
Multi-disciplinary hubs working
with GPs to coordinate patients’
care with joined-up support,
especially for those with long-term
conditions and complex needs.
The number of people dying of heart attacks in the
Canterbury and coastal area has fallen by more than 70
per cent over the..
30 May 2012
Integrated Discharge Teams:
Health and care staff and voluntary
organisations working together to
assess patients on their first day in
hospital to ensure a safe and timely
discharge back home or to another
appropriate setting.
• Better explanation is needed for the
public of when and when not, to go
to an Accident and Emergency unit;
more services should be at walk-in
centres;
Help shape the future
NHS Dartford, Gravesham and
Swanley CCG has been working
with Kent County Council and
other NHS organisations to
encourage local health and social
care teams work more closely
together.
services with good
IT systems to capture and share
information.
C4G is inviting local residents to join a patient panel. It
is vital we find out what you think of your local health
services so we...
30 May 2012
These could be extended to include
hospice staff, outreach hospital
staff, paramedics and pharmacists
who will plan care together and
share their expertise to avoid
duplication.
?
Search
More than 70 members of
the public, carers, voluntary
organisations, statutory
organisations and members of
patient participation groups based
at GP surgeries took part.
• Seven-day access to services is
essential, as speed is needed when
people are unwell;
• Community Multi-Disciplinary
Integrated Dementia Care:
Teams should include everything
There are 14 mental health
except acute hospital services;
nurses supporting GPs in the
Integrated Primary Care Teams. The • Mental health and dementia
services should work together
Alzheimer’s and Dementia Support
more; early diagnosis of dementia is
Service (ADSS) is working with
needed so its effects can be better
patients at Darent Valley Hospital.
managed; better awareness of the
Kent County Council is reviewing
mental health and dementia rapid
the crisis services.
response teams, intensive support
Integrated IT records:
teams and 24/7 crisis teams.
It is vital hospital doctors can
• To add your own comments and
access selected medical notes held
keep up to date with our plans visit
by a patient’s GP in appropriate
www.dartfordgravesham
circumstances to assist in rapid
swanleyccg.nhs.uk/get-involved/
diagnosis. But there should be an
better-care-together or follow
‘opt out.’
Twitter #BetterCareTogether
They agreed:
• Publicity about new services
is important so the public
and all team members are
aware of what is available. A
printed directory of voluntary
organisations and their services
is needed.
• Telling their story once is
important to patients who
‘just want to access the
right service’. That needs
communication between
Better
e
car
together
Would you like to help?
Do you know someone who would enjoy helping NHS Dartford,
Gravesham and Swanley improve the area’s healthcare? TheDGS
Health Network is a virtual group of patients, voluntary groups
and individuals who are interested in getting more involved in how
services are planned and designed.
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i
t
Ge h
c
u
o
t
By becoming a member you can:
• Take part as much, or as little, as you like
• Receive regular e-newsletters like this one
• Share ideas and views about our health services
• Stay up-to-date with the health topics that interest you
• Take part in focus groups, consultations and surveys about
healthcare
Find out more by looking at our website
www.dartfordgraveshamswanleyccg.nhs.uk
or fill in the form on the next page.
Our next governing body
meetings are on:
Tuesday 31 March, 1-4pm
Riverside Community Centre, Dickens Road, Gravesend, DA12 2JY
Tuesday 26 May, 1-4pm
Council Chamber or Committee Room B2, Dartford Borough
Council Offices, Home Gardens, Dartford, DA1 1DZ
Tuesday 28 July, 1-4pm
The Clock Tower Pavilion, Alexandra Suite, St Mary's Road, Swanley,
Kent, BR8 7BU
Tuesday 29 September, 10am-1pm
Annual meeting follows 1.30-2.30pm
Thistle Hotel, Brands Hatch, West Kingsdown, Kent, DA3 8PE
Tuesday 24 November, 1-4pm
Dickens Room, Riverside Community Centre, Dickens Road,
Gravesend, Kent, DA12 2JY
The public can ask questions at the start of each meeting based
on the agenda. The agenda and papers will be available to
download from the CCG’s website
www.dartfordgraveshamswanleyccg.nhs.uk five working
days before each meeting.
NHS Dartford, Gravesham
and Swanley CCG
Floor 2
Gravesham Civic Centre
Windmill Street
Gravesend
DA12 1AU
03000 424903
dgs.ccg@nhs.net
www.dartfordgravesham
swanleyccg.nhs.uk
@NHS DGS CCG
Join now! Make a difference.
NHS Dartford, Gravesham and Swanley CCG is committed to hearing
the public voice. In our area we need local people to join our ‘listening’
group called the ‘Health Network’.
Benefits of joining the Health Network:
•
Take part in discussions about health issues that interest you
•
Share your personal experiences
•
Tell us what’s important to you, to help set priorities
•
Receive a regular newsletter about what is going on in your area
If you want to join us then simply complete the form below, scan and email to:
dgs.communications@nhs.net
Thank you
Details
Title: ………………………..
Name: …………………………………………...............................
Address: …………………………………………………………………………………………….............................
Email: ………………………………… Telephone: ………………................ Mobile: …………………............
GP practice: ……………………………………………………………………......................................... (Optional)
…………………………………………………………………………………………….............................................
Are you a carer?

Yes

No
What is your general area of interest? (Tick as many as you need)

Children’s services
Speech and language therapy, early support, complex needs

Community services
Provided within community settings (for example GPs, Community Hospitals)

Mental health
Short and long-term mental health care

Planned care
Booked care (for example accessed through referral from a GP)

Urgent care
Non-planned and immediate care (for example A&E, 999, minor injury units)

Primary care
(General practice, providing more care in a local setting)

Long-term conditions
Non life threatening (for example diabete and COPD)

Integrated Care
Whole system approach (for example health and social care working together)
Are there any specific areas of interest, please list:
(for example diabetes, end of life care, carers, stroke, pain management)
Age:


16-24 25-34

35-44

45-54


55-64
65-74

75+

Prefer not to say
Please indicate your ethnic group? Choose one option that best describes your ethnic group or
background.
Asian or Asian British
White

English / Welsh / Scottish / Northern Irish / British

Indian

Irish

Pakistani

Gypsy or Irish Traveller

Bangladeshi

Chinese
Any other White background, please describe:
Any other Asian background, please describe
Mixed

White and Black Caribbean
Black / African / Caribbean / Black British

White and Black African

African

White and Asian

Caribbean

Other, please describe:
Any other mixed / multiple ethnic background,
please describe:
Other ethnic group

Arab

Prefer not to say