Need to know
For #TeamEEAST Last updated: 18 May 2024 at 08:05
We all want to work for an organisation where we feel welcomed, valued and respected, and we know that when that doesn’t happen, it can impact our self-esteem and mental wellbeing.
We want to be an employer of choice, where our people build careers and develop their learning, and we would love to get to the point where all of us feel fulfilled at work and have our voices heard. This is why we are developing a three-year Inclusivity Plan which not only aims to make EEAST a safe place to work for everyone with clear pathways for career development, but also helps us to develop stronger community partnerships and broader, more inclusive recruitment. The plan will be built around what we have heard through our recent survey to BME colleagues and the current surveys with LGBT, disabled and neurodivergent colleagues (see below). It will include commissioning and rolling out inclusive leadership training for all managers, beginning with the Senior Management Team. It will also have clear milestones and outcomes to achieve which will be monitored by our People Committee and the Board.
We’re already making progress, but we’re committed to building on this, which is why we need to continue to hear about your experiences. The current LGBT and Disability and Neurodiversity surveys are still open, and if you identify with one of these groups then please do share your views. Along with the recent BME survey we will be repeating these surveys for the next two years to give us a really clear picture of your experience and the things that we need to change, but without your input we will struggle to get the clear picture that we need. You can find the surveys here. Both are completely confidential. They are being conducted by an external company and will remain open until Friday 3 February 2023.
Ask People Services
Next Friday there will be another opportunity for you to put your questions to the People Services experts, during the next of their Ask People Services sessions. This is an opportunity for you to book a 30-minute slot with one of our senior People Services colleagues to ask for advice, share some feedback or just get an answer to a burning question that you don’t feel comfortable asking in a Q&A setting. 30-minute slots are available throughout the day, find out how to book yours here. We are planning similar sessions to be hosted by our Leadership Development and Education teams and will share further details nearer the time.
LGBT+ History Month
February is LGBT+ History Month and is an opportunity for us to not only reflect and celebrate, but also learn more about the history of the LGBT+ community.
The month is for all of us. It aims to raise awareness and understanding of the progression that has been made around equality for members of the LGBT+ community and encourages people to talk about their own lived experiences.
The theme for this year is ‘Behind the Lens’ looking at LGBT+ peoples’ contribution to cinema and film, whatever their involvement, whether as directors and screen writers or makeup artists and musicians. You can find out more on the LGBT+ website.
Our LGBT+ Network meets regularly to focus on how the Trust can improve its focus and support its LGBT+ colleagues. If you are interested in joining the network, email LGBT@eastamb.nhs.uk. You can also join the networks group on Facebook and can find more information about all of our staff networks here.
Time to Talk
Today is national Time to Talk Day, a reminder for us all to start a conversation with our family, friends and colleagues. It’s not always easy to talk about difficult issues, particularly when it comes to our mental health, but it is the single most important thing you can do to take care of yourself and others. Why not have a quick cup of tea with a work colleague or send a message to a friend? It might just be the opportunity they need to talk about how they’re feeling, and it could make you feel better as well. You can find more about Time to Talk Day here, as well as information about the wellbeing support on offer to you as members of EEAST.
Thank you Thursday
'Without their intervention we might have lost her that day. They were courteous, caring, resourceful, and very thorough. They were very personable, and they were also excellent with our mum.'
Best wishes,
Dr Hein Scheffer
Director of Strategy, Culture and Education
IMPORTANT TRUST NEWS FOR CASCADE
Completion of self-assessments on Inphase compliance software
In line with the Trust’s associated CQC management policy, it is essential that Specialists and Heads of complete a quarterly self-assessment against their relevant prompts within the Inphase software. The completion rate for Q3 at this level was 14.81% for EUC and 10.49% for PTS – it should be noted that this is the completion rate for Specialists and Heads of and not operational teams who all complete their relevant updates.
As well as providing the Trust with an ongoing overview of compliance at any time against the Health & Social Care Act, these reviews and associated evidence are also required to:
Currently, for triangulating and collating evidence, Specialists and Heads of are having to be contacted to provide the evidence required.
As we move to a new Continuous Improvement Assurance Framework, these self-assessments will help to triangulate evidence from other data flows such as the IPR, clinical audit, IPC and medicines audit.
Published 2nd February 2023