Need to know
For #TeamEEAST Last updated: 26 April 2024 at 08:30
Safety, particularly that of our patients, is always at the forefront of our minds but especially this week as we recognise World Patient Safety Day on Friday (17th September).
In last week’s Leadership Message, we mentioned that, here at EEAST, we would be marking the occasion with our own Patient Safety Week, running from 10th – 17th September. I hope many of you have had the opportunity to participate in some of the events being held, which included our own ‘Maternity Masterclass’ on Wednesday. For those who have not, there is still time to get involved and you can find all the details here.
An important part of keeping our patients safe is protecting them from infectious illness, something which we are all too aware of at the present time. As long as COVID restrictions are in place for the NHS we must all keep following the rules. We are seeing a lot of good practice around the Trust in terms of using relevant PPE, (including masks), test regularly and practice social distancing and good hand hygiene, but we must continue to be vigilant. You can find the latest COVID guidance on Need to Know.
Patient safety is also the topic for the first of a new series of ‘Need to Know Now’ (NTKN) weekly e-bulletins that are launching this week. We know that during the first lockdown many of you appreciated these updates as a quick summary of key issues, especially during the busier periods. With so much improvement work taking place across the Trust, as well as current demands on the service and the prospect of a further CQC Core Inspection, we feel the time is right to bring back NTKN and help keep everyone updated on our improvement journey. As a healthcare organisation our focus is on providing the best possible care for our patients and I hope these updates will keep us all appraised of the work going into doing just that.
Although we are kicking things off with a focus on safety, the weekly updates will cover many different themes. If there’s an improvement area that you would like to hear more about, please contact the clinical team at CQCgroup@eastamb.nhs.uk. They would welcome your thoughts, questions and feedback.
I would like to close by thanking you for all your hard work this week. I was fortunate enough to attend last week’s celebration of Emergency Services. It was good to be able to take the time to remember colleagues within our own and other blue light services who have lost their lives in the course of their duties.
Let’s continue to do everything we can to keep ourselves, our colleagues and our loved ones safe.
Tom Davis
Medical Director and Deputy CEO
Published 16th September 2021