Visit our website: www.uhb.nhs.uk
For patients, staff, visitors and volunteers
Page 2 Meet our new governors
AUGUST 2016
Page 5 New nursing role thanks to bursary
Page 10 Communication is key in care Share your holiday snaps
Eye drop project is world-first Contact lens wearers who contract a potentially blinding infection could have their sight saved with the development of a revolutionary new eye drop. A £2.3 million world-first research project due to begin in August sees scientists at the NIHR Surgical Reconstruction and Microbiology Research Centre (SRMRC) join forces with experts from the University of Birmingham to create the treatment. Each year, bacterial infections cause around 6,000 cases of a severe eye condition known as microbial keratitis. The disease scars the cornea which leads to vision impairment and sometimes sight-loss. Contact lens wearers are at a higher risk because bacteria can get trapped in the lenses. The key ingredient of the innovative new eye drop will be a synthetic version of a protein molecule called decorin, which is found naturally in small amounts in the body. It’s hoped that this ‘magic bullet’ will slow down the scarring process, allowing better
regeneration and repair of the damaged tissues. If the anti-scarring eye drop is effective it will be developed for use in other patients whose sight is at risk and where scarring is problematic, for example following an eye injury or in those suffering from a detached retina. Professor Liam Grover, pictured above, a biomaterials expert who is leading the project, said: “Decorin was originally identified by Professor Ann Logan as a potential scar treatment in the brain and eye and my job has been to take this fantastic discovery and find novel ways of delivering its benefits to patients. “Last year we successfully incorporated decorin into a membrane wound dressing which is being trialled on burns patients. “Now our challenge is ensuring that its anti-scarring properties can also thrive within a formulation which can be applied as an eye drop.” The current alternative is a corneal transplant where doctors remove all or part of a damaged cornea and replace it with healthy donor tissue.
However, in many countries donated corneas are in short supply. Professor Grover added: “We will be immensely proud if our work means that patients can take an eye drop instead of having to undergo an invasive operation. “To also be able to remove the need for donor tissue would be of enormous benefit, given the worldwide shortage.” The project has been funded by the MRC DPFS scheme and manufacture of the eye drop will begin in August. It is anticipated that Ms Saaeha Rauz, Clinical Senior Lecturer and Consultant Ophthalmologist, will lead the first patient trials that will take place in the New Year involving a unique collaboration with the Birmingham and Midland Eye Centre, Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust and the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham. For more information about the work of the NIHR SRMRC see page 11.
Why your feedback matters Patients and their friends and families who take the time to share their experiences have helped the Trust improve quality of care. The latest findings from the national in-patient survey have highlighted issues which matter to patients (a full report is on the centre pages) but there are other ways people can give feedback to keep us in touch. As well as paper surveys, online surveys, the Friends and Family Test, and feedback leaflets, the Trust organises regular Governor drop-in sessions and ‘Viewpoint’ days where patients can talk about their experiences. The Patient Experience team supports these opportunities and collates the responses generated. The ‘You Said, We Did’ column we run each month in
news@QEHB features examples of some of these. Mandy Green, Head of Patient Experience, said: “We don’t want to guess what patients think – we want to make sure we are really listening and focus our attention on things which patients are telling us matter to them. This is often the softer side of care, such as whether patients are able to get a good night’s sleep or whether they felt well looked after and could talk to someone about their worries.” To help focus attention, the Trust has a new tool to help staff gauge how close their ward or department is to achieving the Patient Experience Quality Priorities. The Patient Experience dashboard gives staff real-time
feedback at ward and department level and is accessed via the Clinical Dashboard. Mandy continued: “The dashboard will really help us to achieve our Quality Priorities. It shows staff exactly how patients feel about these key topics and where staff should focus their efforts so that we offer the best in care.” The Patient Experience team are delivering training on how to make the most of the Patient Experience dashboard. For more information, or to arrange a training session on your ward or in your department, please contact the Patient Experience team: PatientExperience@uhb. nhs.uk or telephone ext 14491/2
The Trust’s Dignity in Care team need your help. Every ward at the hospital has a ‘Make Specialling Special’ box. The boxes are designed for patients who are receiving enhanced care, the term used to describe patients who are receiving one-to-one care because they have some form of cognitive impairment or behaviour that is perceived as challenging. Alongside activity books, games and various other resources, the boxes contain photos which help patients to reminisce and provide a starting point for a conversation between the patient and those caring for them. The Dignity in Care team need photographs of famous landmarks across the globe (not the UK), specifically photos which will resonate with patients who have a non-UK heritage. Do you have a photo of the Taj Mahal? Great Wall of China? Photos of landmarks in Pakistan, the Philippines or the Caribbean? The team would be delighted to receive photos of any iconic landmarks which would be recognisable to patients with dementia or other mental health challenges. Please scan and email, or email your photos to Dignityincare@uhb.nhs.uk and let the team know what the photo shows. Thank you for the photos sent in so far – the team are always in need of more.
A record-breaking number of nominations have been made for the coveted 2016 Best in Care awards. Now judges have the difficult challenge of looking through all the nominations in the 14 categories to draw up a shortlist. The Trust’s annual Best in Care Awards are an opportunity to shine a light on those who do an incredible job in delivering the best in care and go above and beyond the call of duty. Thanks to the kind support of our charity, the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham Charity, the Awards allow us to express our gratitude and celebrate outstanding achievement. A full list of nominations will run in news@QEHB. The finalists and some of those who nominated them will be invited to a awards ceremony in November where the winners will be announced.
Puzzle page: Delivering theBrainteasers, best in care mind benders and more P15 Find your way around: Hospital maps P16