Issue 1: April 2013
Your
Healthcare Keeping you up to date with what’s happening across Merthyr Tydfil and Rhondda Cynon Taf
Chief Executive’s note Welcome to the very first edition of Your Healthcare - our e-newsletter which will help you stay in touch with all the changes and developments to healthcare services across Merthyr Tydfil and Rhondda Cynon Taf. To be sure you don’t miss out on future editions please register your details here to get your very own copy direct to your inbox. I hope that you find our e-newsletter useful and interesting and if you have any ideas for future editions please email our communications team. Thanks Allison Chief Executive Cwm Taf Health Board
Useful contacts Royal Glamorgan Hospital: 01443 443 443 Prince Charles Hospital: 01685 721 721 Ysbyty Cwm Cynon: 01443 715 211 Ysbyty Cwm Rhondda: 01443 430 022 Ysbyty Cwm Rhondda Minor Injuries - Phone First: 01443 444 075 Dewi Sant Hospital: 01443 486 222 Ysbyty George Thomas: 01443 430 022 Y Bwthyn: 01443 443 758 Keir Hardie Health Park: 01685 351 021 www.cwmtafhb.wales.nhs.uk Follow us on twitter @cwmtaf
CONTENTS Cwm Taf measles vaccination programme targets schools
4
Measles – what you need to know
5
Deputy medical director appeals for more blood donors
6
£1m state-of-the-art radiology “theatre” opens at Royal Glamorgan Hospital
7
Pharmacists to visit patients at home to help them use medicines properly and prevent medicines waste
8
Innovative steps to improve patient care taken at Cwm Taf
9
Premiere for interactive film to guide cancer patients through hospital treatment
10
Crystal Trophy for outstanding community projects
12
Merthyr Tydfil to get re-vamped dialysis unit
13
MAP Find our healthcare sites
Cwm Taf measles vaccination programme targets schools A measles vaccination catch up programme across Merthyr Tydfil and Rhondda Cynon Taf will focus on the need for older, secondary school age children who have missed one or both doses of MMR to come forward. Data has been produced from the Child Health Surveillance records for each health board area detailing MMR take up allowing health boards to identify which schools to target. The programme across Cwm Taf will initially target schools with children of 11 years of age or older where the level of vaccine protection is at its lowest. Those schools have been identified as: Cyfarthfa High School Bishop Hedley High School Porth County Comprehensive Mountain Ash Comprehensive School School based clinics have been set up to encourage maximum uptake and reduce inconven-
4
ience to parents or carers who would otherwise have to make appointments at GP surgeries and take time off work. There is also the additional peace of mind for many parents who have children with important examinations coming up that their child is fully protected. Consent forms will be sent to parents and carers of those pupils who are not fully protected. Parents and carers are being strongly urged to sign and return the forms as soon as possible. Nicola John, Cwm Taf Health Board’s director of Public Health, said: “Although the measles outbreak is centred on Swansea it does continue to grow. We have confirmed two cases in the Merthyr Tydfil area - we don’t want to see measles spreading any further. “In the first instance it’s important that we focus on those schools were immunisation levels are lowest. These are Cyfarthfa High School, Bishop Hedley High School, Porth County Comprehensive and
Mountain Ash Comprehensive. “A consent form to receive the MMR vaccine will be sent out to all parents and carers with children who are not fully immunised, attending these schools over the next few days. We would urge those parents to sign and return their consent form to their school to ensure their child can receive the MMR vaccine. “It is imperative that children are protected against measles if we are to stop this outbreak spreading further.” Public Health Wales is urging parents to work with health professionals and schools to ensure their children are vaccinated against measles, mumps and rubella. The measles virus has continued to circulate and spread amongst school children throughout the holiday period and now that they are returning to school, measles is expected to spread further amongst those susceptible. All health boards across Wales are developing plans actively to
vaccinate unprotected children and young people and to provide rapid implementation of school based immunisation in response to cases and outbreaks.
Measles – what you need to know What is measles? Measles is a highly-infectious illness, which is caught through direct contact with an infected person or through the air via coughs or sneezes. Measles mainly affects young children, but can be caught at any age. Having measles once usually confers lifelong immunity to catching it again. Measles can be a very serious disease and cause severe, even life-threatening, complications. In the UK, complications are quite common even in healthy people and approximately 20% of reported measles cases experience one or more complication. Complications are more common among children under five, those with weakened immune systems, children with a poor diet and adults. Catching measles in pregnancy can cause miscarriage, premature labour or a baby with a low birth weight. Before the introduction of measles vaccination in 1968, around 100 children a year in England and Wales died from the disease. What are the symptoms of measles? Measles starts with a fever, which can get very high. Soon after, it causes a cough, runny nose, and red eyes. About four days after infection a
rash of tiny, red or brown spots breaks out. This rash starts at the head and spreads to the rest of the body. It can last for a week and coughing can last for 10 days. Some children who get measles also get diarrhoea or ear infections. Children who get measles can be off school for 10 days or more and, in some cases, they may need to be admitted to hospital. What do I do if I think my child has measles? If you suspect measles (you or your child has the symptoms described above) contact your GP surgery and tell them you or your child has a rash illness before attending so arrangements can be made to minimise contact with other vulnerable patients. Please remember the GP out of hours service, which operates on weekday evenings and at weekends, is for urgent health problems only; information and advice about measles and its symptoms is available from NHS Direct Wales by calling 0845 46 47. Anyone with measles should be closely monitored for complications. Hospital treatment may be required if serious complications develop.
prevented by a highly effective and safe vaccine. This is part of the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) immunisation. A complete course of the two doses will protect more than 95% of children against measles, mumps and rubella. The current immunisation schedule recommends one dose to be given at around 13 months and a second dose given at between three and five years of age. The MMR vaccine has been used for nearly 30 years (it was introduced in the US in the 1970s), is currently used in more than 100 countries, and more than 500 million doses have been given. Studies from around the world have shown MMR to be a highly effective vaccine, with an excellent safety record. Uptake of MMR in both Merthyr Tydfil and Rhondda Cynon Taf is relatively high but there are many children who have either not had the jab or have had only one dose. Where can I get vaccinated in Cwm Taf Health Board? Vaccination is available via your normal GP surgery. Frontline NHS staff in Cwm Taf Health Board area can contact occupational health for vaccination.
One to three out of every 5,000 children in the UK who get measles will die from the disease, even with the best care. The MMR jab is the most effective and safest way to protect children against measles. How do I protect myself and my children against measles? Measles can be
5
Deputy medical director appeals for more blood donors CWM TAF Health Board’s deputy medical director has made an emotional plea for more people to donate blood. In a video message, Dr Richard Quirke explained how a member of his family has had regular blood transfusions as part of his ongoing cancer treatment. The short film, which is broadcast on Cwm Taf Health Board’s YouTube channel, will also be used to promote blood donation among students attending Scottish universities – a recruitment drive masterminded by Dr Quirke’s nephew Eoin Greensmyth. Dr Quirke, a GP, said: “A close member of my family has required regular, sometimes weekly, blood transfusions, particularly over the last 12 months because he is suffering from a blood cancer. “This has made me even more
6
aware of the importance of the blood transfusion services throughout the UK because there’s no doubt that without their services he would not be with us today.” He also appeals for more people to sign up as potential bone marrow donors, explaining just 30% of stem cell transplants – a form of therapy for some blood cancers, such as leukaemia – come from a patient’s close family. “Thank you for giving blood,” Dr Quirke added. “You never know when you, a close friend or member of your family will require blood.” Dr Geoff Poole, director of the Welsh Blood Service said: “We’d like to thank Dr Quirke for his message of support to encourage more blood donors to come forward and donate. We are 100% reliant on the generosity of volunteers to ena-
ble us to supply our Welsh hospitals with whatever blood products they require.” For more information about donating blood contact the Welsh Blood Service on 0800 25 22 66 or visit www.welsh-blood.org.uk The video can be viewed at http://youtu.be/L64UuCx03CY
£1m state-of-the-art radiology “theatre” opens at Royal Glamorgan Hospital A £1m state-of-the-art theatre at the Royal Glamorgan Hospital opened today (April 9) for patients who need diagnostic and interventional radiology. The new theatre will allow highly-skilled radiologists to carry out cutting-edge procedures on patients using sophisticated imaging techniques, with realtime x-ray and focused CT scanning. The investment by Cwm Taf Health Board in the intervention room follows the completion of the new £2m MRI suite at the Royal Glamorgan Hospital. The new facility will significantly improve the quality of imaging and therefore the treatment of patients. Dr Phillip Wardle, clinical director of radiology at Cwm Taf
Health Board, said: “The new theatre will provide us with much better image quality than was previously possible allowing us to see smaller things inside the body, which will enable us to do more and increase diagnostic and therapeutic confidence. “Better imaging quality will enable us to push the boundaries a bit more and hopefully provide faster treatment for patients.” Radiology, which includes MRI, CT, ultrasound scanning and xray, is used to help diagnose and treat conditions. Interventional radiology is the use of imaging techniques to, among other procedures, insert such devices as balloons and stents to open blockages in blood vessels and administer pain relief injections. The new intervention room will
ensure procedures such as EVAR – endovascular aortic repair – for patients who have an abdominal aortic aneurism and ERCP – endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography – to look at the pancreas and bile duct and remove gallstones, can be carried out using state-of-the-art equipment. It will also be used for all musculoskeletal interventions, including pain relief injections. Dr Wardle added: “We have been carrying out interventional radiology procedures for many years at the Royal Glamorgan Hospital but the refurbishment of this room and the investment in the new equipment will mean it is now fit for purpose.”
7
Pharmacists to visit patients at home to help them use medicines properly and prevent medicines waste PHARMACISTS will be able to visit patients at home to help ensure people are taking the right prescription medicines. The new service, which is available to people who are housebound and live in parts of Rhondda Cynon Taf and Merthyr Tydfil, is an extension of the regular medicines use review service. Pharmacists across Cwm Taf Health Board have been providing a medicines use review service from community pharmacies since 2005. But they are now able to offer a home visit to people who can’t get to their local pharmacy. Medicines use reviews are available to people who regularly take more than two prescription medicines or to people who are taking medicines for a long-term illness, such as asthma, arthritis or diabetes. Emma Hinks, Cwm Taf Health 8
Board’s community pharmacy facilitator, said: “The review involves an appointment with a pharmacist at your local pharmacy to focus on how you are getting on with your medicines. “It is designed to help you to find out more about the medicines you’re taking and to pick up any problems you may be having with your medicines. “They can also help improve the effectiveness of your medicines because there may be easier ways to take them or you may find you need fewer medicines than before.” Medicines use reviews also help the NHS as they help prevent prescription waste by ensuring the right medicines are being prescribed and they are being taken properly. Emma added: “If you are unable to attend the pharmacy for a medicines use review appointment because you are house-
bound, your pharmacist may be able to visit you at home. “If you feel that a review would help you understand more about your medicines, then please contact your community pharmacist for more information. “Remember you can ask your pharmacist questions at any time, but a review will give you both more time to concentrate on you and your medicines.”
Innovative steps to improve patient care taken at Cwm Taf The care of patients with dementia has taken a significant step forward with the roll out of an innovative new scheme across Cwm Taf Health Board. All adult wards at Prince Charles Hospital, in Merthyr Tydfil and Royal Glamorgan Hospital, in Llantrisant are now using the This is Me leaflet for patients with dementia, confusion or memory loss. The ‘This is Me’ leaflet provides a ‘snapshot’ of the person, giving information about them as an individual, including their needs, preferences, likes, dislikes and interests. A DVD has also been produced and is used during staff training sessions to illustrate the power of using ‘This is Me’. The leaflet is also available in Welsh ‘Dyma Pwy Ydw’ - to ensure the linguistic needs of our Welsh speaking patients are met.
designed by the Alzheimer’s Society, has been adapted and further developed by Cwm Taf Health Board. Angela Hopkins, director of nursing at Cwm Taf Health Board, said: “A person’s dignity contributes to their sense of good health, well being and independence. This leaflet takes a significant step towards ensuring patients’ needs are being recognised.” This is Me was a winner at the Welsh Language in Healthcare Awards last year. Rebecca Thomas, the transforming care facilitator at Cwm Taf Health Board, said: “It is great to have this work recognised at a national level as it is so important to patients experience and ensure the highest standards of care are maintained. “It also ensures that carers and relatives are involved in the care planning of their loved ones.”
As well as the ‘This is Me’ leaflet, all wards in Cwm Taf Health Board use a picture of a forgetme-not as a visual cue to identify patients who have the leaflet. Bilingual patients will have two magnets against their name the Iaith Gwaith logo and the forget-me-not. Posters have been developed to inform the public and to raise awareness that the wards are using the leaflet. Relatives and carers have reported that they feel included in their loved ones’ treatment and feel reassured nurses care about the patient and their family. The health board now plans to further adapt the leaflet prior to its introduction into paediatric care. As children are another vulnerable patient group, This is Me will enhance their nursing care by ensuring their individual needs are also met.
The leaflet, which was initially
9
Premiere for interactive film to guide cancer patients through hospital treatment FIRST Minister Carwyn Jones recalled the death of his greatgrandfather in 1936 as he launched a ground-breaking interactive patient DVD about bowel cancer. Speaking on his first visit to Prince Charles Hospital, in Mer-
he died of. When I said why didn’t she ask, she said it wasn’t her place to. “We now know that the more information people have, the less frightened they are. It gives me great pleasure to be at Prince Charles Hospital to
“We now know that the more information people have, the less frightened they are.” Carwyn Jones, First Minister thyr Tydfil, he contrasted the new film, which was shot in the hospital, to the paucity of information available when his ancestor was diagnosed with cancer. “It wasn’t that long ago that patients didn’t get much information about their conditions and they didn’t ask,” he said. “My great-grandfather went into hospital for an operation on some kind of cancer in 1936 and six weeks later he died. “My grandmother died two months ago – between then and 1936 she had no idea what
10
DigiMed, the DVD follows patients on their journey through their hospital stay and their recovery from surgery, providing a step-by-step visual guide through diagnosis and treatment. A second, shorter film explains the early or enhanced recovery after surgery programme (ERAS), a programme of innovations and development in pre and post-operative care, which allow patients to safely go home within 48 to 72 hours after undergoing bowel surgery.
The first DVD guides patients through their cancer treatment before they are admitted to hospital, introducing patients with suspected colorectal cancer to the clinicians who will care for them in hospital and to the treatment they will undergo.
Leading laparoscopic colorectal surgeon Professor PN Haray, who devised the films, said: “The colorectal cancer patient DVD will be given to people who have been diagnosed with bowel cancer or are strongly suspected to have it, before they come to hospital. “This can be a very difficult time, not just for the patient themselves, but also for their family. We created this film, which takes them through the process of investigations, tests and treatment, to support them.
It also includes a range of interactive features to help patients fully understand what will happen and their treatment. It is hoped the film will help alleviate some of their anxiety about being diagnosed and treated for bowel cancer.
“This film has been made possible by the help of many staff and patients at Prince Charles Hospital and I hope it gives people an insight into what to expect when they are being diagnosed and treated for bowel cancer.”
Filmed at Prince Charles Hospital, in Merthyr Tydfil, by
Graham Clarke, a patient who has been treated by the team at
launch these DVDs – they are the culmination of the process of change from 1936 to 2013.”
Prince Charles Hospital, said: “They gave me a DVD to look at. There is lots of information, which is really good from my perspective, as I felt the more I have on this matter, the clearer picture I have of it and that will hopefully give me much more confidence.” And Kay Rees, a patient who is featured in the film, said: “I’m looking forward to being fit and healthy, that's my main thing eat well, sleep well and enjoy my life because I’ve been given it back.” This is the second version of the colorectal cancer DVD to be made and covers updates in treatment and techniques, as well as introducing patients to new members of staff at Prince Charles Hospital who will be involved in their treatment. The original film, which was also made by DigiMed, was launched five years ago and won an NHS Wales Award and a UK-wide Patient Experience award. David Brown, from DigiMed, said: “Working on the production of the second version of the patient information DVD has once again been a privilege
“We created this film, which takes them through the process of investigations, tests and treatment, to support them.” Professor Haray, Surgeon and a humbling experience. “This time we’ve been able to hear directly from patients who watched the first DVD and knowing how much it helped them through their own journey has spurred us on to make this version even more informative and interactive.” The second film, which is also fully interactive, covers the early (or enhanced) recovery after surgery (ERAS) programme – a collection of procedures, improvements in care and measures, which allows patients, who have major colorectal surgery, to be operated on and discharged within 48 to 72 hours. As well as allowing patients to
return home sooner, ERAS helps to reduce the risk of people developing post-operative complications associated with prolonged immobilisation, which can result in thromboembolic problems as well as chest infections. Mel Jehu, chairman of Cwm Taf Community Health Council, who helped to develop the colorectal cancer DVD, said: “I’m delighted the CHC has been involved in this exciting project, which is an excellent initiative and will help to enhance the patient experience.” A trailer of the patient bowel cancer DVD can be viewed on Cwm Taf Health Board’s You Tube channel www.youtube.com/cwmtafhb
11
Nicola John, Director of Public Health presenting the Crystal Trophy Award to the Forsythia Youth Project/3G’s Development Trust
Crystal Trophy for outstanding community projects COMMUNITY projects promoting healthy living in Merthyr Tydfil and Rhondda Cynon Taf today celebrated the annual Crystal Trophy Award ceremony. The Crystal Trophy Awards recognise the achievements of local groups and organisations who are working to improve health and wellbeing in the Cwm Taf Health Board area. Ian Davy, chief officer at Voluntary Action Merthyr Tydfil said: “The Crystal Trophy Awards are about grassroots projects that make a real contribution to our communities’ health and wellbeing.” Scooping first prize was The Stories from the 3G’s Media Project which picked up the coveted Crystal Trophy and a prize fund of £1,500. Stories from the 3G’s - a trilogy of films, Sun beds and Steroids, The Hut and The Boxer - address issues such as body image, substance misuse, healthy lifestyles, discipline and territorialism. The films were produced by young people from the Gurnos, GalonUchaf and 12
Penydarren concerned about the issues within their community. Daniel Walsh, one of the young people involved in producing the films, said: “We didn’t mind if we came first, fourth or no place at all. The important thing for us was that these films helped us to improve as people and that was big enough reward for us.” Other awards also presented: Seventy-two-year-old Horace Rogers won second prize of £1,000 for Heol Kier Hardie Allotment Society. Based on Penywaun Estate in Penywaun, Aberdare, the allotment association grows vegetables for the local community, aiming to encourage local residents to eat five-a-day. The group also encourages young people in the area to take an interest in gardening and healthy eating. The association has close links with local schools and pupils visit the allotments as part of their lessons where they are given practical advice on planting and growing their own vegetables. Third prize of £750 went to Merthyr Aloud, which is a com-
munity singing group. The weekly meetings on Friday morning begin with a gentle physical warm-up and breathing exercises to help reduce stress and promote wellbeing. Heather Murray, Merthyr Aloud’s musical director, said: “I feel really passionate about what signing can do for people’s health and wellbeing. Even if you think you can’t sing, it lifts your spirits and makes you feel better. Everybody is welcome, you don’t need to be able to read music or even sing.” Made a Difference, which runs weekly drop-in sessions to support people with substance misuse or alcohol dependency issues, collected the fourth prize and £500. Nicola John, director of public health at Cwm Taf Health Board, who presented the awards, said: “We learn such a lot from awards such as these when we hear of all the things that are going on in our community – it’s really humbling. It demonstrates that communities can really work together to make a difference.”
Merthyr Tydfil to get re-vamped dialysis unit Renal patients in Merthyr Tydfil will soon be cared for in a new state-of-the-art dialysis unit. In December 2012 the former Minister for Health and Social Services, Lesley Griffiths, announced funding to build a centre replacing the current unit in Prince Charles Hospital. The cost will be determined after the contract has been awarded, with a projected investment worth approximately £3m. There are around 10,000 people with renal disease in Wales and many more at risk. It affects the daily lives of the patients, their family and friends. The proposed new development will provide the opportunity to increase dialysis capacity in Merthyr Tydfil by an additional 17 stations, giving a total of 30. These will be commissioned in stages as clinical demand dictates. The new unit is expected to be completed in the summer of 2013, and will offer welcome
relief to patients using the unit at Prince Charles Hospital, which has been experiencing maintenance problems with the fabric of the current building, air conditioning and water supply. The former Minister for Health and Social Services, Lesley Griffiths said: “Ensuring people have access to renal dialysis is why we have invested in the service in Wales." “Together for Health, our five-year plan for the NHS in Wales, emphasises our key policy of delivering safe, high-quality services as locally as possible close to people’s homes to reduce the burden of travel". “This centre will be a great example of the Welsh Government’s commitment to improving services in Wales to make them safe and sustainable for now and into the future, even at a time of such perceived uncertainty". “We will continue to modernise facilities and increase capacity
for dialysis in a number of suitable sites across Wales as part of a programme of development in renal dialysis care.” Allison Williams, chief executive of Cwm Taf Health Board, said: “This new dialysis unit will make a real difference to the care we are able to offer patients while they are undergoing dialysis. When the new unit is opened, patients will undergo dialysis in a state-ofthe-art centre and in a much-improve environment." “It will also give us room to expand the service and meet the needs of patients suffering kidney failure." The Welsh Government is urging the people of Wales to share their wishes about organ donation with their families, as part of the ‘heart to heart’ campaign. On average, one person a week from Wales dies while on the organ donation waiting list. The current shortage of donors continues to cause otherwise preventable death and suffering. 13
To be sure you don’t miss out on future editions of our e-newsletter - Your Healthcare register your details here to get your very own copy direct to your inbox.