Plus

PULSESpring 2011 Issue 19

Find out more about your Trust

members’ newsletter

Seeing pink at Windsorpage 2

Trust wins patient safety awardPage 3

Bracknell takes shapePage 6

Nellie keeps her eye on history

Page 4

News and Events

Theatre staff at the Trust’s Prince Charles Eye Unit in Windsor are sporting a colourful new image after being given the medical world’s equivalent of a fashion makeover.

They found themselves well and truly in the pink when they decided to launch their new theatre outfits. In a twist on Henry Ford’s famous offer to motorists that they could have any colour as long as it was black, the eye clinic team opted for just one choice of colour for their uniforms and patient gowns.

But Mina Ward, the Clinical Lead Practitioner, explained that there’s more to it than meets the eye: “The manufacturers give part of their profits to Breast Cancer Research, the gowns are lint-free so there is much less chance of particles being in the air – and they are saving us hundreds of pounds every week. It really is a win, win situation.”

And the new look got off to a colourful start with a special day at the clinic when all staff were asked to wear something pink. From brightly coloured wigs to a surgeon in pink trousers, they certainly entered into the spirit of the event.

In the pink – that’s our Windsor staff

Windsor Surgeons Richard Packard, Andleed Zafar, Rafid Hameed and Irfan Thair get into the spirit of things.

Thinking pink - senior nurse Pat Money, consultant surgeon Richard Packard and out patients team leader Pat Heath.

In the pink – staff at the Prince Charles Eye Unit provided a real splash of colour to launch their new look.

P2 Members’ Newsletter

News and Events

The Trust has triumphed in an important national awards scheme for patient safety.

Trust scores a win in national patient safety awards

The prestigious Patient Safety accolade by the Health Service Journal was awarded to the Trust for our work with Neutropenic Sepsis care. Neutropenic Sepsis is a serious complication of chemotherapy.

For several months the staff in the Emergency Department, the Clinical Decision Unit, Oncology, Haematology and Microbiology have been working with local GPs and South Central Ambulance Service, and our Patient representative to ensure that patients who might possibly have Neutropenic Sepsis are given intravenous antibiotics within an hour of coming to hospital. We know that this saves lives.

The pioneering approach to dealing with the issue earned the Trust the top award for patient safety from the HSJ judges.

Nurse consultant Mark Foulkes said: “This actively saves patients lives. It’s about making sure we treat cancer patients, who come in with side effects, quickly but effectively.”

And on the same day there was a second boost for the project – thanks to the fundraising efforts of the League of Friends at the Royal Berkshire Hospital. After hearing details of the scheme, the League generously agreed to give £25,000 to the Emergency Department to buy a machine which will test a patient’s blood and give an immediate result. This will mean that staff can quickly confirm who has Neutropenic Sepsis and who hasn’t. The result will mean that the medical teams can give targeted antibiotics to the people who need them. It will mean they will be able to reduce the risk of people in this group developing secondary complications including Clostridium difficile, and antibiotic resistance.

No other hospital in England is doing this.

Assistant Chief Nurse, Anne McDonald, said: “At the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust, we want to give our patients the best possible experience and best patient outcome. Our approach to Neutropenic Sepsis means that we give the right patient, the right treatment at the right time”.

Staff celebrate their important success. (Photo courtesy of Reading Post)

Robbie wins a radio awardTV and radio star Anne Diamond has won a prestigious award for a programme at the Trust.

Anne, who presents the weekday mid-morning programme on BBC Radio Berkshire, is a familiar face at the Trust – for the past year she has “adopted” the renal unit, with the Royal Berkshire Hospital’s Huntley and Palmer and Benyon wards being turned into studios for outside broadcasts.

One of the programmes included a report on an operation using Robbie the Robot – our Da Vinci robotic surgery. Anne was able to be present when consultant urologist Adam Jones used the robot to carry out surgery on a patient suffering from prostate cancer.

It has earned Anne and the radio station a top national honour. The programme won a Silver in the annual Gillard awards which recognise the highest quality in local and regional radio.

Anne said: “It was fascinating to watch Robbie the Robot at work at the Royal Berkshire Hospital and thrilling to present an outside broadcast from the operating theatre itself! I was able to see inside

the patient’s abdomen in a remarkable 3D effect, and witness the successful removal of a cancerous prostate gland. Later, I met the patient who reported that all was well, and he was convinced his recovery was faster and easier because of Robbie’s intervention! It’s brilliant that the judges at the Gillard awards were impressed with the Anne Diamond Show entry and I’m sure the moving and exciting coverage from the Royal Berks helped convince them to award a Silver! So many thanks to everyone at the Royal Berks!”

Consultant Adam Jones, at the controls of Robbie, explains part of the procedure to Anne Diamond

P3 Members’ Newsletter

News and Events

Staff from the Respiratory Department were kept busy when they decided to organise a special event for World Spirometry Day.

Visitors over the age of 40 at the Royal Berkshire Hospital were offered the chance to find out more about the condition of their lungs by blowing air into a testing machine. Smokers were a particular target for the testing team as stubbing out the habit for good can stop the deterioration of the lungs.

When the team set up their testing equipment in the entrance foyer at the Royal Berkshire Hospital a queue quickly built up as more and more people arrived to take up the invitation. In just four hours the team carried out 57 tests.

Spirometry is a simple test which indicates any early damage to the lungs. It involves breathing air into a small hand-held machine to measure the amount and speed of air that can be inhaled and exhaled from the lungs.

Nellie was the first person in the world to have a revolutionary new lens inserted into her eyes - and two decades later she still has perfect vision.

Eye surgeons worldwide have gone on to treat more than 55 million people with the AcrySof lens, a unique foldable acrylic material. And to mark the anniversary, Nellie returned to the Trust’s Prince Charles Eye Clinic in Windsor for a reunion with senior consultant surgeon Richard Packard who carried out the historic operation.

Nellie, 93, from Bracknell, said: “I had gone into the King Edward VII hospital in Windsor and was waiting for an operation to my knee. They came and told me I could have my eye done as part of a lens trial while I was there and I jumped at the chance.

“I had a cataract in my eye and it was like looking at things through a fog. But straight after the operation I could see perfectly well and didn’t even need glasses to read. It was a miracle. I can still read the newspaper today without glasses. I had needed glasses from quite an early age but since the operation I have had brilliant sight.”

Nellie, said: “I wouldn’t have believed for one minute that I would be the person to have the first eye operation using that lens in the world. I just hope that all the millions of people who have had the operation using the lens since have had the same, wonderful result that I have.”

Richard Packard, who carried out the groundbreaking surgery as part of a worldwide clinical trial, admitted: “At the time I had no idea it was going to be momentous. The material was unlike anything I’d ever used before. We were more used to working with silicone rubber and rigid plastic implants in cataract surgery than this new material which felt sticky and was initially awkward to handle.”

He added: “The lens implanted in Mrs Diaper’s eye was monofocal and the surgery was routine. At the time none of us thought of it as being revolutionary, it was just the start of a clinical trial.”

Following the initial operation, Mr Packard later treated Nellie’s other eye. Today she has the same clarity of vision as she enjoyed

20 years ago when the lenses were first implanted.

An unexpected benefit of the use of the lens was due to its having a sharp edge to the optical part of the lens. Surgeons found that a common postoperative occurrence, the clouding of vision by cells growing behind the lens, became a much rarer event. This meant that the need to do a further operation using a special laser was dramatically diminished.

Mr Packard said: “The lens fulfils the demands of my patients whether they want spectacle independence or simply enhanced distance or near vision. It can be inserted through a tiny incision of about 2mm, is stable, reliable, and has very low level of secondary intervention.”

When Nellie Diaper had eye surgery to cure her cataracts 20 years ago she had no idea she was about to become a medical pioneer.

World Spirometry Day – success story

20 years on, Nellie’s operation is history

A volunteer takes part in the Spirometry testing.

Nellie Diaper and consultant Richard Packard – together they made medical history.

P4 Members’ Newsletter

News and Events

After being elected to the post late last year, Deborah wasted no time in getting down to work. She explains: “I can only hold the post for a year before my term of office on the Council of Governors expires – so there’s not a lot of time.”

But she is clear about her priorities: “There have been serious problems at some other Trusts, including one where death rates became very high. I believe that governors there were not doing their job properly.

“Here in Berkshire, the people of Reading and surrounding areas have the best possible hospital and the staff have the best place to work. We need to ensure that continues to be the case – no matter what happens.

“Patients must always be at the centre of all our plans and whatever we do.”

Deborah is a public governor for the Reading constituency and brings to the Council of

Governors wide experience in education – she has taught in both the UK and Africa. Deborah works as a psychologist with children in local schools. She also has a deep interest in politics, an active member of the Labour Party and stood as a Parliamentary candidate in 1983 and again in 1997.

She has a clear vision of how the role of governors at the Trust should develop: “Our first role is to represent the Trust to the organisations who sent us here – and then to represent those groups back to the Trust. The NHS now takes more of a back seat and the governors are expected to take on more of a role. We have taken quite a long time to get our heads around this but I believe we’ve been getting pretty good at representing the views of the community to the Trust.

“The Annual Member’s Meeting enables people to ask the questions and get answers to the health service issues they believe are important. This is something we are getting right for our community.”

Deborah cites huge improvements in the way the Royal Berkshire Hospital is signposted on major routes into Reading, helping visitors find their way easily to it, as just one of the many ways governors have helped make a real and important difference.

Another has been the introduction of assurance committees where the governors have access to important information about the performance of the Trust. Deborah

explains: “We need to be confident that the Board which runs the Trust has all the information it needs when making decisions and we need to feel confident about how the Board manages finances – one of the most important things has been the establishment of governors’ assurance committees.

“We also need to look at how we can work more closely with the governors elected by the staff. And during my term of office I want to ensure we set up really good dialogue with our partner organisations in the area.”

While she may have only recently been elected to the role of Vice Chair, Deborah Sander is no stranger to the work of the Council of Governors – she has been a Trust governor for several years.

Ambulance service says ‘Why not join us too!’

Profile: Deborah Sander, Vice Chair of the Council of Governors

South Central Ambulance Service NHS Trust (SCAS) is on a journey to becoming a foundation trust from October 2011. As a foundation trust we will remain an integral part of the NHS family, will still have to meet existing national targets and standards, and be accountable to our members.

In just four years we have become a more mobile and efficient health care provider and are now amongst the top performing ambulance trusts in England against national clinical performance indicators. What’s more, at 60%, we have one of the lowest

conveyance rates in the country, which means that we are treating more people at home or in the community and only taking patients to hospital who really need to go.

With foundation trust status now within our reach, there’s never been a better time to become a member of your local ambulance trust. And becoming a member for free couldn’t be more easy – simply telephone 01869 365000, email getinvolved@scas.nhs.uk or visit us on line at www.southcentralambulance.nhs.uk.

P5 Members’ Newsletter

News and Events

Our new facility in Bracknell is rapidly taking shape – when it opens later this spring, the Royal Berkshire Bracknell Clinic will bring vital cancer and renal services closer to home for people in the area.

The complex at Brant’s Bridge will provide the very latest facilities for treating cancer and also allow renal patients to receive their regular dialysis without having to travel far from their home or workplace.

And the project is already attracting important local support with the Bracknell News launching its ‘Kit for the Clinic’ campaign.

Readers and their families are being invited to help raise funds for some of the important little “extras” which will make all the difference for patients. The paper is asking readers to help fund the purchase of TVs for the dialysis centre and laptop computers for the cancer treatment area which can be used by patients.

Being able to watch a favourite film or read an email from a loved one are the extra comforts that can brighten the day of someone receiving chemotherapy, radiotherapy or dialysis.

Rebecca Johnson, editor of the Bracknell News, said: “It is fantastic news that soon patients will be able to have high-quality cancer and renal treatment in a modern facility here in Bracknell. Our ‘Kit for the Clinic’

campaign is about adding the extra facilities that will make patients’ visits to the clinic the most comfortable that they can be.

“Whether you are a Brownie pack, gardening club, individual, family or business, we can all do something to help.”

The NHS is providing funding for the clinic’s equipment but the Royal Berks Charity, the organisation that supports the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust which is building the Bracknell Clinic, is keen to raise further funds with the help of News readers to provide extras. Ian Thomson, fundraising development manager for the Royal Berks Charity, said:

“I think it is fair to say that this is all about Bracknell and the people of Bracknell and the surrounding area and this is why we are trying to raise money to buy the extras that will help make the patient experience here a little easier.”

The campaign aims to raise £15,000 for 30 TV/DVD players at £500 each with headphones and remote controls, to enable dialysis patients to watch TV or films to take their mind off treatment, which most receive in four-five hour sessions, three or four times every week.

‘Kit for the Clinic’ campaign

An artist’s impression of the atrium which will be at the centre of the Royal Berkshire Bracknell Clinic

Ray Wallace (left) and lodge almoner Alec Cottrell (right) present the cheque to Mark Goff, director of fundraising for the Royal Berks Charity.

Former patient Ray Wallace was determined to show his gratitude to the urology team at the Trust – and decided to recruit the support of his fellow Freemasons in the Sons of Kendrick Lodge.

The result was a cheque for £1,000 towards the Robbie the Robot Appeal. To mark the importance of the event, the presentation took place in the ornate surroundings of the temple in the Berkshire Masonic Centre at Sindlesham.

Ray – who serves as chaplain with the lodge – said: “I was just so grateful for the treatment I received that I knew we should say thanks in this way.”

Masonic thanks for Robbie

P6 Members’ Newsletter

News and Events

Picture perfect donation for Berkshire Cancer CentreRivermead Over 50’s Club has kindly donated £234 to the Berkshire Cancer Centre. The money was raised from the proceeds of the raffle at the club’s annual lunch. The donation will be used to buy several frames and pictures to decorate the unit’s CT room. The club had previously donated iPods and speakers for the sound system in the department.

Club member, Ian Forster, suggested that money raised by the club be donated to the cancer centre after his wife, Ruth, received treatment there. He along with fellow members Brian Wharton (Chairman), Maggie Shutt (Treasurer) and Bruce Brown visited the department to present the cheque to radiographers, Lisa Dobney and Emma Needham. Paula Horne, Radiotherapy Services Manager, thanked the club members for their valuable contribution which, she explained, will make a real difference to patients visiting the department. Brian Wharton (Chairman), Maggie Shutt (Treasurer), Lisa Dobney (L) and Emma Needham (R)

Exclusive offer for membersWe’ve a great exclusive offer for our members – the opportunity to join some really special days out. Throughout the spring and summer some of the region’s most attractive gardens will be opening up for visits by our members. Many of these gardens are normally closed to the public, so this really is a wonderful opportunity.

The admission ticket proceeds will be donated to the Royal Berks Charity to help with its valuable work throughout the Trust.

You will be able to visit some of the finest privately owned gardens around Berks, Oxon and Bucks from small family gardens to 10-acre woodlands, meet their owners and many of the garden creators.

Places will be strictly limited no more than 30 guests at each garden - so you need to register your interest straight away.

Some gardens have areas for picnics others offer tea and biscuits.

The first two garden visits will be on Wednesday 20 April 2011. Tickets are priced at £20 per person for each garden.

Rooksnest, two miles from Lambourn, is a 10-acre exceptionally fine traditional English garden with a rose and herbaceous garden, pond, herb garden, organic vegetables and glasshouses. There are many specimen trees and fine shrubs, orchard and terraces renovated and recently replanted. The garden has been mostly designed by Arabella Lennox-Boyd from 1980 to today. It will open from 9.30 to 12.30 for those who want to wander

around on their own. At 10.30 there will be a guided tour.

Inholmes, also just a couple of miles outside Lambourn, is newly re-established.

Set in 10 acres with views over parkland, there is much to enjoy with large walled garden, rose beds, cutting and sunken gardens. Individual touches include brightly painted gates and benches and a “spooky wood”. There are walks to the lake and meadow as well as a bluebell wood in spring.

It will open from 1.30pm for a guided tour (20 people). Admission will include refreshments at Rooksnest.

I would like to take part in the garden visits. Please complete the information below to enable us to keep you informed.

Title (please circle appropriate):

Mr / Mrs / Ms / Miss / Dr

Other:

First name:

Last name:

Address:

Town/City:

County:

Post code:

Email address:

Tel. number:

Please return the form to:

The Royal Berks Charity, Freepost RLRJ-XCXE-XCZH, London Road, Reading, RG1 5AN

Or you can email: charity@royalberkshire.nhs.uk

Over the coming months other gardens offering visits will include:

Berkshire Hazelby House, Newbury. Chieveley Manor, Newbury. Glenmere, Finchampstead.

Oxfordshire Church Farm Field, Epwell. Greenfield Farm, Watlington. Blewbury Manor. Ashbrook House, Blewbury. Radcot House, Radcot.

Buckinghamshire North Down, Chalfont St Giles. Whitewalls, Marlow.

P7 Members’ Newsletter

X ContentNoticeboard

P8

READING

Mr Andrew Maxted

Mr Carl Bruce

Mrs Margie Cutts

Ms Deborah Sander *

Mr Trevor Beaumont *

WOKINGHAM

Mr John McKenzie

Mrs Vera Doe *

Mr Tony Skuse

EAST BERKSHIRE & BORDERS

Mr David Mihell *

Mr Ross Carroll

Vacant

WEST BERKSHIRE & BORDERS

Mr Ian Clay

Mr Colin Lee

Mrs Aileen Blackley *

SOUTHERN OXFORDSHIRE

Mrs Caroline Bowder

STAFF

Mrs Sue Mears Administrative, clerical and management

Mr Warren Fisher * Medical and dental

Mrs Moyra Pugh * Allied health professionals and scientific and technical

Mrs Elizabeth Aylward * Nursing and midwifery

Mr Bob Edwards Healthcare assistant/ancillary

PARTNER

Professor Debby Reynolds Appointed by NHS Berkshire West

Professor Dianne Berry Appointed by the University of Reading

Mr Sanusi Koroma Appointed by Reading Council for Racial Equality

Mr John Shaw Appointed by The Princess Royal Trust for Carers

Councillor Daisy Benson Appointed by Reading Borough Council

Councillor Bob Pitts Appointed by Wokingham Borough Council

Councillor Geoff Findlay Appointed by West Berkshire Council

Ms Sally Kemp Appointed by South Central SHA

Vacant* Youth MP

* Governor constituencies which are due for elections in 2011

For further information, please use the following contact details:

The Council of Governors

Website: www.royalberkshire.nhs.ukEmail: foundation.trust@royalberkshire.nhs.ukTel: 0118 322 8600 Fax: 0118 322 6630

Post: Foundation Trust Membership Office,Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust, London Road, Reading RG1 5AN

Diary Dates

Council of Governors meetings

Thursday 31 March 2011 Trust Education Centre, Craven Road, Reading, 6pm

Thursday 26 May 2011 Trust Education Centre, Craven Road, Reading, 6pm

Thursday 28 July 2011 Trust Education Centre, Craven Road, Reading, 6pm

Thursday 29 September 2011 Trust Education Centre, Craven Road, Reading, 6pm

Thursday 24 November 2011 Council of Governors 4pm

Annual Member’s Meeting 6pm Venue to be announced

To apply for a place on any of the above events please email foundation.trust@royalberkshire.nhs.uk or call the Membership Office on 0118 322 8600. Rather than allocating places on a first come, first served basis names will be selected at random for those events that are oversubscribed. This is to allow more members the chance to attend events. Please visit www.royalberkshire.nhs.uk/members/events.aspx for further information.

Catering Department tour Saturday 19 March

Patient Safety Seminar (postponed from December 2010 – revised details to be confirmed)

Theatres tour April 2011 – details to be confirmed

On March 20 no fewer that 126 people, including Trust chief executive, Ed Donald, along with around 30 members of staff, will be running the Reading Half Marathon to raise up to £50,000 for the Royal Berks Charity. These brave souls are running to raise funds for Robbie the Robot, Rheumatology, Audiology, the Fertility Clinic and too many other departments to list. If you would like to sponsor their endeavours please send your donation payable to the “Royal Berks Charity” to The Charity Office (Marathon), West Drive, London Road, Reading, RG1 5QT, if you would like your donation to be credited to a specific department please mention this in your covering letter. Alternatively if you would like to make a donation on line then please visit http://www.justgiving.com/royalberkscharity/Donate

Running for the Trust

P8 Members’ Newsletter