Nursing & Midwifery News – June 2023

From Shane

It is hard to believe that we are nearly half-way through 2023!

Thank you to our nurses and midwives who completed the rostering survey which recently closed. The survey has given us some great insights into what our nurses and midwives think works well, and where there are opportunities to improve our rostering and work arrangements. We have also undertaken focus groups to further understand this, and my thanks to those that participated in these sessions. Over the coming weeks and months we will be working with our pilot wards to co-design, develop and test initiatives to be able to achieve enhanced employee-centered rostering. The aim is that any successful initiatives will then go on to inform what we can then roll out organisationally so that all of our nurses and midwives benefit. I am committed to enhancing flexibility for our nurses and midwives, enhancing employee-centered rostering and engagement and ultimately decreasing fatigue – and this project is an important enabling step in achieving this goal.

Unfortunately COVID is impacting us all again. The month of May has seen the largest numbers of positive patients since November/December 2022, with a 32% increase in presentations from April, with a corresponding 27% increase in admissions. Today, Western Health has 43 COVID positive admitted inpatients spread across 16 different wards and 1 active case in ICU, and we continue to see small cluster patient outbreaks in several areas across our sites. Please be vigilant with wearing your mask, and if you have yet to receive your COVID booster and mandatory Flu vaccination (for Category A & B workers) you will have waning immunity and you only have a few more weeks to do this. I urge you to protect yourself, your loved ones and your colleagues and patients.

Over the next month we will be putting the finishing touches in place on 3 major initiatives that will go-live at Western Health in July – Phase 2.1 EMR implementation, mental health transition and Dame Phyllis Frost Centre transition.

After a number of years of preparation, Phase 2.1 of the EMR implementation will go-live throughout July. Training is being undertaken for all staff who work in the EMR Phase 2.1 key clinical areas, including Cancer Services​, Emergency Department and Access​, ICU, Perioperative, Theatre and Anaesthesia​, Specialist Clinics, Community and Women’s and Children’s. Staff who currently use the EMR outside the EMR Phase 2.1 key clinical areas will have access to new functionality with the Go-Live and will need to complete WeLearn lessons if they review patient information in ED, complete passports to surgery or manage enteral feeds. The WeLearn package does not need to be completed in the one session, it will be saved as you progress through it and can be returned to at a later time. After you have completed your training practicing what has been learnt is immensely important to help further increase understanding. You have access to the EMR practice environment via the EMR Super Users for your area.

The EMR Phase 2.1 Nursing & Midwifery Top 10 is counting down to help our nurses and midwives learn more about EMR Phase 2.1 and become familiar with some of the key changes prior to the July 2023 Go-Live.

On 1 July 2023 Western Health will become one of Victoria’s largest mental health services, with the transition of Mid-West Mental Health Services across to Western Health. ​This will include the multiple inpatient units at both Sunshine and Footscray Hospitals, the Prevention and Recovery Centres at Deer Park and Sunshine, the Community Care Unit at Albanvale, Older Adult Mental Health, Emergency Mental Health and numerous community-based services. Significant work has progressed to ensure that systems, processes and governance are in place, which will continue over June. As part of this significant change, the current Mid-West Mental Health staff will transition to become part of Western Health and I am sure that you will join me in making them feel very welcome.

Western Health also takes over the provision of primary care within the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre, a maximum security correctional facility for women on 1 July 2023. Recruitment has been extremely successful with lots of nurses recruited to join this new Western Health team. A very busy transition team has undertaken substantial work to ensure that systems, processes and governance is in place to allow us to provide safe, effective and culturally sensitive care to these consumers. I look forward to welcoming our new colleagues who will join us over June to deliver this highly specialised service.

Finally, as a nurse and/or midwife, you are due to renew your registration annually by 31 May under the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme. If you do have not yet renewed your registration, you have the designated ‘late period’ until 30 June to be able to renew where you also need to pay a late payment fee. If your application for renewal has not been received and processed by 1 July then your name will be removed from the national register and your registration will lapse in accordance with the National Law. This is always a busy time for Ahpra, so I encourage you to renew your registration on-line as quickly as possible to avoid any issues.

Shane Crowe
Executive Director, Nursing & Midwifery

Our new Professional Practice Framework

On 12 May 2022 at our celebration for International Nurses and Midwives Week we launched our new Nursing & Midwifery Professional Practice Framework for Western Health.

This Framework (which is graphically represented right) has been developed after extensive consultation with our nurses and midwives, and is structured around five domains of nursing and midwifery professional practice that resonated with our people:

1. Leadership
2. Research
3. Evidence Based Practice
4. Education
5. Clinical Expertise

This is then surrounded by the Best Care domains and informed by Western Health’s Values. Collectively, this enables all nurses and midwives to deliver Best Care to our community.

To support our nurses and midwives throughout their career progression, the Framework also includes an achievement model of skill acquisition from novice through to expert. This is designed to support nurses and midwives to plan their careers and outlines the support and opportunities available.

The five domains of professional practice are relevant to every nursing and midwifery position at Western Health, and inform every nursing and midwifery position description and our Performance & Development Plans. To support the implementation of the Framework:

• Position Descriptions: All nursing and midwifery generic position descriptions have been updated and are available on the People & Culture site
• Performance & Development Plans (PDP): Updated and simplified Performance & Development Plan templates have been developed for nurses and midwives in clinical, management and senior leadership roles. These templates are available on the Nursing & Midwifery microsite.

This Framework is for our nurses and midwives, and all about nurses and midwives and your successful and enriching career at Western Health. It provides a structure to support your professional development and clarity for your career now and into the future.

If you have any queries please don’t hesitate to contact your Director of Nursing & Midwifery or your Educator.

Celebrating our nurses and midwives

On Friday 12 May 2023 our nurses and midwives were joined by our Chief Executive, members of our Executive and Senior Leadership Group to honour and celebrate both professions. To view the event virtually please click here (please be advised that the section with nurse-comedian Gorgie Carroll has been removed due to copywrite reasons). During the event we:

• Heard from our Executive Director of Nursing & Midwifery Adjunct Professor Shane Crowe, who launched Western Health’s new Nursing & Midwifery Professional Practice Framework.
• Were inspired by the keynote address from Adjunct Professor Tanya Farrell, our new Director of Maternity Services, who spoke about nursing and midwifery being a career for life.

• Were entertained by award-winning nurse-comedian Georgie Carroll. Georgie had everyone in stitches as she shared some of her observations of nursing and midwifery, healthcare and members of the multidisciplinary team. She made us all think about the 3 stages of nursing – where we are either dolphins, penguins or orcas!

• Saw some nursing and midwifery faces from Western Health in a video.
• There was some great team photos from the photo booth in the Atrium.

Our nurses and midwives also received gifts of a branded insulated lunch bag and a branded pen as a token of our appreciation (ICU Footscray team modeling them – pictured right).

A huge thank you to all of our nurses and midwives for everything that you do each and every day.

ABC Day

To support Western Health’s vision of best care, the Auditing Best Care (ABC) audit is a tool used to monitor our delivery of Best Care and provides us with an opportunity to identify areas for improvement on how we deliver that care.

ABC Audit day will be held across most inpatient areas across Western Health on Wednesday 21st June 2023.

The audit is to be completed at the following locations:

• All inpatient areas at Footscray, Sunshine, Williamstown and Bacchus Marsh Hospitals
• Emergency Observation Units (EOUs) at Footscray and Sunshine Hospitals

The following areas do not need to complete the audit on the day:

• Sunbury Day Hospital
• Day Procedure Units/Treatments/Surgery departments
• Outpatient Clinics
• Emergency Departments

The NUM/MUM for each ward is responsible for completing the ABC audit. NUM/MUM’s can use their discretion to delegate the audit to other staff to assist on the day. There will be staff members from the Best Care Governance and Support (BCGS) roaming to troubleshoot with staff.

Getting ready for Accreditation

This month we will finalise the Standards of the Fortnight campaign, with Blood Management, Prevention Acute Deterioration and Partnering with Consumers.

Then any time between 1 July 2023 and 31 December 2023, a short-notice assessments will be undertaken for all of Western Health with 24 hours notice. We will be notified on a Thursday that a week long survey will commence on the next Monday.

We will have a team of approximately 13 accreditation surveyors visiting all of our campuses and over a week. The surveyors will spend up to 75% of survey time in clinical wards and departments.

Transitioned mental health services will be included in our survey. We have worked with Justice Health and the Department of Health and our new service at Dame Phyllis Frost Centre will align with the new Primary & Community Health Accreditation Scheme that has a scheduled, separate accreditation survey.

What can I do to be ready?

• Participate in the Standard of the Fortnight events – read the bulletins, undertake the quizzes, participate in walkarounds and educational sessions.
• Ensure your area and department is clean, safe and organised.
• Dispose of old and broken pieces of equipment and get them taken off the asset register if they are of that value.
• Think about things we give our consumers – information leaflets, education materials and ensure they are updated and reflect best practice.
• Make sure that any local procedures or guidelines are up to date.
• Make sure you have all undertaken your mandatory education and training.
• Make sure you are working with your manager to ensure you’ve had an annual performance and development review.

The Live Best Care site is a great resource for all of our staff. There are new resources going on that almost daily. There are checklists, Q&As, and information on all of the standards and requirements, aimed at different roles. You are encouraged to check the site regularly and just make sure you’ve done everything to feel informed.

Mock accreditation:

Sometime during June we will be having a short notice mock accreditation. We have a very experienced surveyor coming in who is really friendly but thorough.

This will be a pared back survey, with one external Surveyor on site for 4 days and a test of elements of our accreditation survey short-notice response plan. They will come in and go around and undertake a mock accreditation with our staff on many of our wards/departments. As we only have 1 mock-surveyor unfortunately not all departments will be visited.

The Surveyor will also hold some meetings with key staff to discuss NSQHS Standard focus areas where other health services have been tripping up or finding challenging. That will allow us to identify anything we might need to spend time and effort on in the last couple of weeks and months ahead of whenever our real short-notice assessment is undertaken to make sure we are absolutely ready.

A sincere thank you to all of our nurses and midwives for the amazing work that you have all been doing to ensure we are ready.

Registration Renewal time

The annual renewal of nurses and midwives registration lets the public and your colleagues know that you’re still safe to practise.

All nurses and midwives needing to have renewed their registration prior to 30 June 2023 to allow them to continue to practise. Any application for renewal after 31 May incurs a late fee.

Western Health does not employ anyone into any nursing or midwifery position without an active registration for any period.

Payment:

To ensure quick and effective renewal, nurses and midwives and encouraged to renew online.

Renewal fees can be paid by credit/debit card. If you do not have a credit/debit card you can purchase a pre-paid debit card from various retail outlets for a nominal fee.

Non-practicing registration:

Every year Western Health has a large number of nurses and midwives go on some extended leave. Often this is for something like maternity leave or long service leave, where they fully intend to return to work following their leave.

Occasionally some of our nurses or midwives have fallen into the trap of applying for non-practicing registration during their leave, which has impaired their ease of returning to work.

The Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA) regulates the practice of nursing and midwifery in Australia, and one of its key roles is to protect the public. The NMBA does this by developing registration standards, professional codes, guidelines and standards for practice which together establish the requirements for the professional and safe practice of nurses and midwives in Australia.

The types of registration available to nurses and midwives who apply to the NMBA to be registered include general registration, provisional registration, student registration and non-practising registration.

All of our active nurses and midwives are on the general register. Non-practising registration is a type of registration that is suitable for an individual who chooses to stop all nursing and/or midwifery practice but wishes – for personal rather than professional reasons – to retain a
protected nursing and/or midwifery title. Often this is a nurse or midwife who:

• has retired from nursing or midwifery practice
• is experiencing a period of prolonged illness, or
• is intending to take a long period of absence from practice.

Nurses and midwives wishing to take a period of leave (i.e. maternity leave) who are intending to return to work are advised to remain on the general register. Please note however that you must be able to maintain your CPD and recency of practice requirements.

Any nurse or midwife that transitions to non-practising registration needs to go though a process to be able to practise again. That includes lodging an application form (AGNP-40) for general registration and meet all the requirements of the following NMBA registration standards:

• criminal history
• professional indemnity insurance arrangements, and
• recency of practice.

If you the nurses or midwife does not meet the recency of practice registration standard requirement, a re-entry to practice requirement will apply.

Tips and information:

Read the renewal FAQs on the Ahpra website for helpful tips and more information on what you need to do to renew.

If you have difficulty renewing your registration online or you have a query about your registration, please contact Aphra by making a web enquiry or by calling 1300 419 495.

Graduate nurse and midwife Sign-on Bonus

The Sign-on Bonus is a payment that new graduate nurses and midwives may be eligible to receive when they commence their careers employed in a transition-to-practice program (graduate program) in a Victorian public health service. The bonus payment will help ensure those who are already deep in their studies are encouraged to take up careers in Victoria’s public health system.

The Sign-on Bonus is valued at $5,000 dollars. It will be paid in two instalments of $2,500 each:

• The first $2,500 payment will be made after nurses and midwives commence their graduate program.
• The second payment of $2,500 will be made following completion of two years’ work in a Victorian public health service including the graduate year.

Who is eligible?

The Sign-on Bonus is only available to nurses and midwives who graduate between 2022 to 2024 and have met the following criteria.

For the first payment you must:

• be currently registered as a nurse or midwife with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia
• have graduated from an eligible Australian undergraduate nursing or midwifery course in 2022, 2023 or 2024
• commenced in a nursing or midwifery graduate program in the same calendar year of course completion or the calendar year immediately following course completion and have commenced employment no later than 2025 mid-year intakes.

For the second payment you must:

• have been eligible to receive the first payment
• have completed a minimum of two full years of continuous employment within a Victorian public health service/s from the commencement date of the graduate program at a minimum of 0.8 FTE or pro rata equivalent.

Who is not eligible for the Sign-on Bonus?

• Those who completed their nursing/midwifery course overseas
• Temporary residents
• New Zealand permanent or temporary residents
• Those who graduated in a year other than 2022, 2023 or 2024
• Those who have previously received a Sign-on Bonus as part of this Nursing and Midwifery Graduates Sign-on Bonus initiative.

When and how will I receive the Sign-on Bonus?

• Western Health is submitting a list of our eligible graduates.
• You will receive an invitation via your work email from ‘Nursing sign-on bonus program (DJPR)’ which has an @ecodev.vic.gov.au domain. This is an email address of the Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry and Regions, a program administrator for the Sign-on Bonus. The email will invite you to login to a Sign-on Bonus Portal. In the portal, you will be asked to confirm your details and sign a grant agreement to claim your payment.
• There will be a four-week window to sign a grant agreement and submit your claim once claims open.
• You will receive the first instalment of the Bonus after you commence your graduate program. In 2023, the timing is in June/July and September. The September round will capture mid-year intake graduates and any graduates who missed the first round.
• Once you have submitted your claim, it will be processed within 8 business days. Depending on your bank, your grant payment may take up to ten business days to reach your nominated account.
• The Sign-on Bonus is paid separately from your salary.
• For the second instalment, after a minimum two years of consecutive employment at a Victorian public health service, you will be sent a link to a claim form for completion to receive the second payment.

Please click on this link to read the FAQs from the Department of Health.

Emma takes out University of Melbourne prize

One of our postgraduate Emergency nurses, Emma Foulstone was recently awarded the Dianne Campbell Prize at the University of Melbourne’s annual Marion Barrett lecture.

This prize is awarded to the student who achieved the highest grade point average in the University’s postgraduate nursing Critical Care streams (ICU, ED and Intergrated Critical Care) and is an amazing achievement.

This is the second year in a row that a Sunshine Hospital Emergency Department nurse has won a University of Melbourne prize, which is a reflection of the hard work of the students, and the amazing support from the Educators and ED clinical leadership.

Well done Emma!

JKWC wins the International Board Certified Lactation Consultants Award

Western Health’s Joan Kirner Women’s & Children’s was recently bestowed the International Board Certified Lactation Consultants (IBCLC) Award for 2023, recognising the work of Jess Hughes (pictured right) and the Lactation Consultation team.

This award recognises Joan Kirner Women’s & Children’s for excellence in lactation care, with healthcare professionals that hold the prestigious International Board Certified Lactation Consultant certification who provide a lactation programme for breastfeeding families. In addition, the facility demonstrated that it has recently completed activities that help protect, promote, and support breastfeeding.

Joan Kirner Women’s & Children’s is the only Victorian hospital to have this Award, and one of only 4 in Australia. Having received this Award, Joan Kirner Women’s & Children’s is included in the IBCLC Care Directory on the website for a period of two years.

Well done team!

Meet our inaugural Director of Nursing for Custodial Health

Lena Pejcinovski was recently appointed to the role of Director of Nursing for Custodial Health at Western Health.

Lena is a Registered Nurse who has diverse experience in nursing leadership roles, and has a proven track record of successfully establishing and developing high performing, successful clinical teams. Lena has extensive experience in supporting teams through change, improvement and project management. She is a values-driven leader, who is committed to working collaboratively to achieve high quality outcomes for our consumers, staff and the wider community.

Lena will be well known to many of you through her previous roles at Western Health, including Operations Manager within the Western Public Health Unit, Manager of the Showgrounds Drive-Through Testing Clinic, Manager of our Respiratory Assessment Clinics during COVID, Nurse Unit Manager of Specialist Clinics and a number of project roles.

Lena commenced this new role on 8 May 2023. Please join me in congratulating Lena on her appointment and supporting her in this important new role.

Infection Risk Screening on Admission – think CPO!

Carbapenemase-producing organisms (CPO) refers to significant antimicrobial resistance genes in such bacteria as Klebsiella pneumoniae, Escherichia coli, Acinetobacter baumanni and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. These organisms live in our intestines which is why we test faeces. In some parts of the world this group of bacteria have acquired genes that make them resistant to broad spectrum antibiotics known as carbapenem’s. These organisms can then transfer resistance between different species making detection of outbreaks challenging. Antibiotic treatment of these infections is significantly reduced with higher mortality rates.

Global issue and spread

CPO is a global issue and since our borders have opened, Western Health has been seeing increased overseas presentations that have been missed with the ‘infectious Risk Screening’ done on each admission or not acted on. Another issue are patients who have had contact tracing undertaken as contacts of these CPO cases are not having their infectious alerts checked when these patients represent to hospital. With increased travel destination healthcare and Australian residents returning to their country of birth for treatments, more procedures are being undertaken overseas as much cheaper but increases the risks of CPO being imported into our organisation. These include the following that may not have had an overnight stay in a hospital but initial procedures in a hospital and then hotel resort care by HCWs or with residing with family.

• IVF procedures
• Dental surgery
• Cosmetic and plastic surgery
• Holiday Dialysis treatments, as well as
• Direct admissions, repatriation from overseas hospitals

The consequences of transmission to other patients is significant, especially across 2 wards as then DH would become involved and have oversight management for 12 months. It would also require extensive contact tracing of discharged and inpatients. All patients would be notified and given a letter from Western Health of their exposure to present to any hospital they subsequently attend. The ward/s and hospital/s would be listed on VICNISS as a Transmission Risk Area. With our frequent interhospital transfers this could be significant.

How can we prevent CPO transmission and protect Western Health?

1. We can significantly reduce this risk by completing in full the Infectious Disease Risk Screening tool below on each and every presentation and admission.
2. By asking the patient a detailed interstate and in particular overseas travel history and if any type of procedure or treatment undertaken
3. By checking the infectious alerts on presentation or admission for existing alerts
   • Infection Risk – CPE Known Contact (screening in process)
   • Infectious Risk – CPE Known Positive
   • Infectious Risk – Pre-emptive Isolation and Screen Infectious
4. By initiating immediate Pre-emptive Isolation and Screen Infectious Risk Alert on a new identified potential patient from screening questions
   • Ensuring the patient is admitted into a single room, own bathroom in Contact transmission-based precautions with enhanced environmental and equipment cleaning
5. By organising an order for CPE screening – faeces is best, but a rectal swab with faeces present can be taken if nil bowel action and if patient is likely to be discharged soon
6. Notifying Infection Prevention so they can follow up – 56113 in business hours and/or whsinfectioncontrol@mh.org.au
7. Infection Prevention will be modifying the Risk assessment tool to better capture information as well as the alerts but this won’t occur for some time due to EMR-2 implementation.
8. Standard 3 CPO focus of the month poster will be disseminated to all clinical areas at points of access to the organisation so please discuss with your teams

Signs to support ICU consumers

ICUs can be scary and over-whelming places, particularly for families of patients and visitors.

To help to take away some of this fear and uncertainty, the ICU teams have recently installed a number of educational signs, which have been designed to assist families and visitors in understanding what is happening with their loved ones’ care, and the systems and processes in place for their time in the unit.

The signs are welcoming and informative and have been installed at both the Footscray and Sunshine ICUs.

The first sign greets visitors, and educates on visiting requirements, infection prevention, self-care and the interdisciplinary team.

The second sign goes through the myriad of equipment, lines and devices that are utilised to support the care of patients whilst they are in ICU and explains in simple English what the device or equipment is, and what it is used for.

The signs have been mounted on walls in locations where families and visitors wait, and as they first arrive at the units.

This is an excellent example of a project that perfectly meets the requirements of Standard 2 Partners with our Consumers.

Well done to the ICU teams on this amazing consumer-focused initiative.

Counting down to EMR Phase 2.1 go-live

It is now just under 6 weeks until we commence the Electronic Medical Record (EMR) Phase 2.1 Go-Live at the Williamstown, Sunbury, Footscray and Sunshine Hospitals.

This is a significant expansion of our EMR and we continue to remain committed to supporting all staff through this change. It is vital that staff are ready to use the expanded EMR so please ensure you complete online WeLearn training, attend an in-person training session in June if you need further support, and practice in the EMR practice environment.

Please be reassured that there will be several levels of support for you and your team before, during and after the Go-Live period.

Go-Live period:

EMR Phase 2.1 Go-Live will proceed as follows:

• Sunday 9 July – Williamstown Hospital Emergency Department
• Tuesday 11 July – Footscray Hospital Emergency Department and Intensive Care Unit
• Wednesday 12 July – Footscray, Sunshine, including Joan Kirner Women’s & Children’s, and Williamstown Hospital Theatres
• Thursday 13 July – Sunshine Hospital Emergency Department and Intensive Care Unit
• Monday 17 July – All EMR sites – Specialist Clinics including Community Services
  Sunshine Hospital Oncology, Sunbury Day Hospital Theatre, Joan Kirner Women’s & Children’s MAC, Birthing, Newborn Services, Inpatients and Antenatal
• Wednesday 19 July – Sunbury Day Hospital Oncology

Areas already using the EMR from Phase 1 will also have access to new EMR functionality from the start of the Go-Live period. Please note that the above schedule may need to be adjusted to meet organisational requirements as we approach the Go Live date.

Nursing & Midwifery Top 10

The EMR Phase 2.1 Nursing & Midwifery Top 10 will help our nurses and midwives to learn more about EMR Phase 2.1 and become familiar with some of the key changes prior to Go-Live.​

Look out for the posters on a wall in your work area, in your inbox or click here to view.

EMR Phase 2.1 Training

The EMR Phase 2.1 Go-Live in July is fast approaching, and many Nursing and Midwifery staff have already completed their training and are becoming familiar with the incoming enhancements.

EMR Phase 2.1 training is being delivered and reinforced in three ways:

1. Interactive online WeLearn lessons which are discipline and area specific.
2. Face to face classroom training sessions are available from 5th June to 30^th June, for those who require additional support after their WeLearn training or who prefer classroom training.
3. Practicing what has been learnt in training is important to help further increase your understanding and confidence. You have access to the EMR practice environment via the EMR Super Users for your area.

Thank you to those staff who have completed the online WeLearn training. Those who still need to complete training before the July Go-Live are urged to do so as soon as possible here.

Staff who feel they need further support after completing their WeLearn lessons, or who prefer classroom training, can book into a face-to-face classroom training session at an EMR site. Staff should book in early for these sessions to ensure their desired day and time is available. When you have completed your training, it is important to practice what you have learned in the EMR practice environment.

Detailed information on booking classroom training and accessing the EMR practice environment can be found on the Training and Practicing page of the Digital Health information site.

For further information please contact WHS-EMRTrainers@wh.org.au

Mid-year Scholarships

It is time for mid-year scholarships.

Western Health has a huge variety of educational and professional development options for our nurses and midwives, and for those that would like to undertake formal educational development we have generous scholarships available.

If you are commencing a course mid-year please click on this link to apply for a post-graduate nursing courses or EN to RN transition course.

This is a fantastic opportunity to study at no cost to advance your career.

Applications close Friday 30 June 2023.

For any queries please contact Debra.Broomfield@wh.org.au or phone 0403 732 169.

Flu and COVID Vax'd - Stronger Together!

On 1 June 59% of our nurses and midwives have been vaccinated against seasonal influenza. That is good, however it is vital that the remaining 41% are vaccinated as quickly as possible.

A reminder that the annual Flu Vax is now mandatory for all Category A & B staff, which includes the vast majority of our nurses and midwives. We encourage Category C staff to receive the influenza vaccination to protect themselves and their loved ones.

The Western Health Staff Influenza Prevention program offers a free vaccine to every member of staff in a bid to keep our Health Service influenza safe.

Additionally, this year maintaining up-to-date vaccination against COVID continues to be an integral defence to protect us against this disease. Boosters are important to maintain this protection.

This year staff will be able to receive both the influenza vaccine, and if they wish a COVID booster vaccine at the same time. The COVID booster is not mandatory, but highly recommended.

Staff from all areas are invited to attend any of our fixed or roaming immunisation clinics. Fixed and roaming clinic dates will be publicised and will be made available on the Western Health Infection Prevention intranet site.

Please be reminded that:

• Staff must have their Medicare card or IHI number in order to be vaccinated.
• If staff have been vaccinated at another hospital, by a GP or elsewhere, please complete a quick Redcap survey click on link access: Influenza Immunisation Survey and attach your immunisation certificate and/or provide us with consent for Western Health Immunisation staff to check your Australian Immunisation Record (AIR)
• All staff who decline the influenza vaccination (including Category A, B and C staff) must complete their declaration on Redcap. Please follow this link to access: Influenza Immunisation Survey
• Staff who have one of the 3 medical exemptions to receiving the influenza vaccine MUST complete a Redcap survey and attach a medical certificate from a medical practitioner. Please click on the link to access: Influenza Immunisation Survey.
• Managers will need to monitor their MAP report and follow up on Category A and B staff uptake of influenza vaccination and any staff declinations.

Reconciliation Week

Reconciliation Week runs each year from May 27 – June 3, and is an ideal time for us to acknowledge our shared histories, cultures and achievements, and understand how we can create a reconciled Australia.

Here are five things that you can do to help build a better understanding and appreciation of the past and the present and help us on our journey towards a just and equitable future for all Australians.

1. Understand Reconciliation

To achieve reconciliation, it’s important that we learn about and celebrate the rich diversity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and histories, and develop strong relationships built on acknowledgment and respect.

Read about how reconciliation will strengthen the relationship with First Nation’s people and non-Indigenous Australians.

2. Acknowledge Country

Did you know that an Acknowledgement of Country should be included in all meeting agenda templates and at the start of all education sessions held at Western Health?

An Acknowledgement of Country is an opportunity to show respect for Traditional Owners and the continuing connection of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to Country. It can be offered by both Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples before a meeting, speech or event. You can also include it in your signature block.

Western Health has a new Acknowledgement of Country that builds on this by also confirming our shared commitment to listening and learning from First Nation’s people, achieving equity in health outcomes, and the ongoing journey of reconciliation

A Welcome to Country differs from an Acknowledgement as it is delivered by Traditional Owners, or First Nation’s people who have been given permission from Traditional Owners to welcome visitors to their Country.

3. Know the Lands on which you stand

Country is the term often used by First Nation’s people to describe the lands, waterways and seas to which they are connected.

You might like to discover more about the lands you travel to, or where you live and work. The AIATSIS map of Indigenous Australia is a great guide for discovering the traditional owners of the land across Australia.

4. The Voice to Parliament

Later this year, Australians will be asked to vote in a referendum on whether to change the Constitution to recognise the First Peoples of Australia by establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice.

Now is a great time to improve our understanding of the proposed Voice to Parliament.

You can also read the statement in support of self-determination by the Western Health’s Board of Directors.

5. Cultural Safety is everyone’s job

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural safety means that we are creating an environment where there is no challenge or denial of our First Nation’s patients, staff and volunteers identity or experience.

You can improve your cultural awareness by completing Aboriginal Cultural Awareness training on WeLearn, and I encourage you to undertake this package throughout this week. You can also read the Western Health Aboriginal Health Cultural Safety Plan 2022-2025 to learn about what we are doing as a health service to improve the cultural safety and health outcomes of our First Nation’s consumers, staff and volunteers.

Thank you for your commitment to furthering our understanding of reconciliation as we continue the important journey towards equitable health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Crazy Socks for All

Join us to raise awareness and break down the stigma of mental health in healthcare workers on Crazy Socks Day this Friday 2 June.

CrazySocks4Docs is an annual awareness day that we are proud to celebrate at Western Health as ‘Crazy Socks for All’. We love to see all our staff wearing their funky socks on this day and checking in on each other.

Take some snaps of your colourful socks and submit them via Westerly. Include your name, department name and site location in the caption and you’ll go into the draw to win one of 5 movie vouchers valued at $50.

On Friday morning, CEO Russell Harrison and senior leaders will be giving out cafe vouchers to staff wearing crazy socks. It’s a reminder to take a break, recharge and check in with your colleagues too.

A special Grand Round will be held in the WCHRE Auditorium at Sunshine Hospital on Friday with guest speaker Dr Olivia Ong, a Melbourne-based rehabilitation medicine and pain physician with 15 years of clinical experience who’ll share her remarkable story of beating the odds.

Crazy Socks Grand Round
Friday 2 June
12.30 – 1.30pm
Light lunch provided.

To join via Zoom please click here.

Benchmarking Best Care

The latest benchmark reports from the Health Roundtable that go up to December 2022 have recently been released, that show how our delivery of Best Care compares to other health services across Australasia.

Let’s look at how we perform in the area of falls. The following data looks at the rate of falls that result in an intracranial haemorrhage, fractured neck or femur or other fractures.

Falls:

The data now includes all Western Health sites, and compares us to other health services.

Unfortunately we had a significant increase in falls resulting in a fracture or intracranial haemorrhage per 10,000 episodes of care at Western Health in the last quarter – after a previous drop to it being low amber.

Over the past 12 months, unfortunately Western Health is performing poorly in this indicator.

The rate of all falls is however reducing. The continuing efforts of our Falls Champions implementing the actions from the Falls Improvement Plan is essential to turn this around.

We can do this!

Educational Opportunities

Resuscitation Mandatory Competencies:
Sessions have recommenced. In the first instance, you can arrange an assessment with your local instructor or educator. Resus educators are contacting managers to arrange local sessions for individual teams. Dedicated sessions for Bank and Pool Staff along with sessions for Nursing and Medical staff are available on WeLearn. You can locate sessions by clicking on this link: Course: Basic Life Support (BLS) (wh.org.au)

Invasive Lines & Cannulation:
Dates for Bank-Pool Nursing staff, Ward Nursing staff, Radiology, and Medical staff available soon.

Adult Deteriorating Patient (non-obstetric):
Learning how to recognise and escalate patient deterioration is now here at Western Health. The Education and Learning Department have developed a new and improved WeLearn course, designed to guide and support early recognition and escalation for a patient deteriorating within Western Health.

Fisher and Paykel Respiratory Support training:
RSVP to: education.australia@fphcare.com.au

• Adult Respiratory Support: Friday 14 July 2023 – WCHRE Auditorium:  9.00am to 3.00pm
• Infant Respiratory Support: Friday 1 September 2023 – WCHRE Auditorium: 9.00am to 3.00pm
• Adult & Paediatric Respiratory Support: Wednesday 4 October 2023 – WCHRE Lecture Theatre: 9.00am to 1.00pm

Education and Learning upcoming events:

• 14/07/2023:   Adult Respiratory Support (External enrolment)
• 05/09/2023:  Cognitive Study Day
• 21/09/2023:   Infection Prevention Study Day
• 27/10/2023:   Mental Health First Aid
• 03/11/2023:   Mental Health First Aid

More courses click here: Courses and Inservices (westernhealth.org.au)

Course Enrolment/Inquiries:

• WeLearn Helpdesk Email: welearn@wh.org.au
• WeLearn Enrolment link: welearn@wh.org.au

Emerging Evidence

The Western Health Library Service is a great source for locating the latest nursing and midwifery related evidence-based practice and research.

Latest articles of interest:

• Moral distress in midwifery practice: A Delphi study. Women and Birth. 2023: May Full Text Western Health Author
• Either ‘a blessing in disguise’, or ‘I couldn’t get help’: Australian and Aotearoa NZ women’s experiences of early infant feeding during COVID-19. Women and Birth. 2023: May Full Text Western Health Author
• Evaluating the implementation of the Birmingham Symptom-specific Obstetric Triage System (BSOTS) in Australia. Women and Birth. 2023: May Full Text Western Health Author
• Social determinants of health on human immunodeficiency virus care quality in Indonesia. Journal of Advanced Nursing. 2023: May Full Text Western Health Author
• Psychological wellbeing of Australian community health service staff during the COVID-19 pandemic: a longitudinal cohort study. BMC Health Services Research. 2023: April Full Text Western Health Author
• PRECeDe Pilot: Prevention of neonatal respiratory distress with antenatal corticosteroids before elective caesarean section in women with diabetes – a feasibility randomised trial. BJOG. 2023: April Full Text Western Health Author

Western Health Library Customer Satisfaction Survey

Tell us what you think…
Help us to become the best library for you!

Western Health has substantially grown and changed since our last Customer Satisfaction Survey in 2017.
The library team is eager to find out how important our services are to you and how well you think we are performing them.

We would really appreciate your time to join our desktop Customer Satisfaction Survey.The survey is completely anonymous and takes about 10 minutes to complete.

Accessing the Library at Work:

All eligible staff can access electronic library resources from any networked PC or device connected to
Wi-Fi network without the need to login.

Accessing the Library Remotely (offsite access):

• When accessing electronic resources through the library website from offsite you will automatically be asked to enter your library membership number and surname.
• Library Membership is free and can be completed online. Please email the library if you experience issues when registering (e.g. error messages).

For more information please contact the Western Health library team.