In CHFT News last week we shared how our urgent and emergency care teams are consistently top performers for the number of patients they see in four hours.  

Last week the team also hosted the national NHS England Clinical Advisory Team at HRI ED, which is the team that sets the strategy for EDs and SDECs. They wanted to dig into what we have done around improvements in the acute pathway, performance, quality and colleague experience at both CRH and HRI. 

The team took a tour of our ED and Integrated Flow Hub and spoke to lots of colleagues including Nurse Consultant, Kelly Moss; Lead Nurse in SDEC, Jade Murdoch; and site matron, Claire Spade. 

Our ED and SDECs were also the focus for Channel 5 News who came to film at HRI last week to see how our Trust prepares for winter. Thank you to all colleagues involved. The piece is expected to be aired in a 5pm bulletin this week.

Following the visit from NHS England, here is what National Clinical Advisor, Chris Morrow-Frost, said on LinkedIn:

"Wow. This is an organisation that successfully uses acuity in emergency medicine to identify Emergency Medicine specific conditions that can be incorporated into a common estate and access criteria which pulls patients off trolleys in ED and into their blended model. They’ve reduced overall patient waits no matter the estate they’re waiting in (they count on and off clock and have seen a reduction), they’ve reduced overall admissions and length of stay, they’ve improved outcomes, improved 4hrs, improved 12hrs, improved workforce training and morale, reduced incidents and harm… the list goes on. And they haven’t once gone into corridors or TES! Their workforce is happy and is proud of the care they deliver.

"AND this isn’t a number crunch, it’s actual patient-benefitting and motivated outcomes.

"How? Whilst Jonny and the leadership team were quick with humility, it was super clear to see that active visible leadership, impressing the need to do the right thing, empowering leaders to design, collaborate and act together is the non-negotiable starting point. Then that is followed by super empowered and healthy triumvirate teams that are clear partners to each other who are motivated and passionate.

"The team here need to be super super proud of themselves. This is a team who have tried to be guided by ‘what is the right thing to do’ and have been brave to measure things that they don’t have to in order to know they have hit the point, not just the target. It feels right – because it is.

"I would work in this organisation for this directorate tomorrow (if not for 400 mile commute!)."