December 2020
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Fit Testing at Northern: Phase 2
After the successful completion of the Fit-Test pilot project, where 847 priority health care workers were fit tested, Northern Health is now entering the second phase. Fit testing is a process to verify if a selected brand, model or size of an P2/N95 mask adequately fits the wearer. Testing is carried out with all the different types of masks available, to identify the best fitting mask to ensure a consistent fit. Michelle Wakelam, a certified Occupational Hygienist with many years’ experience in fit testing and respiratory protection, has recently been enrolled as our Respiratory Protection Program Coordinator (RPP Coordinator) and…
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Christmas ISS the season for giving
“Every time we love, every time we give, it’s Christmas.” Christmas conjures up images of celebrations around the dinner table, presents under the Christmas tree and being surrounded by close friends and family. The last, in particular, will be cause for added celebration for many of us after a year of lockdown and isolation. Yet there are others who may not get the opportunity to be with their loved ones and their families – and this includes patients in our Children’s Ward at Northern Hospital. For the fourth year running now, ISS Facility Services are hoping to make a difference…
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End of Year Message – From the Chief Executive
On behalf of the Board and Executive Team, thank you very much for your commitment and professionalism during 2020. This year has been completely different to anything we’ve seen before. Staff had to change the way they work, whilst making sure patient care continued at the high standard expected of us. Many staff put their lives in danger to continue to provide this care. We did not get everything right – but we adjusted quickly. We were learning all the way though the pandemic, and then the experience of the second wave taught us more. In early July, when there…
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Axe the Fax
In October this year, and after a highly successful two-year trial with HealthLink, Northern Health’s Specialist Clinics have switched to HealthLink SmartForms as the standard platform for accepting GP referrals. Previously, referrals would be sent via fax, which often led to technical and readability issues, as some pages might arrive blank or completely black, smeared, only half-pages or illegible. The new system is not only making the process more streamlined, but is also benefiting patients by having their referrals received correctly the first time, with all the clinical information in it. “When we receive the referral, there’s no back and…
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Consumers making a difference
Northern Health consumers are making a difference and improving health care processes and outcomes by regularly participating on various committees, and being a patient voice during reviews. Sophie Rodier, Manager, Patient Experience, explained that a Root Cause Analysis (RCAs) panel can be formed in response to an adverse event. This panel aims to identify why an incident occurred and what can be done to prevent it from happening again. “It is important that staff and consumers are involved in this process. Five of these panels held in 2020 have had a consumer member from the Northern Health Consumer Network. We…
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ED Research and Quality Presentation Day
At the end of November, our Emergency Department (ED) held their ‘Research and Quality Presentation Day’ via MS Teams. This forum provided an opportunity for ED staff to present some of the research projects and quality initiatives they have been involved with over the course of the year, as well as present some future projects that will be conducted next year. Dr Kirin Channa, ED Quality Lead, said the idea came from a hospital in Brisbane where she used to work when she was a registrar, where all the senior registrars had an opportunity to do an audit and present.…
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Dr Stefan Herodotou nominated for Teacher of the Year
Dr Stefan Herodotou, Northern Health Emergency Physician for almost 40 years, was recently nominated by medical students for ‘MD2 Teacher of the Year’ at Melbourne University’s Northern Clinical School. Stefan has worked at PANCH and Northern Health since 1 May 1981, after finding his passion working in the Emergency Department. “I fell in love with it immediately, and made it my second home for the last nearly 40 years,” he said. After graduating at The University of Athens Medical School, Stefan started his medical career specialising in surgery before moving to Melbourne. Following his work at a number of health…
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International Day of People with Disability
Today, Northern Health celebrates International Day of People with Disability, a celebration aimed at promoting awareness, understanding and acceptance of people with a disability. Just a week before the International Day of People with Disability, Simone Ortiz became Northern Health’s new Disability Liaison Officer. Simone has been with Northern Health for eight years as a social worker, and is now excited to start her new role. “The Department of Health has identified that people with disability are sometimes struggling to access health care and, when the pandemic started, that increased. My role was created primarily to help those people with…