The social work team recently welcomed six La Trobe University social work students as new employees of Northern Health.

Jessica Grgat, Megan Feain, Gloria Hernandez, Alia Sayegh, Sophie Eccles and Natalie El-Bazouni have completed their student placement and became Northern Health employees in the last 12 months.

Northern Health is a proud teaching hospital, contributing to the future of health care and shaping the next generation of health professionals.

Social work students have two placements during their studies both consisting of 70 days each (14 full-time weeks). Placements are lengthy to enable consolidation of core skills across learning areas such as values and ethics, organisational and community context, interpersonal skills, research and culturally sensitive practice.

Tim Gauci is a Social Work Clinical Educator Lead who has one day per week dedicated to clinical education. His role includes interviewing prospective students, allocating supervisors, developing group learning student timetables and supporting students and staff during placement. Tim also acts as a conduit between the universities and the health service.

“Northern Health takes social work students from La Trobe University and University of Melbourne. These placements are supervised by social workers across all campuses,” said Tim.

“Social work supervisors go above and beyond to ensure our clinical placements are of high quality and that our students have a really positive learning experience here at Northern Health.”

Students have access to self-directed learning opportunities across core areas of clinical social work practice including family violence, children at risk, elder abuse and family meetings.

Northern Health social work students are mentored to develop their own identity as new clinicians and recognise the importance of social justice in their practice.

“We see the link between this positive experience and students choosing Northern Health as their future employee. This example with our social work students really highlights the importance of student clinical placement experience and workforce attraction. Our current Grade 1 workforce includes multiple social work students who have completed a placement at Northern Health,” said Allied Health Clinical School Coordinator and Education Lead, Tameeka Robertson.

In their final week of placement, students complete a case study presentation to the social work team. These presentations are a celebration of the completion of placement, and a positive way of highlighting the students’ growth and skill development.

Gloria Hernandez is one of the six students, now employees of Northern Health, and says she decided to apply for a graduate social work position because she felt included and supported by like-minded mentors.

“I completed my placement at Northern Health because it is one of the major hospitals in the metro area. I was placed as an outpatient social work student, and I loved it! I love working with women and especially patients from CALD backgrounds,” she said.

Sophie Eccles, another student turned employee, speaks very fondly of her experience at the Broadmeadows Hospital.

“Throughout my placement, I was able to gain significant knowledge and develop my skills. The team environment was very special, everyone was always so friendly and welcoming,” she said.

Emeil Boddenberg, a former student and now a Grade 1 social worker said, “The team of social workers I had met through my placement, along with all the hospital staff, were a large contribution to my decision to stay. In addition, I enjoyed the stimulation and challenge of the role and loved the patients that I worked with here. Getting to work with such a diverse community from various backgrounds is something I consider to be a privilege.”

Pictured standing (left to right): Tim Gauci Senior Social worker and Social Work Clinical Educator, Natalie El-Bazouni Grade 1 social worker, Sophie Eccles Grade 1 social worker, Gloria Hernandez Grade 1 social worker, Alia Sayegh Grade 1 social worker. 

Sitting (left to right): Chaminda Dayasiri Grade 1 social worker, Emeil Boddenberg Grade 1 social worker, Jessica Grgat Grade 1 social worker.

On 16 February, the Electronic Medical Record (EMR) team presented on the Comprehensive Care Plan to the Assessment and Care Planning Sub Group Clinical Improvement Committee.

Northern Health’s EMR, designed by our clinicians, aims to provide staff with better patient management and documentation, in turn delivering quality care to our patients and community. Current paper forms such as the CARE Record are built into the system where staff will be able to document information such as fall risk, patient’s expressed goals of care and healthcare needs, and will be visible to other clinicians on the care team. This reduces the time used to locate patient charts, as well as double documentation.

Daniella Chapkoun, EMR Informatics Officer and Benefits Analyst, said this was a big step forward for Northern Health as a digital platform increases transparency and reduces duplication.

“In the future, the digital equivalent of the Care Record will allow information to seamlessly flow from one area to another without double entering,” adds Daniella.

When the EMR is implemented, nurses will be able to select if certain care plans are not met, and Nurse Unit Managers will be able to follow up on the next shift.

During the presentation, we also had a consumer representative to see first-hand that the benefits of the system are appropriate from the perspective of patients and family members.

Patient information such as name, date of birth, and allergies, will be documented in the EMR when they are admitted, and will be carried over should the patient require re-admission. Currently, our patients may have to repeat their health histories and we understand it could be frustrating. With the EMR in place, clinicians will be trained to confirm health histories with patients displayed in the EMR.

“I believe EMR will be of great benefit to the patient as it will provide improved patient documentation and management of information. It will also provide quality care for the patient and community, by reducing the time to locate charts and have all information collated in a centralised place. It is very pleasing to see EMR being initiated at Northern Health and to have been a consumer representative on this project,” says Mary.

Maree Glynn, Director of Clinical Practice and Improvement, was pleased with the new change moving forward.

“It was very pleasing to see that all the hard work in developing the CARE record over the past five years has not been lost and it has been fully incorporated into the EMR. The EMR supports our accreditation requirements to develop a comprehensive plan of care for each patient that is developed and used by all of the clinical team involved in the patient’s care,” says Maree.

 

Northern Health’s Falls and Balance Service (FABS) is located in Bundoora Centre. It provides a comprehensive, multi-disciplinary assessment for people in the community who have experienced falls.

The FABS clinic is a diagnostic service and aims to identify the intrinsic and extrinsic factors contributing to a person’s falls. The team advises of appropriate management to further reduce falls and or fear of falls. The clinic has an Allied Health stream of Physiotherapy (PT) and Occupational Therapy (OT), who provide falls assessment and interventions to those clients who do not meet the clinic criteria. The aim of this stream is to address any urgent issues and determine if the client requires follow up in the clinic.

The FABS consists of a Geriatrician, Registrar, Physiotherapist Gd3, Physiotherapist Gd1 and Occupational therapist. On the initial FABS appointment, the patient is seen by the Dr, PT and OT in the one morning. Secondary referrals are often made to the Podiatrist and/or Psychologist.

Patients who attend the clinic stream are provided with a patient-centred falls plan called a ‘Risk and Recommendation’ letter. The letter lists all the identified issues contributing to the patient’s risk of falls and strategies to manage these risks. From the clinic, clients might be referred on for further one-on-one therapy in a centre or home based.

“We also run a ‘Balance Boost’ group which is based on the Kitchen Table Exercise program. During this program, the patient’s complete exercises close to benches, tables and chairs – simulating a home environment. The program is aimed at improving components of balance and strength and runs for eight weeks at both Bundoora Centre and Broadmeadows Hospital,” said Community Therapy Service, Clinical Coordinator, Nicky Tully.

During the pandemic, the FABS team experienced challenges due to reduced number of staff and clinicians being allocated to other areas. As restrictions began to ease, the team started completing joint initial assessments over the phone. These assessments addressed any urgent issues patients might had and referrals to other services.

Moving forward, the team is excited to fully implement and utilise the self-assessment form created for patients to complete prior to their clinic appointment. This form will gather information on patient’s falls history and identify risks, frailty assessment and falls efficacy scale. The team will be introducing a phone call prior to clinic to complete the form with the client and an Allied health assistant. The main purpose of this form will be to improve the patient’s experience within the clinic by reducing repetition of questions related to falls.

As we approach April Falls Day on Monday, 3 April – a national initiative to raise awareness to the serious issue of falls and harm resulting from falls, the FABS team would like to remind staff of the important role we can all play to reduce falls with our patients.

Associate Director Allied Health and Chair of Falls Committee, Uyen Phan, explained the importance of minimising falls.

“Falls are everyone’s responsibility. Hospital falls and harm from falls is a serious issue facing all health services and can result in poorer health outcomes to patients and their carers, including pain, dysfunction, fear and anxiety of further falls. Falls can also increase hospital length of stay and greater health resource utilisation,” he said.

“Northern Health is running the April Falls week campaign again this year to raise awareness and reinforce that we all have a role to play in reducing falls. Look out for our display stand in the front foyer at each site on Monday 3 April, daily ward huddle messages and a falls quiz with a $100 gift voucher to be won!”

Thank you to our FABS team for keeping our patients safe and balanced!

Pictured: FABS team

Yesterday, 26 March was Purple Day – a global initiative dedicated to raising epilepsy awareness and shining a light on people living with epilepsy.

Purple Day was founded in 2008 by nine-year-old Cassidy Megan of Nova Scotia, Canada. Her own struggle with epilepsy was her primary motivation to get people talking openly about the condition. Cassidy named the day ‘Purple Day’ after the internationally recognised colour for epilepsy, lavender.

The 2023 Purple Day campaign theme is “dare to be different”, and on this day, people are encouraged to wear purple to raise awareness for people living with epilepsy. The campaign aims to break down the barriers that may still exist in society for those living with epilepsy and dispel the myths surrounding the condition.

“At Northern Health, one in five patients present as a person living with a disability. Some of these patients live with epilepsy. A person who has epilepsy tends to have spontaneous, recurrent seizures. Approximately one per cent of Australians are currently living with epilepsy and over 12,000 people a year are diagnosed with epilepsy,” said Northern Health Disability Liaison Officer, Maria Bowman.

Rachel Powell is a young woman who has been living with epilepsy since she was a child. She’s been a volunteer with Northern Health since 2010 and she shares with us her inspiring story.

“I was only 11-years-old when I was diagnosed with epilepsy. Following the first seizure, which happened at school, I was taken to hospital. The doctors ran some tests and scans and then told my mum I had epilepsy. It was scary for both of us because we didn’t know much about it then,” Rachel said.

Despite the diagnosis and spontaneous seizures Rachel experiences, she embraces life through volunteering. Today, her condition is well controlled with medication, and she loves being able to help others.

Rachel encourages everyone to use Purple Day as an annual opportunity to learn more about epilepsy and debunk many common myths about the condition.

“Don’t be scared. It can be daunting at first, but educate yourself on epilepsy and get all the support you need. You can live a normal life and participate in society, despite the condition,” she said.

Northern Health Head of Neurology, A/Prof Doug Crompton, says that this an exciting time for epilepsy diagnosis and care at Northern Health, with the new video EEG monitoring facilities on Ward 21, expected to come online in mid-2023.

“Welcoming people to Ward 21 for several days and nights of EEG (brainwave) monitoring can be vital to clarify difficult diagnoses, as many other events can mimic epileptic seizures. There are very many different kinds of epilepsy, and our EEG monitoring will help to refine important details which help optimise medication choice and clarify which people could benefit from epilepsy surgery,” he said.

The epilepsy team at Northern Health continues to grow and it currently includes four neurologists specialising in epilepsy and two EEG (brainwave) scientists.

“Many exciting developments are underway in epilepsy care, including the increasing recognition that seizures tend to recur in cycles. An app and a smartwatch together can predict times of high and low seizure risk. This can help to give people with epilepsy greater confidence to plan their lives and removes some of the uncertainty about seizure timing,” said Dr Crompton.

For more information and resources on epilepsy, please visit: www.epilepsy.org.au

Pictured: Rachel Powell.

#WeAreNorthern

Meet Paul Hellwege, Director of Digital Learning and Systems, People and Culture.

Q: Tell us about your role at Northern Health?

A: The role of Director of Digital Learning and Systems is a really exciting one. It’s a fantastic opportunity to help facilitate online education and training across the organisation. Having up-to-date, relevant and engaging online learning is a great way to assist both learners and educators in the education and training space. I’m looking forward to working with the Digital Learning team and our trainers and educators to continue to build and deliver that.

Q: What motivates you to work hard?

A: On a personal level, my family. On a professional level, I’m really passionate about inclusive and accessible learning. I enjoy working hard to develop learning resources that makes the learning experience as fun and easy as possible.

Q: Where do you see yourself in five years?

A: I am hoping to be happy and healthy, can’t ask for much more than that.

Q: What did you want to be when you were young?

A: I don’t remember anything specific. I guess it would have been something like “professional AFL player”, but that was never likely to happen.

Q: Coffee or tea?

A: I love both. It’s great heading out with friends and family for a coffee on the weekend. There’s also nothing better than a tea in the afternoon.

This week, Northern Health celebrated Harmony Day and Cultural Diversity Week.

Harmony Day is held every year on 21 March, to coincide with the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.

The 2023 theme for Harmony Day was ‘Everyone belongs’. On this day, we celebrated Australia’s diversity and paid cultural respect to everyone who calls Australia home.

Northern Health services a very culturally diverse community: 47 per cent of Northern Health patients were born in non-English speaking countries, with over 200 countries represented. The top countries of origin are Italy, India, Greece, Iraq and Turkey. Through the Transcultural & Language Services (TALS) department, Northern Health delivers over 70,000 interpreting occasions of service, in over 100 languages.

Cultural diversity is also highlighted in the Northern Health workforce, with staff born in over 40 different countries and speaking over 50 different languages.

Here is what some of our wonderful Northern Health staff said about what harmony means to them:

“Support Services proudly hosts a multicultural team of staff representing many varied cultures and backgrounds. Celebrating Harmony Day allows us to recognise their amazing contribution and to celebrate their hard work and inclusion at Northern Health,” said Operations Manager of Support Services and Co-Chair of the Northern Health Cultural Responsiveness Subcommittee, Wendy Nicol.

 “I am proud to work in such a multicultural catchment area and to liaise daily with staff from different backgrounds. I come from a different country myself (Italy) but this feels like home,” said Education and Engagement Manager for TALS and Narrun-Wilip-Giin, Stefania Zen.

To celebrate Cultural Diversity Week, staff were encouraged to either wear something orange (the official colour of Harmony Day) or a traditional costume from their culture, and celebrate Harmony Day with their colleagues.

It was great to see so many staff embracing Cultural Diversity Week and joining in the celebration.

Display boards were set up at Northern Hospital Epping, Bundoora Centre, Broadmeadows Hospital and Craigieburn Centre. Several staff members contributed to the displays, and one of the displays included artwork created by the year 3/4 children at St Raphael’s Primary School in West Preston.

The library team also set up a page dedicated to Harmony Week with resources and articles related to cultural diversity and healthcare: https://nh-au.libguides.com/home/harmonyweek2023.

Henry’s Cafe and Cafe 1231 put on a special menu to celebrate Cultural Diversity Week by serving traditional dishes from Greece, India, Lebanon, Thailand, Italy, China, and Mexico.

On Harmony Day, the Northern Health Community Choir was honoured to be part of Cultural Diversity Week celebrations in the community held by City of Whittlesea at the Epping Memorial Hall. In a night full of food, music, dance and art from around the world, it was uplifting to see members of the 200-strong audience stand and sing along to ‘I am Australian’ with the choir.

If you would like to participate in the Cultural Diversity week activities and share a delicious recipe from your culture, there is still time to submit one. All recipes will go to the Northern Health staff e-recipe book and can be accessed on the TALS Intranet page.

Please use this template and send your recipe to volunteer@nh.org.au by Sunday, 26 March 2023.

The Northern Health ISS Facility Services team was recently awarded the ISS Operations Performance Award at the 2022 Pacific Leadership Conference in the Northern Territory.

The team was recognised for its successful re-tender of their Northern Health contract, their agile response in all aspects of cleaning and food meeting high standards, establishing methodologies and work instructions to adopt consistency, and for implementing new initiatives in the workplace.

Saj Amerasinghe, ISS Key Account Manager, said the team should be very proud of the work they have done over the years.

“Winning a Pacific Award is always a great achievement, especially when you have to compete amongst the top ISS divisional contenders,” he said.

“This is a great recognition for our Northern Health contract and to all our staff. It also allows us to recognise and showcase the best of ISS and inspire the organisation by rewarding great behaviours, values and our culture.”

The 2022 Pacific Leadership Conference reflected on the OneISS journey – a strategy outlining a clear recovery path back to a healthy and profitable business – and to celebrate the many achievements of ISS.

“As the OneISS strategy has gathered momentum, we have made some clear progress by way of our diversity and inclusion journey. This was one very good reason why the conference was at Uluru – sharing four days of information on how to be a great leader in ISS, understanding our ambition and celebrating our purpose,” Mr Amerasinghe said.

“It’s also about understanding our OneISS strategy and how to execute, and of course, how to behave, to lead, and to build the culture we know will help us drive execution.”

Looking to the future, Saj says sustainability will be a key focus for ISS.

“We are working on waste analysis and a sustainability workshop where we prioritise and strategise projects which will deliver sustainable outcomes,” he said.

Michael Aghan, ISS Facility Services National General Manager, congratulated the Northern Health team.

“You all contributed to this award and should be very proud of the work you have done over the past year, and previous years in the trying environment,” he said.

ISS last week celebrated its seventh anniversary with Northern Health. Mr Amerasinghe thanked the more than 200 staff who provide cleaning, catering and hospitality services across the health service.

“A big thank you to everyone who has been there since day one, and to anyone who has joined along the way. It’s all about making sure the patient journey is as smooth as possible, and I look forward to many more years working closely with you all,” he said.

Featured image: Debra Bourne, Chief Operating Officer, Saj Amerasinghe, ISS Key Account Manager, and Greg Warman, Director Support Services.

Yesterday, Tuesday 21 March, was World Social Work Day and Northern Health’s social workers have marked the day with an event highlighting this year’s theme, “Respecting Diversity through Joint Social Action”.

The afternoon event featured two presentations, each focusing on aspects of diversity. The first presentation showcased the support provided to our local community by the Disability Liaison program at Northern Health for people living with a disability, focusing on intersectionality and marginalised groups. The second presentation focused on family violence in the LGBTQIA+ community.

Northern Health Associate Director Allied Health, Penelope Vye says the event provided a great opportunity for all Northern Health social workers to gather together and celebrate the amazing work they do.

“Social workers are key in leading efforts in the family violence and disability areas. The number of social workers employed at Northern Health has increased dramatically in the past year – the onboarding of mental health has led to the employment of an additional 90 staff who provide services across a wide range of inpatient and community programs,” she said.

Northern Health social workers promote diversity by respecting and advocating for patients from culturally diverse backgrounds, the LGBTQIA+ community and those with disabilities. This is achieved through a number of different programs across Northern Health, including Strengthening Hospital’s Response to Family Violence (SHRFV), Hospital Without Walls, NDIS and many more.

In celebration of the amazing work that social workers do, and especially on this World Social Work day, here is what some of Northern Health staff had to say.

“Social workers provide valuable knowledge of supports, services and programs available for inpatients and beyond the hospital walls. They provide human connection for patients and their families during stressful times and advocate for the safety and wellbeing of patients and their loved ones,” Sara*, Registered Nurse.

“Social workers work with patients to help them through mental health, which is vital in our area. They also work with families that have experienced loss. Social workers assist with complex issues such as family violence, accommodation and other hardship as well,” Jessica*, Birth Suite staff member.

“Social workers maintain a dual focus on both assisting and improving human wellbeing, as well as identifying and addressing external issues. The Northern Health social workers are dedicated professionals, devoted to helping vulnerable people to get through their life issues,” Sam*, Nurse Unit Manager.

Northern Health social workers invited other health professionals to help celebrate World Social Work Day by respecting diversity and working together to eliminate any issues and barriers experienced by patients across various health care settings.

*Aliases have been used for privacy reasons

Pictured: Social work team