Today, Northern Health celebrated the achievements of our long-serving staff as part of the 2022 Staff Service Awards.

Four hundred and forty-nine staff were recognised for achieving between 10 and 45 years of service, with many of our staff providing dedicated service since the days of PANCH and across our mental health sites. Combined, these staff have contributed over 7,000 years of service to Northern Health, a truly remarkable achievement.

More than 250 staff watched on as their colleagues celebrated significant work milestones, with many staff sending messages of congratulations during the event through the virtual chat. The ceremony also featured a series of throwback videos that highlighted major events of that year.

Michelle Fenwick, Executive Director, People and Culture, opened the virtual ceremony, by acknowledging all staff for their great work.

“Our annual Staff Service Awards provide us with a unique opportunity to thank and celebrate hard working and dedicated staff who are on the front line each and every day, saving lives and keeping our community safe and healthy,” she said.

“We have over 7,500 staff working across Northern Health, with the inclusion of mental health staff who joined us in July this year. It is great to see how our health service has continued to grow – expanding the range of services we provide to the communities of Melbourne’s northern suburbs.”

Five recipients have been with Northern Health the longest, celebrating 40 and 45 years. Susan Short, Rhonda Lark, Freda Kotsios and Jeanette Kamar celebrated an incredible 40 years of service. Helen Milevski celebrated an amazing 45 years of dedicated service.

Belinda Scott, Executive Director, Mental Health, presented Helen with her award and a beautiful bunch of flowers. After accepting her award, Helen spoke on the positive changes mental health has endured over the past 45 years.

“There have been huge changes, and a lot of changes. I am very proud to say I have worked in healthcare, mainly mental health, and the 45 years in mental health have been a rollercoaster,” Helen said.

“When I started in 1977, I remember the stigma of mental health and I have seen the changes, the progress, the facilities that are available now for people to go to get help. I am so grateful to work in a team to provide a great service. We have excellent clinicians, beautiful people and wonderful colleagues. We all have to remember we are a team – we cannot achieve anything and provide proper care to our clients and patients without the support of each other.”

“We have to help each other and take the time and say to ourselves, ‘are we okay?’ before we take care of other people.”

Debra Bourne, Chief Operating Officer, Wanda Stelmach, Chief Medical Officer, Pina Di Donato, Executive Director, Public Affairs and Foundation, Anthony Gust, Executive Director Digital Health, Jason Cirone, Chief Allied Health Officer and Basil Ireland, Chief Finance Officer, together with Belinda and Michelle, presented the awards for the 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35 and 40-year recipients.

Michelle closed the ceremony by reading a message on behalf of Siva Sivarajah, Chief Executive.

“I am proud to be part of an organisation with such a rich history, and whose staff are so dedicated, passionate and hard working,” Michelle read.

“I would like to extend an enormous thank you to all of our staff here at Northern Health. As we move towards the end of another year, on behalf of the Board and Executive, I wish you a happy and safe festive season.”

Congratulations to all our recipients today!

To watch the full ceremony, please click here.

Featured imaged: Belinda Scott, Executive Director Mental Health, and Helen Milevski.

As construction of the new Mental Health building continues at Northern Hospital Epping, there are also some other exciting works in progress.

This year, Northern Health Foundation partnered with Lendlease, a globally integrated real estate group, focusing on development and construction, to deliver a fundraising initiative which will continue to support mental health in our community long after the building works are completed.

Chris Liparota, Construction Manager, Lendlease, has been involved in helping Northern Health Foundation raise funds throughout the course of the new Mental Health build. Thanks to this incredible initiative, Lendlease has raised over $56,000 in donations, which will contribute towards a Mental Health program once the build is complete.

“The Lendlease construction team and our wonderful supply chain at the Pathway to 144 Mental Health Beds Project are excited to partner with Northern Health Foundation to fundraise for some incredible initiatives at the hospital and new Mental Health Unit,” says Chris.

“With a large percentage of our workforce being local, there has, and continues to be, a reliance on the Northern Hospital to support our community. We are grateful that Lendlease Construction can contribute toward the important work the team at Northern Health are doing.”

As our community continues to grow, there is an ongoing need to expand services offered by Northern Health. The Victorian Government’s Mental Health Beds Expansion Program forms a part of this, with 30 new mental health beds soon to be available at Northern Hospital Epping.

Belinda Scott, Executive Director Mental Health, said, “I am thrilled at the opportunity to lead an amazing team to improve outcomes for consumer, carers and families. The fundraising by Lendlease will make a significant difference to improving amenities in our existing units in addition to the 30 new beds.”

Once complete, the new mental health facility will improve outcomes for patients in the northern catchment area. It will provide more than 10,900 days of care, enabling 655 more local to access vital mental health services every year.

The Foundation is proud to be a part of the development of our northern community. With partners like Lendlease, we can continue to fund vital services for our residents, so they can access appropriate care on their doorstep.

We congratulate Lendlease on their successful fundraising campaign. We are sincerely grateful for their continued support.

Ishmeet Singh has just completed three months in the role of Director, Procurement Service at Northern Health.

He brings more than 20 years of experience to this role, having previously worked in procurement and supply chain services across tertiary education (RMIT) and manufacturing (Ford). For the past five years, Ishmeet has been the Deputy Director, Procurement Services at Monash Health, where he was responsible for managing procurement functions, contract management and supply chain operations, including facilities management, ICT corporate services and medical consumables.

Recently, Ishmeet also managed the planning and distribution of critical PPE and ICU equipment across the state, with the Department of Health.

Firstly, what’s your coffee order?

Almond cappuccino please.

Tell us about your role at Northern Health?

We are responsible for the procurement and supply chain of goods and services for all Northern Health sites. As a department, we provide a number of services, including strategic sourcing and tactical buying, contract management, supply chain, vehicle fleet and other logistic support services.

What do you like most about your role?

To be an enabler of growth and creating sustainable value for the business.

What do you find challenging?

Accepting waste, inefficiencies and mediocre outcomes.

What does a typical day look like for you?

Meetings with stakeholders to address their needs and guiding my team to deliver desired outcomes.

Can you tell us a bit about your career before starting at Northern Health?

I have more than 20 years of procurement and supply chain experience across manufacturing, tertiary education and health care. I spent the last five years at Monash Health Procurement, and was actively involved in the state supply chain for COVID-19 response.

What is something people don’t know about you?

I am a mechanical engineer by qualification, who slipped into procurement and supply chain, and never looked back.

What do you like to do after work?

Read about food and travel! I love to cook different cuisines and invent new drinks. I have a lot of favourites, but my go-to cuisine is Italian. I have done some crazy pizza combinations which turned out surprisingly well!

Do you have a bucket list item? Something you would love to do?

Learn to play guitar! I love music from all over the world. Rock and country music, with Guns N Roses and Alabama being my favourites.

What’s your favourite inspirational quote?

“Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value” – Albert Einstein.

If you were a superhero, who would you be and why?

Batman, for believing in the art of possibility in all situations and never failing to rise again if we fail.

Which Northern Health value do you relate to best?

All of them, but I relate the most to Kindness: We treat everyone with kindness, respect and empathy. We provide patient-centred and compassionate care.

When Professor Ewing was appointed as the inaugural Associate Professor of Surgery at PANCH, a storeroom was hastily converted into an office for him.

It was thought that the small doorway would not be wide enough to accommodate the large oak desk he wished to bring, so it was enlarged to two full length glass doors. “Much to the hospital engineer’s dismay, my large oak desk arrived in ready to assemble pieces. I got an office though with a lovely view of the garden outside!”

It marked the beginning of what Professor Ewing describes as “interesting times.”

Professor Hamish Ewing has just retired after a chequered career. In thanking him, Chief Executive, Siva Sivarajah spoke of his dedication, “to clinical improvement and teaching since you began your career at PANCH as Associate Professor of Surgery in 1989.”

“Your dedication has led to the establishment of academic programs and activities, computerised audits and a breast service, at a time when single speciality services were unknown in the health service. Your academic contributions to medical students, trainees and Fellows are well recognised by Northern Health staff who remain grateful for your significant contribution in establishing the Northern Health, University of Melbourne Medical School.”

Hamish says the post of inaugural Associate Professor of Surgery was, “a personal challenge. I was young (41 years) and was not only replacing a much-loved and skilled senior surgeon, but also had the daunting prospect of being the first ‘University Man’ at the busy Preston hospital where all the consultant staff were senior in years to me.”

He was delighted to discover that he had joined a team of surgeons, receptive to significant changes that could be made to improve education and service delivery.

This role came at the time PANCH was to be closed and the new Northern Hospital was being designed. “This meant active input into our new hospital design and visiting the vacant building site on Cooper Street that was then covered with thistles and some remaining dry-stone walls.”

The Director of Surgery role became a much more structured role when Northern Health was established. “I was a member of the hospital executive and could bring clinical issues to this forum. It also meant that I could bring the challenges of the executive directly to the surgical workforce ‘at the coalface’.  A bit of a balancing act at times,” he says.

“Northern Hospital was inundated with work from day one. Specialty surgery services were developed with significant workforce increases at all levels for me to manage, both from a budget and human resources point of view. Quite different from PANCH days.”

One such development was the formalisation of a breast service – one of the first health services in Melbourne to create a truly integrated program.

“Yet another giant step forward at the time was the Breast Care Nurse position funded by a special grant. In addition to these multidisciplinary meetings, we also held a breast clinic which meant all the team would be in attendance at the ‘one – stop’ clinic. All very exciting,” says Hamish.

Another was the enhancing of the surgical audit tool at Northern Health, originally developed at PANCH. This tool facilitated surgical quality care meetings and was designed to also comply with the surgical registrar trainees log-book requirements.

In 2011, the University of Melbourne changed the six-year undergraduate degree, to a four-year graduate entry MD program. This change to the curriculum included an expanded GP experience to be delivered at only two new outer-metro clinical schools, Northern Health and Western Health. Professor Ewing was appointed as inaugural Director of Medical Student Education at Northern Health.

“The MD program has three clinically based years, with students returning to central hospitals for Children’s and Women’s Health. At Northern Health, we had all of these specialist services at our hospital and our campaigning led to the whole of the three-year clinical program being delivered at Northern by our medical staff.”

However, Northern Health did not have a space big enough to cater to the increased number of students.

“The student quarters consisted of two small rooms near the library which were crammed with shared lockers. Limited university funding was made available and two purpose-built de-mountables were delivered to create our first real home as ‘The Northern Clinical School’ (now housing Hospital-in-the-Home).”

Hamish says seeing “the evolution of a health service from a desperately busy (& tired old building) community hospital in Preston to the new multi-campus Northern Health of today has been amazing.”

“The big and ongoing highlight for me is contact with people I have had across my 33 years of involvement at Northern: patients and their families, all manner of staff who make our service tick, nurses, students and doctors alike. My big reward, and affirmation of my career, is to meet these people years later in all manner of venues (even caring for my own health!) having progressed in their careers and life in general.”

He believes the challenge, as the health service is constantly getting larger and more complex, is to “achieve a sense of community to make it a wholesome and friendly workplace.”

“My thanks go to you all for being part of my journey. I am very proud of Northern Health and will be cheering from the sidelines into the future. Please say ‘hi’ should you ever spot me in the street, as it makes my day!”

We join Mr Sivarajah in wishing Professor Ewing the very best in his retirement. As he said, “On behalf of Northern Health and the generations of students you have mentored – thank you!”

As the weather begins to warm up in Victoria, snakes are becoming increasingly active and putting both humans and pets at risk of snakebites.

Knowing what to do if you or someone you are with is bitten, is critical. Most snakebites are treatable and can be managed effectively.

Today, we sat down with Associate Professor Joe Rotella, Clinical Toxicologist at Northern Health, to talk all things snakebites.

Why do we see so many bites around this time of the year?

A common myth about snakes is that they hibernate, where in fact, they undergo a process called brumation, where they slow their body processes down and will move during winter, but very slowly as they are not running on ‘full power’. Before they enter this cycle, they build up their sugar stores so when the weather does warm up, they have the instant energy they need to move and catch prey. So as spring arrives, the weather is warmer and the snakes head out for a meal. This year, heavier rainfall has meant more insects and therefore more prey for snakes such as frogs, lizards etc.

What are some of the things you can do to protect yourself from snakebites?

The first thing to say is that snakes do not want to bite people. They only bite when they feel very threatened, so prevention is key. Try to avoid situations where you might encounter a snake, especially if there is signage suggesting they are around, but that isn’t always possible. Here are some thoughts:

• If you are traveling around areas with long grass, wear closed toed shoes and make an effort to stomp a bit – snakes have poor hearing but the vibrations will let them know you are nearby.
• If you have wood piles on your property, take care if needing to move them as these are often popular places for snakes to reside in.
• If you own a dog, consider snake avoidance training or keep your dog on a lead if you are walking in the bush or tall grass. Snake venom is not great for humans but can be far more lethal for dogs. Please protect your pets – there are providers out there that can be found via a Google search.
• If you see a snake, do not pick it up and please do not try to kill it. It is illegal and it is far more likely to result in a bite. Call a qualified snake catcher to assist and keep small children and pets away until they arrive.
• Mow your lawns and keep clutter in the yard to a minimum. The less places to hide, the less likely a snake will call your yard home.

 What to do if you are bitten by a snake?

1. Stay calm – movement spreads the venom. Lie down and do not move the affected limb.
2. If you are on your own, call Triple Zero (000). Do not try to move on your own.
3. If you have a pressure bandage (these can be bought from your local chemist) and someone to help, they can apply from above the suspected bite site down (with some extra layers around where the bite is). It needs to be tight enough that you can just get a finger in, but no tighter that that.
4. You can tie a stick or a newspaper etc. to use as a splint but not necessary.
5. Do not try to catch the snake. We don’t need to know which snake it was as we use a combination of antivenom to cover the main venomous snakes in Victoria.
6. Check the time – this will help the ED staff to manage you accordingly.
7. Prepare to be in hospital overnight at a minimum – even without signs of being envenomed, we need to do multiple sets of blood tests for 12 hours from the bite. It isn’t a short visit but it is for your safety.

What are the symptoms of a venomous snakebite? 

Most people will feel pretty scared and anxious when they have been bitten by a snake or they think they may have, but the symptoms we look for that suggest envenomation include:

• Severe nausea and vomiting
• Severe headache
• Severe abdominal pain
• Difficulty holding eyes open or difficulty moving your eyes as required
• Bleeding from puncture sites (i.e. where blood tests taken) or from your nose or gums
• Although rare, some people can collapse after a snakebite
• Not having symptoms is reassuring but some people can be envenomed and have abnormal blood tests, so it is important you stay in hospital to be assessed properly.

What key messages would you like to share with the community on snakebites?

Snakes are not our enemies. Mutual respect and prevention is key to avoiding bites. Bites are rare, and bites where venom is injected are even rarer.

If you think you may have been bitten, call for help urgently as symptoms can progress. The sooner you get to hospital, the better. It is better to be safe than sorry.

We have a wonderful world to explore. Go out and see what’s out there but take care along the way. A bandage is inexpensive and light to carry and adds peace of mind.

Northern Health’s Executive Patient Safety Walk Arounds create opportunities for staff and patients to directly engage with members of the Northern Health Executive and discuss the quality of care being provided.

The walks were paused during the height of COVID-19, but recommenced last week at Broadmeadows Hospital. As part of the visit to Broadmeadows, Executives also visited McLellan House Residential Care.

Williams Akengbowa, Acting Nurse Unit Manager, McLellan House Extended Care, said the walk around was a really good exercise.

“It created opportunities for the Executive to have a better knowledge about the facility, and to provide suggestions and advice on ways to make the residential facility as homely as possible for the residents,” he said.

“Having members of the Executive around, we are able to tell them directly what our needs are, instead of sending them an email,” he said.

“McLellan House is the resident’s home, we are the visitors. We are coming in to support them and meet their daily needs, so the environment is really important – how can we make it homelier and more attractive for the residents.”

“Staff were able to voice their concern directly to the Executive without fear and the Executives received them with good hearts.”

Lisa Carter, Director of Nursing and Operations, Aged Care and Mental Health, said the walk arounds help to boost staff morale, because immediate action can be taken to improve patient care and the environment in which staff work in.

“Much to our pleasure, the very next day, contractors came and were cleaning up the gardens, cutting down and pruning trees,” she said.

“There is a lot more to happen than just the garden, but the fact that staff saw instant action is a really good start.”

The walk arounds also provide an opportunity for mental health and aged care staff to meet the Executive team.

“I found it very beneficial as a new team member, because I met a number of people I wouldn’t normally get the opportunity to meet,” Lisa said.

“Often, within healthcare organisations, when you have Executive involvement, staff might feel that they have to polish themselves up, put on their best face, and we almost learn to hide the things that aren’t good.”

“But this experience was the total opposite. It was about telling the Executives what the problems are, how can they help, what needs to be done to rectify things, what would we like to see. As someone who is new to Northern Health, I found that it was such a flip compared to previous experiences.”

Clare McCarthy, Director, Quality Safety and Patient Experience, said, “It was great to be able to run our Executive Patient Safety Walk Around, as it’s been quite some time,” she said.

“Broadmeadows was so welcoming — Unit 2, Day Procedure and Endoscopy, and our new colleagues at McLellan House — were so engaged, identified safety problems and are committed to improvements.”

Northern Health has partnered with the Black Dog Institute as part of the health service’s commitment to prioritising staff wellbeing.

The Black Dog Institute has a focus on normalising conversations around mental health, and striving to make Australian workplaces mentally healthier. The institute is also well versed in understanding the relationship between mental health and work, and designs programs that assist businesses to implement workplace policies and procedures to support staff wellbeing.

Renee Camilleri, Wellbeing Partner at Northern Health, said connecting with a leading and reputable mental health organisation was a key piece of the wellbeing puzzle.

“Being aligned with these progressive and well-researched programs tells our community that Northern Health is working continually to have a psychologically safe environment for staff. Having a mentally healthy workforce also ensures the best quality of patient care,” she said.

The partnership will include training, presentation and deliverables, including access for all staff to innovative mental health e-learning modules on our LMS portal. They will also have access to a presentation by a Black Dog Institute accredited lived-experience speaker with a healthcare worker background, where employees will learn about the prevalence of mental health and how to access supports both internal to the workplace and external.

Practically focused interactive workshops will also be available for managers and leaders across Northern Health. These workshops will focus on harnessing current skills to have more effective conversations around stress, mental health and wellbeing, as well as recognising and becoming more aware of signs and symptoms within themselves, and in their colleagues.

In the coming weeks, leaders across our health service will be invited to participate in an education workshop about mental health wellbeing. This workshop will cover how to spot the early signs of mental health issues and how to keep yourself and your colleagues well at work.

Northern Health is committed to building a positive and inclusive workplace culture where everyone feels safe and supported to talk about mental health, reach out for support early and, by doing so, improve their recovery.

Click here to be directed to the LMS portal to access the modules and book in for your managers training.

Today, we are celebrating International Day of the Volunteer, and the 81^st birthday of Alan Kew, a long-term volunteer at Northern Health.

On this day, we aim to raise awareness of the important role volunteers play, and celebrate and promote volunteering. We take this opportunity to acknowledge, thank, and shine a light on the important work of volunteers.

The 2022 theme is: Solidarity through Volunteering.

Henni Wade, Manager of Volunteer Services, Northern Health, says that volunteers are an invaluable asset to the health service and its consumers, and that their work is always in line with Northern Health’s values of Safe, Kind, Together.

Despite the many obstacles volunteers and volunteering have faced during COVID-19, which ultimately led to a significant decline in the total number of volunteers and services provided in the hospital, 2022 was considered to be a transitioning year.

“We currently have 140 volunteers registered across our sites, and we are looking forward to 2023. We are positive that it will be a reinvigorating year and will enable us to provide new ways of supporting our local community and health services,” Henni said.

Encouraging, recognising, and promoting volunteering is an important part of creating a more equal and inclusive future for our community.

In light of this, the Volunteer Services team is organising a celebratory lunch on Wednesday, 14 December, at Bundoora Norris Banks Reserve.

“Our volunteers here at Northern Health are both resilient and adaptable. Just by having their friendly, smiling faces around it makes a big difference,” Henni said.

Stella Gibbons, Northern Health Volunteer, says, “I got involved at Northern Heath through my daughter working in the ED here, and I started off by baking cupcakes for the ED staff, back in 2018. Subsequently, life went on and COVID-19 happened, but now that I’m retired, I’m able to be here full-time.”

“I find it rewarding, I enjoy the atmosphere in the foyer and helping people. I think, whatever moment of your time you put in volunteering, you find it immensely satisfying,” Stella said.

“We are grateful every day to the volunteers who come in to support our health service. The energy, fun, empathy and enthusiasm they bring is contagious,” Henni said.

Some of the programs currently being provided by our Volunteer Services are:

COMMUNITY VISITORS SCHEME (CVS):

This program matches lonely and isolated residents in aged care facilities with a volunteer who can either provide in person visits or Zoom calls. If you know someone that would like to be a volunteer with our Community Visitors Scheme, please direct them to register their interest here.

 HOW-R-U PROGRAM:

If you would like to refer a patient into our How-R-U Program which is a telephone social support service, please contact Natalie Carrol at natalie.carrol@nh.org.au.

CONTACT THE VOLUNTEER SERVICES TEAM:

Phone: 8405 8971

Email: volunteer@nh.org.au

To all our wonderful volunteers, thank you for all that you do!

Featured image: Northern Health volunteers with Henni Wade (far right).