“We don’t have all the answers but we are creating a space to ask the questions” – Better Together Conference

Electra Ulrich, Co-chair of the Northern Health LGBTIQA+ Working Group, shares key learnings from her recent attendance to the LGBTIQA+ Better Together Conference – facilitating conversations about LGBTIQA+ rights in Australia.

Better Together explores issues facing the LGBTIQA+ movement, bringing together voices from Indigenous communities, people with a disability, the deaf community and multicultural and multi-faith communities.

“We all know advocacy is important, but what does this look like for the LBGTIQA+ community? In particular for those at the intersectionality of vulnerable communities,” Electra said.

“At Better Together, there was a plenary, where those who are part of the LGBTIQA+ community and have a disability spoke about the challenges they face at this particular intersectionality. Some clear messages came through to me, such as the importance of asking before helping, involving those at the intersectionality in any planning, and respecting that the person with the disability knows what they need –’nothing about us without us’. As one speaker put it – ‘it’s important to vocalise your support because we don’t assume it’s there’,” Electra said.

A panel discussion on ‘exploring the role of allies’ covered what a LGBTIQA+ ally looks like, not only as an individual but also as an organisation. Three main areas were raised – through visibility, policy and education.

“One ally spoke of the challenges she faced, saying ‘being an ally is a process, going through the conversations, gaining more armour – it’s a journey’,” Electra said.

Acknowledgement and visibility were also discussed during the conference. In many places now, the addition of brown and black to the rainbow flag acknowledges Indigenous People & People of Colour.

“Narrun Wilip-giin (Northern Health Aboriginal Support Unit) welcomes the acknowledgement of our people to the rainbow flag. Our unit supports the advocacy for our ‘sistagirls’ and ‘brothaboys’ and encourages Indigenous people to attend the Pride March,” said Karen Bryant, Northern Health Senior Aboriginal Liaison Officer.

“As co-chair of the LGBTIQA+ working group at Northern Health, it’s been great to work with our partners in the North to be marching at Pride March for the first time,” Electra said.

“Staff members and their family and friends are all encouraged to join us to march this Sunday.”

Click here to register today and take part in Pride March 2020!

For any questions around marching as part of Pride in the North, email PrideintheNorth@nh.org.au.

Featured Image (left to right): Electra Ulrich (Co-chair of the LGBTIQA+ Working Group, Northern Health) and Eugenia Castro (Member of the LGBTIQA+ Working Group, DPV Health)

Northern Pathology Victoria just completed one year of service – a year in which it processed over 1.3 million tests and 400,000 patient requests, and received accreditation from the National Association of Testing Authorities, Australia (NATA).

As the first public pathology service in 40 years, it offers Gene Xpert testing for Flu/RSV, a Complex Coagulation Laboratory and a suite of onsite tests including tumour markers, haemolysis screen, HbA1c as well as high sensitivity troponin.

When asked about the future plans, Dr Prahlad Ho, Program Director – Diagnostic Services and Director of Clinical Haematology says 2020 will see the introduction of a total automation system, including a track and the expansion of current on-site laboratory repertoire to include thalassaemia testing, protein electrophoresis and bcr-abl, Factor V Leiden and prothrombin gene mutation.

“There’s also the ongoing collaboration with our external partners to ensure the availability of cutting edge laboratory tests for our patients” says Prahlad.

Dr Frank Hong, Director of Northern Pathology, says, “It has been a challenging year. However, with the hard work of every one of our staff, and the support of the clinicians, we have established a brand new public pathology service that we can all be very proud of. While this is a huge achievement, it is only the beginning and we will strive to make Northern Pathology Victoria even better.”

Shiraz Lubke, Operations Manager, who has seen how the service has grown in this one year, had this to say, “I feel privileged to have been part of the successful go – live of the Pathology Service.  Over the past twelve months, there have been many challenges to which we have risen and overcome. There is still much to be done and the next 12 months promise to be exciting for Pathology at Northern Health.”

The Northern Health Foundation Major Raffle, drawn in December 2019, had ticket holders gathered in anticipation in Northern Hospital foyer to find out who would be the winner of a brand new Hyundai Kona.

The Kona was on display in the foyer for the last few months of the year, creating a lot of buzz and excitement – and Christmas came early for one lucky person!

The winner of the car was Ivanna Panopoulos, graduate nurse at Northern Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit.

When Ivanna picked up the phone on that December day, she couldn’t believe the news.

“I still can’t believe it – it’s just so exciting and definitely a dream come true. I bought a ticket because I knew it was going toward a good cause. I didn’t expect to win anything, but I thought I’d pitch in and here I am,” she said.

Ivanna says you’ve got to be in it to win it.

“Either way it goes towards a good cause – it’s supporting the community and the hospital, so definitely worth supporting. At Northern Health, everyone knows each other so there’s a really good sense of community,” she said.

Funds raised from the 2019 raffle will support the purchase of an additional emergency accommodation property for Northern Health patient families, who travel long distances to be with their loved ones in hospital.

Northern Health Foundation Director, Yvonne Amos, said, “the support from our major sponsor, Maxxia, who provided the Hyundai Kona as first prize, and our other sponsors, Helloworld, Eziway, Mantra Epping and South Morang Hyundai, provides a wonderful opportunity for us to raise funds. The campaign has been a joint effort by our partners, staff and the northern community who have all come together in support of Northern Health Foundation.”

Congratulations to Ivanna and thank you to everyone who purchased tickets and contributed.

A special thank you also to the dedicated volunteers who spent many hours selling tickets across our sites.

 

Featured image (left to right): Tim Bond, Maxxia; Yvonne Amos, Northern Health Foundation and the winner – Ivana Panopoulos.

Andrew Lauva enjoys a challenge and a problem that needs to be solved. That is one of the reasons he is one of Northern Health’s valuable consumers who has participated on a number of important initiatives, including the working party for the strategic plan, patient experience recruitment and Standard 2 committee.

Andrew spent the majority of his career working for the Victorian Public Service. His last role was as a HR Coordinator/ Facilities Manager was at the State Services Authority.

“I worked in about 10 departments during my career in the Victorian Public Service also volunteered with Brotherhood of St Laurence, working with Asylum Seekers and Refugees and helping them with job seeking,” he said.

Andrew had experiences as an inpatient both in private and public hospitals.  Through his rehabilitation at Bundoora Centre for an injured ankle he became interested in volunteering at Northern Health.

“Before Bundoora, I was also a patient in a medical ward at Broadmeadows Hospital and had rehab there to add to my consumer experience,” he said.

As an end user of the system, Andrew felt his experience, observations of routines and practices whilst in hospital provided an opportunity for input as a consumer at Northern Health.  Coupled with his impressive experience professionally, Andrew felt he had something to offer.

“After retiring, I was keen to stay engaged in the community and keep my mind active, as well as give back to my community. I was seeking a way to use my professional background to make a meaningful contribution. I value learning about the complexities of a public health system,” he said.

Andrew enjoys the opportunity to share his expertise and knowledge, as well as the social interaction as a consumer. Being active in the community, and the feeling of contributing and the contact – brings Andrew satisfaction. His work on the committees and being involved in the strategic plan development enable Andrew to make a valuable contribution.

Andrew also feels it is important to recognise and reward volunteers – as they provide their time, energy and skills to an organisation.

“Actually, my volunteering experience at Northern Health was as a Ward Angel.  After being an inpatient myself, I understood how long a day can be, and how your day is driven by routines. A Ward Angel visits people and spends time with them. Having a chat, being a friendly face that can help break up the day, particularly if you are mostly confined to bed really means a lot,” he added.

Andrew knows that a consumer brings fresh eyes to a situation, and being a future potential end user of the system, he aims to have his experience influence and improve others experiences.

“We are all consumers and potential users of health services. With increasing demand, consumers can influence processes and offer a different way of doing things, that can shift efficiency and effectiveness, which a clinical or medical model may not consider,” he added.

Andrew is excited to have a continued and deeper involvement in committees.

“I would like the opportunity to make an active contribution to development of Framework for involving consumers in recruitment.  I like to be involved in projects where I can see the results,” he added.

Nikki Petrakis says she has always wanted to be a Northern Doctor. This year, she saw her dream become a reality.

Nikki is one of our many excited and talented medical interns starting their Northern Health journey this year.

After studying as a medical student at James Cook University in Townsville and Mackay, Nikki was eager to return to her home city of Melbourne and work in the northern suburbs where she grew up.

“Northern Health was my top choice for internship as I was driven to give back to the community I had grown up in as a child. All my big Greek family live in the area, including the four grandparents who inspired me to become a Northern Doctor.”

“My mum began her career as a clinical support officer at Northern Hospital, and I am excited to begin my career in the same organisation,” she said.

Nikki tells us she enjoyed visiting family members over the years who worked for Northern Health.

“Growing up, I always visited family working here, including my two aunties who work in surgical bookings and podiatry still to this day. However, I’m proud to be the first in the family to work here as a doctor.”

Nikki’s time studying interstate provided her with a number of unique experiences to help shape her as a junior doctor.

“Studying in Far North Queensland has equipped me with the skills to become a practical and resourceful doctor. I was fortunate enough to deliver babies in the Tropics of Fiji, work rurally in Mount Isa and visit some of Australia’s remotest communities with the Royal Flying Doctors Service,” she says.

The future looks bright for Nikki and she is keen to hit the ground running to care for patients and families in the north.

She tells us she is most looking forward to being an advocate for holistic patient care. She says, “this is especially relevant in communities like ours that have such diverse backgrounds.”

“I am particularly passionate about having a role in the development of Northern Health as an organisation that services not just individual patients, but our entire community,” she adds.

“Although I have not chosen a medical specialty yet, it is exciting to be a part of the growth corridor out in the north, and see my career develop alongside the continued expansion of the health service.”

The Northern Health vascular surgery team were pleased to host their third annual Complex Venous Workshop last Wednesday.

Workshops involve treating cases of patients with complex venous disorders, and hosting renowned venous experts from around the globe, for an opportunity to share expertise and learn from world-leading surgeons.

“This year, we had the honour of hosting Melbourne surgeon, Professor Michael Grigg, to join us and share his invaluable experience. The focus of the workshop was thoracic outlet compression and, once again, a case of complete vena cava obstruction,” said Iman Bayat, Head of Vascular Surgery at Northern Health.

Professor Grigg led the first case of the workshop – a cervical rib resection to treat thoracic outlet syndrome.

The thoracic outlet is a narrow space between the collarbone and first rib. Through this narrow space, large vessels and nerves travel from the chest and neck into the arms. In some patients, these vessels and nerves can be compressed and result in complications such as blood clots or damage to the vessels.

Treatment for these patients is not only to treat the immediate complications such as blood clots, but to prevent recurrence of the complications by removal of the first rib. Interestingly, our patient who underwent treatment during the workshop not only had compression by the first rib, but also had an extra rib, which is a known but rare congenital anomaly.

The patient underwent successful surgery by Professor Grigg and Northern Health surgeons, Mr David Goh and Mr Shrikkanth Rangarajan.

“The workshop today was excellent. It’s a very pleasant environment here and the theatres are extremely well equipped,” said Professor Grigg.

The second case, led by Northern Health surgeons, Mr Iman Bayat and Mr David Goh, successfully opened an obstructed inferior vena cava (IVC) and iliac veins using balloons and stents.

“In our efforts to treat the more complex of the spectrum of chronic venous obstruction, our second case was a patient who had blockage of her inferior vena cava from previous, and now in remission, cancer,” Mr Bayat said.

“The IVC is the main vein in the abdomen that transports the returning blood from both legs and the pelvic organs back to the heart. With this vein being completely blocked, our patient unfortunately suffered from pain in the legs while walking, leg swelling, and, if not treated, would have developed further complications such as ulcerations and skin changes. The procedure was successful with no complications,” Mr Bayat added.

“It was just over a year ago when we performed the first endovascular IVC reconstruction with guidance from Mr Stephen Black visiting from the UK, and it’s great to see the skills acquired at these workshops enable our surgeons to now tackle these more complex procedures and bring those benefits to our patients,” Mr Bayat said.

Northern Health vascular surgeons are leading the state in treating complex venous disease and are working towards offering a complete spectrum of venous care to patients in the north.

Featured Image: Mr Iman Bayat, Head of Vascular Surgery at Northern Health (centre) and Professor Michael Grigg (far right middle row) with Northern Health staff 

Many new faces have been warmly welcomed to Northern Health, as 52 graduate nurses and midwives begin their careers today.

Following a record number of applications received for Northern Health’s 2020 Graduate Nursing and Midwifery Programs, a total of 124 graduates will start throughout the year.

This is a special year to begin their nursing careers, as 2020 is the International Year of the Nurse and the Midwife – a year to recognise and showcase the crucial roles nurses and midwives have in the community to improve the health and wellbeing of patients and their families.

Northern Health Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officer, Debra Bourne, said, “It is with great pleasure that we welcome the new graduate nurses and midwives to Northern Health.”

“With 2020 being declared the International Year of the Nurse and Midwife, it is an important year for our profession – a time when we will celebrate and promote the role of the midwife and nurse. The new graduates are part of this celebration and we are excited for all that they will bring and add to this year,” she said.

The enthusiastic nurses and midwives will complete a two-day orientation at the state of the art Northern Centre for Health Education & Research, before commencing rotations in areas including emergency, surgical, paediatrics and aged care.

As a tertiary teaching health service, Northern Health offers three streams of Graduate Programs: General Nursing, Midwifery, and Combined Nursing & Midwifery.

The three programs support nurses and midwives as they make their transition from student to registered nurse or midwife, combining theory and knowledge from their studies with practical skills.

Nurses and midwives also have the opportunity to work across our four sites: Northern Hospital, Broadmeadows Hospital, Bundoora Centre and Craigieburn Centre, allowing them to further develop their skills in many different areas of Northern Health.

Congratulations and good luck to all of our 2020 graduate nurses and midwives – we look forward to working with you throughout your Northern Health journey!

We asked some of our new graduate nurses and midwives what they are most looking forward to about working at Northern Health. Hear what they had to say in the video below.

With the help of Northern Health Foundation, the Department of Anaesthesia has successfully obtained a grant for the CMAC video laryngoscope.

Dr David Tsang, Anaesthetist, said the idea for applying for a CMAC, a device used to safely manage airways, came as a result of the need to provide timely help across the whole hospital.

“One of the greatest challenges in airway management are usually not within theatre itself, but in other departments, like emergency and intensive care. In those departments, they already use CMAC, which is different from what we were using in theatre, so the idea was that if we obtain CMAC for theatre, it would improve airway management throughout the hospital,” he said.

That way, the theatre staff would be more familiar with the equipment in other departments, especially when staff are called to provide expert advice and management in other departments.

“Having a CMAC of our own means we wouldn’t be looking at the equipment for the first time in other departments,” he explained.

“In terms of obtaining the grant, we saw a unique opportunity to apply for the grant because the speech pathology department have been in the process of establishing an endoscopic evaluation of swallow service which uses the CMAC module. Because they already use it, this was a chance for us to put the same module to an additional purpose,” he said.

“The equipment arrived in late 2019, with a lot of help and support from the Northern Health Foundation. It is great that the Foundation recognised this opportunity to benefit two different departments with a shared piece of equipment. We are very grateful,” David added.

“Northern Health Foundation were supportive of the grant as it will be a shared resource with the speech pathology department, as well as aligning CMAC equipment across Northern Hospital. It also supports our medical staff when managing patients across departments and improving the patient experience,” said Yvonne Amos, Director Northern Health Foundation.

Featured image: Krystle Neophitou, ANUM of Anaesthetics and Dr David Tsang.