With the temperature expected to rise upwards of  34 degrees today, here’s some sobering facts about heatwaves, described as ‘nature’s silent killer’ and tips on how to stay well in extreme heat.

Heatwaves have three levels of intensity-low, severe and extreme. ‘Severe’ can affect vulnerable individuals, but ‘extreme’ can affect even the young and healthy.

They are the most lethal weather phenomenon with greater fatality than avalanches and earthquakes worldwide. Here in Australia they are responsible for 55% of all natural disaster related deaths. (Source: news.com.au)

How to beat the heat

Stay hydrated:

• Keep those fluids up! Even if you don’t feel thirsty, have a drink bottle with you at all times to ensure you’re drinking plenty of water.

Stay cool:

• Seek out air-conditioned buildings, keep blinds closed, take cool showers, and wear loose clothing made from natural, breathable fibres like cotton.

Stay out of hot cars:

• Hot cars can kill! Never leave children, older people and pets in cars. Within minutes, the temperature inside a parked car can double.

Stay smart:

• Avoid being outside during the hottest part of the day. If you do have to go outside, remember to slip, slop, slap on the sunscreen and seek shade.
• Avoid exercising in the heat and activities like renovating and gardening.
• Make sure food that needs refrigeration is properly stored.
• Eat smaller meals more often and cold meals such as salads.
• Watch or listen to news reports to find out more information during extreme heat.

Stay connected:

• Look out for each other – patients, staff, volunteers and community members.
• Check in on those most at risk in the heat – older people, pets and our patients.

Northern Health Acting Director of Emergency Department, Dr Dean Pritchard, says that care must be taken by staff and patients to avoid prolonged exposure to heat during summer, particularly when combined with strenuous activity.

“We must also be mindful of our elderly family and neighbours, who may not have access to air-conditioning. Conditions as simple as sunburn, and as serious as heat stroke, can be prevented by avoiding exposure and exertion during the hottest times of day.”  he adds.

Apprenticeships Group Australia (AGA) and Northern Health have developed a School Based Traineeship Program whereby eligible students have the opportunity to complete a Certificate II in Business. Northern Health formed a partnership with AGA in 2016.

This year, five AGA students have graduated from Certificate II in Business, and have successfully completed their one day a week placement at Northern Health. They have worked in the following departments: P&C Front Reception, Ambulatory Care (Clinics and Business Centers), Women’s & Children’s Services (EA’s), Patient Experience and Quality, Project Management Office, Unit H & I, Northern Health Bundoora (Admin), Broadmeadows Hospital (Admin), Health information Services and Transformation P&C.

Emily Dawson, Director Organisational Capability, says two of these students will be staying on with us and working five days a week to complete their Certificate III.

“Having these students at Northern Health was a great experience for all. They were able to learn what it’s like to work in a health service and are now able to put their business administration studies into practice,” she said.

Northern Health aims to take on more students next year.

“We will be taking on seven more Certificate II students in 2019 and interviews will be taking place in partnership with AGA. I’d like to say a huge thanks to our staff and departments who support these young people in their first professional steps,” Emily said.

 

 

Today, the executive team handed out Christmas gifts to staff working on this special day and thanked them for all their hard work in the past year.

Debra Bourne, Acting Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officer said that this is a way to say to staff that their work is valued.

“Every year, all executive and operational staff, from Corporate, Allied Health, medical and nursing donate food, gifts, various chocolates and chips to all the wards and units that are open during Christmas” she said.

Have a Happy Christmas everyone!

Northern Health Strategic Plan.

It has been a busy and successful 2018 for us at Northern Health. We’ve treated more patients than ever before and I continue to be inspired by the commitment of staff to our patients and our community.

During the first half of 2019, we are developing our new Strategic Plan 2019-2023. This plan is the road map to our future, and your opportunity to become involved with this exciting time in planning health care for the northern suburbs of Melbourne.

The Strategic Plan will build on the tremendous work that has already been achieved towards our Clinical Services Plan, and will encompass work underway through our Trusted Care – High Reliability Organisation Initiatives. It’s also an opportunity to look at how we see ourselves within our community – and what kind of organisation we want to be in five years’ time. The plan will include a review of our vision and values to ensure they resonate with our staff, volunteers, patients and our community.

You will hear a lot more on how you can become involved in consultations early in the New Year.

Staff Recognition Awards – New Award for Clinical Excellence

In October this year, we commenced our new Quarterly Staff Recognition Awards celebrating the many achievements of our staff in both clinical and support roles. The award recipients are currently being profiled in stories on iNews.

The second round of award nominations opens today, with entries due by the end of January.

This time a new award – Clinical Excellence, has been added as a category.

This new award will recognise a clinician or clinical team who are generous with knowledge, instils confidence in patients and colleagues, and achieves the best patient experience outcomes. The introduction of this award aligns with our strong commitment to providing Trusted Care and our desire to celebrate, acknowledge and encourage excellence in clinical care.

I encourage you to consider nominating a colleague or team with extraordinary achievements in one of the award categories.

Happy and Safe Festive Season

Thank you once again for all your work this year. I have enjoyed meeting many of you at the Christmas lunches this week. They are a small way that we express our gratitude for your work throughout the year.

Our Board Chair, Jennifer Williams AM, and the entire Board, also expresses their gratitude for the work you do for our patients day in and day out.

We hope you all have a happy and safe Christmas and New Year with your family and friends!

 

Siva Sivarajah         

Chief Executive

Christmas cheer is in full swing across all campuses!

Our Christmas decorating competition has attracted numerous creative entries from various departments.

Northern Health judges, including Jane Poxon, Alison Dwyer, Simon Keating, Debra Bourne and Andrew Williamson, visited all contestants over three days, completing their visits with our annual Christmas staff BBQ’s.

The talented entries made it very hard for the judges to pick a winner. Entries were marked based on visual impact, creativity and overall festive theme. All the judges agreed that our staff and volunteers have shown incredible skill, effort and true holiday spirit.

And the winner is…. Hand Therapy, Northern Hospital Epping!

The creative talent behind this storybook fairytale is Laurelle Bland, Occupational Therapist and artist, who said initiatives like this bring our staff together, increase morale and bring out hidden abilities in our hospital. Laurelle enjoys painting backdrops for children’s birthday parties and said the inspiration for this year’s Christmas decoration came from a book she read.

Long, long ago, in a land far away, lived a perfect little tree named Small Pine. Small Pine hoped to maintain its perfect form and be selected by the Queen as her Christmas tree. But as the warm-hearted little tree gave shelter to birds, rabbits, and deer in the forest, its branches became damaged. Fortunately, the Queen had a different idea of perfection…

Second place goes to…. Broadmeadows Surgical Centre.

And third place goes to…. Cyril Barling Wing, Red Room, Bundoora.

Due to the large number of creative wards and departments, our judges have added two Highly Commended awards.

The first Highly Commended team is…Unit H and I, Northern Hospital, with a “Grinch” theme across their wards.

The second Highly Commended team is….Unit J, Northern Hospital, with an “Aussie Christmas” theme.

Thank you to everyone who participated and congratulations to our winners. We hope you have a happy Christmas!

To have a look at our Northern Health’s Staff BBQ photos, please click here.

The Northern Health Quarterly Staff Recognition Awards are open now with entries due by 31 January 2019, and the Awards being presented in February.

This quarter we introduce a new award of Clinical Excellence that is open to individual clinicians and clinical teams.  The executive believe that, given clinical excellence is at the core of our commitment to outstanding care for our community, it justifies a separate award.

The Clinical Excellence Award will recognise a team or individual that is generous with knowledge, instills confidence in patients and colleagues, and achieves the best patient outcomes.
(There is a separate criteria sheet for this award that nominators should read before submitting a nomination).

In October, we were delighted to launch the first of these new Awards, where six wonderful staff were recognised for their achievements.  They are currently being profiled in iNews stories. 

The Awards have been designed to formally recognise outstanding contributions by our employees and celebrate staff excellence.  We have over 5,000 staff in a wide range of areas dedicated to providing trusted care for our patients and we would like to reward their hard work and commitment to patients.

We encourage staff to nominate their colleagues for their achievements at Northern Health, whose actions align with our values across the six categories:
Clinical Excellence, Patient Experience, Excellence in Safety, Innovation, Above and Beyond and the Rising Star Award. 

Six Award Certificates and prizes of $250 each will be awarded each quarter courtesy of Maxxia and BankVic.

The Awards will culminate in Annual Awards to be held in the second half of 2019.

To nominate a colleague or team, please click here

Dr Rachael Coutts, Associate Director of Medical Education and Emergency Physician, has won the Inaugural Australasian College of Emergency Medicine (ACEM) Wellbeing Award.

The award celebrates the initiative(s) of groups, individuals, or whole emergency departments that have resulted in enhanced wellbeing for their emergency department colleagues.

Rachael was nominated by Will Halpin, Director, OHS & Wellbeing, for her work in developing a strategic wellbeing framework and an initiative to facilitate conversations on mental wellness.

“Rachael is a passionate advocate for improving the wellbeing of medical professionals, in particular, the protection and promotion of good mental health,” Will says.

Rachael played a pivotal role in the ‘Conversations on Mental Wellness’ initiative coinciding with R U OK Day in September; a week of speaking events, education sessions and wellbeing initiatives for the whole Northern Health workforce.

Our ‘Conversations on Mental Wellness’ week was about normalising the discussions related to the mental health and wellbeing of all staff.

Rachael says these conversations are relevant to all of us – our colleagues, staff, family and friends.

“If you think about mental wellness as being on a spectrum from thriving at one end, to severe mental illness at the other, any one of us could be at any location along the continuum at some time of our life,” she says.

“By opening up these conversations we can provide the opportunity for each of us to examine our own workplace environment, our unit, or department and question the culture and practice and begin to advocate for and create change,” she continues.

Some of the questions raised included:

• What does a mentally healthy workplace look like for your area?
• What protective factors exist?
• Are you able to speak up about mental health and wellbeing without fear of stigma or discrimination?
• Is there a culture of respect, openness and inclusivity in your department?
• Do you know where to seek help if you or a colleague need it?

Rachael says the award means that these conversations can be had at a much broader level, with the ability to share ideas, learn from each other and continue to advocate for change.

On a final note, Will says, “We’re lucky to have Rachael continuing to contribute to the implementation of the Northern Health psychological wellbeing strategy, and ultimately, a safer workplace for all of us.”

(Photo courtesy of ACEM) 

Northern Health Cardiac Nurse, Madonna Goro, was recently honoured with an Alfred Clinical School Award for Academic Excellence in Postgraduate Studies – cardiac nursing stream, from La Trobe University.

Currently studying a Master of Cardiac Care, Madonna received the highest marks across her course this year, excelling in both theory and practical components.

Previous to this, she completed a Bachelor of Nursing at RMIT. As part of the course, Madonna had the opportunity to work in different areas of the hospital – starting off in theatre then moving to pool nursing. It was during this time she found her passion in the field of cardiology.

“I have always been intrigued and fascinated by the heart and really enjoy working in coronary care looking after high acuity cardiac patients,” Madonna tells us.

Madonna has worked at Northern Health for four years and being able to help her community is what she enjoys most.

“Having grown up in this area, I feel I am contributing and serving my community,” she says.

“Working here is a way of giving back for me and I love that.”

Madonna sees herself becoming a cardiac educator, helping young nurses by offering her experience and knowledge. Madonna also has a passion for educating cardiac patients as she believes this is important to their recovery.

“On our ward, we prioritise education time for our patients prior to discharge. I think it makes a big difference when they have an understanding of what they’ve been through, what the next steps are, and how to live a better life. Having this understanding promotes confidence and prevents re-admission,” she says.

Madonna is very grateful for her team – managers, clinical support nurses and educators, who have been supportive and encouraging.

“We have a really good team on Unit D and I think when you work with supportive people it makes such a big difference. You’re happy to come to work and you apply yourself more,” she says.

Madonna would like to thank her whole team – Nurse Educator Maria Jolic, Clinical Support Nurse Natalie Kolegar, La Trobe University Course Coordinator Brendan MacDonald, and her managers Andrew Nixon and Gladis Thomas.