First anniversary celebrations for Ward 5 at Florence Nightingale Community Hospital
Colleagues at a ward established at Florence Nightingale Community Hospital (FNCH) to provide care for those awaiting discharge recently came together to celebrate one year supporting our patients and colleagues.
Ward 5, a 23-bedded ward at the Derby-based community hospital, was set up to support effective patient flow and overall capacity at UHDB and the wider health and social care system within the Midlands - providing care to medically fit patients who no longer require acute hospital care but are yet to be discharged.
In doing so, this frees up valuable bed space at acute hospital sites, helping to maintain the flow of patients across the system - particularly during times of high pressure on NHS services, such as the winter months.
Celebrating this important milestone, colleagues within the team got together to reflect on their inaugural year's work and achievements - marking the occasion with a small celebration on the ward itself.
Following the celebrations, Ajinder Gidda, Senior Sister, and Angela Roome, Sister / Charge Nurse, spoke of their "huge pride" in all they've achieved in the ward's first year, increasing their number of discharges dramatically over the course of the last 12 months.
Explaining how the team and the Trust as a whole has enhanced its ability to discharge patients since Ward 5 was set up, Ajinder said: "I think when we first opened, we were discharging one or two patients a day, and fast-forward to just today, we've discharged 12 patients. Overall, in our first year, on average we have discharged around three patients a day, with well over 1,000 total discharges in total, and that just shows what we're doing is working for patients and colleagues.
"Given that we are a 23-bed ward, that's the equivalent of our ward filling up entirely and then being discharged over 40 times - more than once in every ten days that you'd have an entire ward filled and discharged, and I hope that gives people a sense of scale of the impact we're having on those in our care and in our communities.
"Our positive team dynamic has played a huge role in helping us to provide enhanced care for patients. We've all come from different disciplines and gel together really well, bringing different experience and expertise to the table and that has made what we do so much more effective."
Angela, who was previously based at Royal Derby Hospital's Medical Assessment Unit (MAU) for 22 years before moving to Ward 5, echoed Ajinder's thoughts: "I come from a more acute background, but we have colleagues from all over the organisation, including those with more surgical experience, and that helps all of us to strengthen and develop our own skills, and ultimately, provide better care."
Ward 5 takes a holistic approach to patient care, having more time to be able to get to know the patients and their families and their daily lives - which in turn enables the team to better understand the level of care required after they leave hospital. Angela explained: "Though many who come through our doors are generally older or post-surgery, we treat a whole range of patients who are medically fit to be discharged from acute care but need some level of continued care in their next setting - at home, in a rehab facility, or alongside wider social care packages."
Some of the patients seen by Ward 5 are in our care longer than they may like - whether that's down to complications from a procedure, an additional illness contracted while undergoing treatment, or intensive rehab - and the team being able to take in patients from across UHDB means they can spend the latter parts of their time with us in a new environment as they await their discharge.
"I really think the patients and their relatives value that", said Angela. She continued: "Because they've been part of that acute hospital setting, they can become a bit accustomed to those circumstances and the 'hustle and bustle' of a busy acute environment. FNCH and its 'community feel' helps some of our patients feel a bit more part of the family, especially as we get to know them and those close to them so well. That counts for a lot in ensuring a positive patient experience.
"We receive really positive feedback from other colleagues and patients alike. Only the other day, our Chief Nurse, Garry Marsh, visited us to say thank you for our work, and hear from the team about what we do. Not only that, we were nominated for three Annual Making a Difference Awards in 2023."
On the theme of positive feedback, reflecting on their 'birthday' celebrations, Ajinder said that patients and colleagues sense their "camaraderie" and positive team dynamic, and see the effectiveness of what they do.
She continued: "Our biggest success over the last year has been our staff retention - we have a really good reputation, we're nicely established as a team and colleagues across the Trust are keen to work with us.
"Whenever we advertise available shifts for our bank colleagues we get such a positive response, and it's clear that many in our organisation are keen to come and work with us when they have the opportunity to do so. In a way - for both patients and colleagues - people know this is the right place for people to come in order to progress to their next step.
"We help to nurture our colleagues and build their experience, all while helping members of our community get home as soon as it's safe for them to do so. It is such a rewarding role and I am so happy with all we've achieved so far".