Message from the Executive Director

Have your Say survey

Some good news for those staff who haven’t had the chance to complete the Have your Say staff survey yet. The survey has been extended for a further week until Friday 16 June. TPCH is currently sitting at a 37% response rate, so there are still many staff we’d like to hear from. Remember your feedback helps us understand where we’re doing well, and how we need to improve to make TPCH an even better place to work.

Complete the Have Your Say survey.

Executive update

Staff appreciation breakfast

We had a great response from staff at yesterday’s second staff breakfast and it was good to see some new and familiar faces. We know how hard staff have been working, and wanted to thank everyone for their care and commitment to our patients. The Executive team certainly appreciated the many positive comments we received from staff about the breakfast. Keep up the excellent work!

TPCH Staff Forum

Yesterday we held our first staff forum to discuss TPCH Expansion project and other developments on the campus including the new multi-storey car park scheduled to commence early works from next month.

For those staff who were unable to attend, I invite you to review the presentations below which were displayed at the forum.

• TPCH Expansion
• Car Parking

Moving forward we will host regular staff forums to keep staff updated on the progress of these building projects and other developments around the hospital.

The Common Good Celebration of Research Awards

This week I attended The Common Good’s Research Awards to celebrate and recognise our medical research community who are dedicated to making a positive impact on society and advancing knowledge in the medical field. Congratulations to all grant recipients!

Regrettably, due to illness I have been away from the office for much of this week, and was therefore unable to get out and about like I normally do. I’m back on deck now and look forward to visiting areas and speaking with staff next week. I’m also looking forward to sharing some more selfies!

Staff flu vaccination program

To date, 70% of TPCH staff have received their flu vaccination. Our aim is 90%, which means there are still a large number of staff who are unprotected.

To support staff with their vaccinations, our Infection Control team will be roaming clinical areas with the mobile trolley on Tuesday 13 June and Wednesday 21 June. Up until July 3, staff will still be able to visit the Infection Control team on Level 3, Clinical Sciences Building, between 7am and 4pm, Monday to Friday to get their vaccination. After this date, vaccinations will be offered through the Infection Control Office, on Monday and Thursday, 1 to 4 pm.

Enterprise Scheduling Management (ESM) training now available

As many of you will be aware, Enterprise Scheduling Management (ESM) – the outpatient scheduling module of the integrated electronic Medical Record (ieMR) – will be replacing the appointment scheduling functions of HBCIS APP in outpatient areas across TPCH from Monday 7 August 2023.

Staff identified as requiring ESM training are now able to commence the first phase of their mandatory training – a prerequisite online training module hosted on Talent Management System (TMS). I would encourage staff to complete this online training as soon as practicable, ahead of in-person training sessions commencing from Monday 26 June 2023.

If you require further information on what ESM is, or on how to register for training, please refer to the Metro North ieMR Program’s TPCH QHEPS page.

If you believe you require training in ESM, and have not yet received an email, please first discuss with your line manager before escalating to the ieMR Program at: ieMRProject-MetroNorth@health.qld.gov.au.

FAST FACTS

This week we will profile the Clinical Coding Team.

Did you know?

• The Clinical Coding Team consists of 14 Health Information Managers and Clinical Coders who code approximately 5,600 admissions every month.
• The team is located on the lower ground floor of the main acute building within Health Information Services.
• Clinical coding involves the extraction of information from the entire medical record and the subsequent allocation of codes from the ICD-10-AM Classification.
• Codes are applied to conditions, symptoms, injuries, complications, procedures and interventions.
• The work the clinical coding team does is critical for Activity Based Funding, health care management, planning and benchmarking, research, quality improvement and patient safety.
• There is a code for just about everything!
  • Bitten by cow – W55.21
  • Pecked by chicken – W61
  • Contact with decorative glass item (vase) – W25.81
    Who would have thought?

Staff profile

Today we will profile TPCH’s Acting Cultural Capability Officer, Rebeckah Mooney.

In this role, Rebeckah liaises with consumers, Elders, community and TPCH staff to co-design the best approach to creating and sustaining health services that are culturally safe and equitable.
On a day-to-day basis, Rebeckah could be meeting with consumers and community members, or providing training to and liaising with staff.

Previously an Indigenous Hospital Liaison Officer, Rebeckah is passionate about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples deciding on and influencing their health care journey. She values culture, truth telling, connection, sharing and kindness and supports taking the time to listen, learn, connect and walk together to help achieve understanding and real change.

Outside of work, Rebeckah likes to spend time connecting with family and friends. She is a passionate footy fan and also enjoys playing in a social indoor netball competition and watching reality TV.

Charlies Research Scene

Today is the second edition of ‘Charlies Research Scene,’ to help keep you informed about some of the great and special research work that happens at TPCH.

Our research study of the month is featured in the aftermath of Queensland’s impressive win in State of Origin 1. The study was published in the Medical Journal of Australia 10 years ago, and highlights the importance of, and is a reminder that “(State of) Origin-induced tachycardia should be a differential diagnosis for asymptomatic elevated heart rate in passionate Queensland rugby league supporters” during Origin games. Following on from the last decade of games, that has certainly been an ongoing risk factor, thankfully for most of the time. The suggested “cure when watching televised coverage is to turn off the(ir) television(s)” may not have been necessary and in fact it may be argued to potentially contribute to ongoing stress and anxiety related tachycardia on missing out on the post-match celebrations! Please contact the authors for any further information or interest concerning the potential for a follow-up publication.

Toon MH & MR Brown (2013). Tachycardia of unknown origin. Medical Journal of Australia 199 (11):791

Go the Mighty Maroons!

Shout out

This week’s shout out goes to Clinical Nurse, Imelda Chua whose research on elective day of surgery cancellations was recently published in ScienceDirect. Imelda’s research, which was supported through Metro North’s Nursing and Midwifery Research Internships is a shining example of how the commitment of individuals with some positive investment and support can result in great outcomes. Well done Imelda, and to your co-authors and supporters. Read article – Elective day of surgery cancellations: A retrospective observational study

Today’s quote

“You treat a disease, you win, you lose. You treat a person, I guarantee you, you’ll win, no matter what the outcome.” – Patch Adams

Tami.