I would firstly like to thank everyone for the very warm welcome I have received at STARS. The role of Acting Executive Director will provide an amazing opportunity for me to learn more about STARS and the wonderful work that goes on here. So far, I’ve been able to visit many of the amazing areas at STARS including the Brain Injury Unit, Rehabilitation Engineering and the Ability Centres on Levels 4 and 5. I look forward to visiting other areas of STARS and meeting more staff in the coming weeks.

While my time here is relatively short, it is a very important time for STARS. As detailed in Jane Hancock’s message earlier today, stakeholder engagement sessions will be held with staff over the next two weeks to better understand the impact of a temporary relocation of the Queensland Spinal Care Injury Service (QSCIS) to STARS. I encourage anyone who has concerns, questions or ideas regarding the potential temporary relocation to attend one of the engagement sessions (see the timetable below).

• Tuesday 4 July, 1pm, Room 476
• Wednesday 5 July, 8am and 9am, Room 716
• Thursday 6 July, 10am and 11am, Room 476
• Monday 10 July, 10am, Room 476
• Tuesday 11 July, 12.30pm, Room 476
• Wednesday 12 July, 9.30am and 10.30am, Room 716

Move to Tier 2 Acute Respiratory Illness Response Plan

On Thursday 29 June, Metro North moved to Tier 2 in our Acute Respiratory Illness Response Plan.

All staff are encouraged to:

• continue to wear masks in clinical areas, in line with the PPE guidelines
• ensure flu and COVID-19 vaccinations are up to date and annual fit testing for P2/N95 masks is completed
• stay home if unwell and inform your line manager as soon as possible via the Smart Leave form on MyHR if you’re off sick
• practice good hand and respiratory hygiene
• ensure compliance with mandatory training programs
• check with your line manager for any other requirements in your local workplace under your directorate Acute Respiratory Illness Response Subplan.
• transition to virtual meetings and trainings, where possible. Essential face-to-face training (e.g., OVP, BLS, ALS) will continue.

In addition, visitors to STARS will be encouraged to wear a mask, sanitise hands when coming and going and to stay away if they have respiratory illness symptoms. Masks and hand sanitiser will be provided at facility entrances.

For more information, please see the Metro North Acute Respiratory Illness Response Plan.

AIN of the Year award

A big congratulations to John Lines, Assistant in Nursing ECC (Equipment and Clinical Consumables) who was recently named as Metro North Assistant in Nursing of the Year 2023, in the Metro North Nurse and Midwifery of the Year awards. The awards celebrate and recognise the contribution of individuals to the professions of Nursing and Midwifery within Metro North.

John’s line manager, Andrew Jesberg had these lovely words to say: “John is a hardworking, dedicated and integral member of the ECC team who truly embraces, upholds and exemplifies the Metro North HHS Values. John supports his colleagues to be their best and is committed to ensuring our patients remain at the centre of everything we do. John’s commitment to our broader Procedural Services team at STARS is well-rounded, having also worked in the Endoscopy Suite at STARS”. Well done John.

NAIDOC week 2-9 July

Next week is NAIDOC Week where we recognise the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. This year’s theme is ‘For Our Elders’. When you get a chance take a look at the NAIDOC week displays and join us for morning tea celebrations on Tuesday morning 4 July, 10-10.30am on the Level 7 staff balcony. One of the unique features of STARS is the art collection that is displayed throughout the building, including a large number of works by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists. Four artists and their artwork will be featured on the digital signs next to the staff lifts next week.

You can also tune into the NAIDOC Week and Health Equity vidcast on Wednesday 5 July at 11.00am. Join Chief Executive Jackie Hanson, ED Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Health Sherry Holzapfel and Regional Manager, Department of Treaty, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships, Communities and the Art Edward Monaei for a vidcast to talk about NAIDOC Week across Metro North and an update on the Metro North Health Equity Strategy. I had the privilege of hearing Eddie speak recently and encourage you all to take this amazing opportunity to take advantage of this privilege.

Short notice accreditation

At the recent Peer Review against the NSQHS Standards, it was identified that there were policies, procedures and work instructions printed and kept in clinical areas as well as wall posters without reference or review dates. Policy and procedure documents should be reviewed online at the time of requirement to ensure that the most up-to-date version is considered.

Look for this handy link on all STARS computers which will take you directly to the intranet page. All the documents on the intranet are reviewed and easy to find.

Could you all please review your department, office, workspace, and remove procedures, guidelines, work instructions etc., on paper, on a poster, in a local folder, or a local drive.

If you have concerns with removing the documents please contact the Safety and Quality Unit (STARS_SQU@health.qld.gov.au) so we can help you with a process or workflow which meets your need for guidance.

Recent patient media story

Last week STARS patient, Nemani was featured on Channel Seven and Channel Nine news finally leaving for home after a 187 day stay. Nemani’s story is a wonderful reminder of the amazing care that is provided here at STARS and how it changes people’s lives.

Congratulations to all our multi-disciplinary team for their hard work, compassionate and dedicated care of Nemani during his rehabilitation journey. The way our teams at STARS work together with patients to reach their goals is second to none.

Acting Allied Health Director

I would like to thank Tamsin Mahoney for taking on the role of Acting Allied Health Director, Tamsin will be handing over to Margie Butnoris on 3 July 2023.

Chillers and upcoming road closures

One of the STARS chillers, located on the rooftop, requires replacing in the coming weeks. The new chiller will need to be craned into place, requiring a partial road closure. Please look out for future notifications regarding the replacement of the chiller, including the road closures.

Oral Health Alliance

The Oral Health Alliance (OHA) between Metro North Health and the University of Queensland was conceived in 2016. The aims of the OHA are:

• providing the community with timely and effective access to dental care services
• training the next generation of dental professionals and upskilling the current workforce with advanced training opportunities
• conducting research and disseminating the outcomes to clinicians, policy makers and the public.

The governance and functions of the OHA currently sits within the Community and Oral Health Directorate in Metro North Health. An organisational change process is currently underway which will result in the realignment of the OHA to sit within the STARS Directorate. The proposed date of implementation is 10 July 2023, at which time we will be pleased to formally welcome the staff of the Oral Health Centre and OHA to STARS.

Nurse Relief Pool

From Monday 3 July, STARS will welcome a host of new nurses to its Nurse Relief Pool. As part of the Metro North Nurse and Midwife Bank Business Case For Change and closure of this service, many permanent and casual nurses have opted to join the STARS nursing team to expand its relief pool. Please welcome these new team members to STARS.

Self care

Lastly and most importantly in my short time here I have truly felt welcomed and staff have shown a shared focus towards the best care for our patients. In caring for our patients and their families and our own it is really important we care for ourselves also. We are heading into the peak of respiratory season and I would like to remind you all to get vaccinated, stay at home if you are unwell and practice impeccable hand hygiene.

Also please be safe, I was reminded last night as I again exited our carpark behind a car illegally turning right how fragile life is and that in our rush to get home we sometimes need to slow down to keep ourselves safe and make sure we get home.

“The future depends on what we do in the present” Ghandhi

Kind regards,

Karlene.