Dale Dally-Watkins, Executive Director

Metro North facilities continue to be impacted by severe weather events, with recent heavy rain and flooding in the Moreton Bay area. If you have been impacted directly or indirectly by the rain/flooding please remember our staff wellbeing support services.

Metro North Health has created an extranet site to keep staff across our emergency and disaster response activities including information on flood leave.  

As many catchment areas are already very saturated, it is possible that future rain events will cause additional flooding issues. Please keep informed about current weather alerts (download the BOM Weather app) and monitor traffic and road closures on the Qld Traffic website.

For general information about preparing your home and family for extreme weather and natural disaster events, visit Get Ready Queensland.

Short notice accreditation

As you know we are the last Metro North Facility/Directorate to undergo short notice accreditation. We are expecting to receive notification of our assessment in the coming weeks and will let you know as soon as that occurs. Accreditation provides us with a wonderful opportunity to showcase the great work we do in caring for our patients at STARS. If you have any questions now or during the visit from the assessment team, please contact the Safety and Quality Unit for advice and support via stars_squ@health.qld.gov.au or 3647 7401.

PODDS success

The Post-Operative Discharge Support Service (PODSS) was launched at STARS in October 2023, to improve patient access to care following a procedure and to avoid unnecessary presentations to Emergency Departments. The data presented at the last Staff Forum showed what an amazing success PODSS has been in reducing unnecessary ED presentations. The lovely feedback received from patients who’ve accessed PODSS has demonstrated how the service has also enhanced the patient journey. The success of PODSS will now see it rolled out across six other Queensland sites, with Mackay Health and Hospital Service next in line. Congratulations to our PODSS team and to all our staff for taking the time to speak to patients about the PODSS service prior to discharge.

Corporate Business Services Awards

Nominations are now open for Metro North’s Corporate Business Services (CBS) Awards 2024 which are an opportunity to recognise and celebrate the incredible talent and dedication within Corporate Business Services at Metro North.

Nominations can be submitted for staff or teams who fall under the Chief Finance and Corporate Officers Organisational Structure such as:

• Legal Services
• Corporate Information Management
• Financial Control Services
• Health Funding and Data Insights
• Business Advisory and Commercial Services (including Retail, Procurement and Finance teams out at the facilities)

We encourage you to consider examples of excellence and achievements either individually, in teams, or through partnerships across facilities, services and streams, or with community partners and submit a nomination to recognise their hard work.

Nominations close midday Thursday 15 February 2024.

Staff Shout Outs

Congratulations to all our wonderful staff at STARS who received a Staff Shout Out in December: Nathalie Baker, Bryanna Nisbet, Scott Gillies, Glenn McDonald, Georgia Mason, Donna Nicolas, Alexandra (Allie) Clarke, Lochlan Onbashi, Zuzana Connell and Stella Harris, David Chang, Lizzie Slatter, Linelle Kelly and Myra Lai, Madeline McDonald, Riley Melton and Tenielle Kowitz.

Well done to everyone.

If you have a colleague or team that you would like to give a Staff Shout Out to you can nominate them here.

STARS celebration

This month marks three years since STARS opened its doors to the first patients. To celebrate our beautiful facility and the staff that make it such a wonderful place to work we are holding a “We Are STARS Day” next Thursday on 8 February 2024.

We are encouraging everyone to wear something starry on the day to help celebrate.

Peter Slattery’s farewell

After 38 years of service at Metro North, Peter Slattery, Director of  the Rehabilitation Engineering Centre is retiring. To honour his commitment to the profession of rehabilitation engineering and to disabled Queenslanders and their families, we are holding a farewell on Friday 16 February 3pm, at the RBWH Education Centre. This will be followed by a farewell toast at Victoria Park from 4.40pm for those who would like to join.

Kind regards,

Dale.