Message from the Executive Director

Happy Administrative Professionals Day! Today we celebrate the many administration staff at TPCH who play an important role in supporting the delivery of high-quality care to our patients and community. To mark the occasion, this morning we held our annual Administrative Professionals Day Awards to acknowledge those staff who have made a commendable contribution to TPCH through their commitment to our organisational values.

Congratulations to the following award winners:

• Emily Gibbs – Compassion
• Aleisha Mackail – Integrity
• Miah Hockey – Respect
• Kea Hill-Johnson –Teamwork
• Jim John – High Performance

Well done to our winners and a big thanks to all the administration staff at TPCH who provide valuable support to our hospital and its people every day.

Executive update

New appointment

We are pleased to welcome Dr Kathryn Costantino as the temporary Director Medical Administration. Kathryn most recently held a fellowship position at the RBWH in Medical Services after obtaining FRACMA in 2022. Completing an Executive Master of Business Administration in 2023, she has a particular interest in systems-based thinking and leveraging a broad range of insights to synergically reach optimal solutions. She looks forward to continuing her involvement with Metro North, and is grateful for the warm welcome she received this week.

Executive walkarounds

This week, Director of Operations Surgical and Critical Care, Melanie Dubbelde, new Director of Operations Heart and Lung, Drew Kear and I visited a number of teams in the Administration Building as part of Drew’s ongoing orientation to TPCH. We met with the Surgical Booking team who have recently moved into the area, as well as members of the Gastroenterology service who are responsible for clinical auditing and surveillance. These teams work behind the scenes supporting the delivery of timely, high-quality care to our patients and we appreciate their efforts. We also briefly chatted with the Safety and Quality team who were pleased to meet our new Executive member.

While in the Administration Building, we also stopped into the lung transplant offices where we spoke with Prof Dan Chambers and Dr Chandima Divithotawela about the planned establishment of a new Phase 1 Clinical Trial Unit at TPCH.

The unit, which will be the first of its type in Queensland, will accommodate all Phase 1 studies including mRNA therapeutics and vaccines. The state-of-the-art unit will be housed in the former Heart Valve Bank and is set to open in early 2025.

The Emergency Department was particularly busy when I called in with our new Director Medical Services, Dr Julieanne Graham to introduce her to the department. We visited children’s emergency, the new adult short-stay unit and the pharmacy pod, talking to staff along the way about patient flow processes and practices. A big thanks to Amanda Smith for showing us through the department.

While I enjoy visiting all areas, the highlight of this week’s walkarounds was Food Services where I was invited to taste test the kitchen’s new salad to be introduced to the patient menu as a winter special from next week – warm potato and pumpkin salad with fetta, tomato and spinach topped with a green goddess dressing. Accompanying me was Bianca Sullivan, Manager Facility and Support Services; Karen Atkinson Director Nutrition and Dietetics; and Jenna Stonestreet, Dietitian Team Leader. The new salad item was a suggested addition by the Food Services team who are keen to ensure that patients receive a good variety of food choices to suit their needs and preferences during their hospital stay. Definitely a taste sensation, 10 out of 10! Well done team!

Director Allied Health Perry Judd was invited to participate in a panel discussion about leadership in innovation as part of the on campus workshop days for the Metro North Graduate Certificate in Health Services Innovation. This dynamic two-year program, delivered by Metro North in partnership with Griffith University, is designed to equip clinical and non-clinical staff with contemporary knowledge and skills in leadership, innovation facilitation, health economics, and implementation science to meet our current and future needs and demands as a health service. TPCH staff members in the program’s current cohort are Caitlin Kearney, CNC Stroke; Christopher Pomfret, Senior Psychologist; Kate McLaughlin, Senior Occupational Therapist; Dr Kathyn Colebourne, General and Stroke Physician and Raymond Martenee, Associate CNC.

Our Charlies Change Makers (both the current cohort and alumni) are always happy to challenge the status quo for better patient outcomes and to think about things differently. They happily share with anyone how to use tools like the Helix Hub and challenge you to think deeper about the problems in your work areas so you can get clear about what needs to change.

TPCH Staff Council

TPCH Staff Council is a group of staff from across all disciplines of the hospital who are committed to improving the experience of staff in the workplace. The Council, which is the amalgamation of the hospital’s Clinical Council and Culture Council, has a particular interest in the following areas:

• Staff wellbeing
• Clinical services
• Quality and Safety.

The Staff Council meets monthly to discuss current issues facing TPCH staff and generate ideas to help respond to these issues. They also provide a channel for these issues to be conveyed to TPCH’s Executive Leadership Team.

At the Staff Council’s most recent meeting, the group discussed current challenges around car parking, an issue faced by many staff here at TPCH while the new multi-storey car park is constructed. Staff would be aware of the various temporary arrangements being suggested by our Executive Team to support car parking for staff.  With growing demands on hospital services, staff are facing increasing challenges and workloads.  This places more pressure on us as individuals as well as on our colleagues and teams.

It is important to understand that when staff are busy, they need to take some time to care for themselves so they can continue to do their job well. There are a number of support options available including a network of Peer Responders throughout the hospital who can provide confidential support to those staff who require it. More information here.

TPCH also has a dedicated Senior Clinical Psychologist, Nazanin Ahangari, who is a member of TPCH Staff Council and is available to meet with teams and staff throughout the hospital. Staff can contact Nazanin via email: Nazanin.Ahangari@health.qld.gov.au or MNstaffpsychology@health.qld.gov.au.

If you are interested in joining TPCH Staff Council, please email: TPCH-StaffCouncil@health.qld.gov.au.

Staff profile

As May is Domestic and Family Violence (DFV) Prevention Month, we will profile Social Work Clinical Lead Child Protection and DFV Co-ordinator, Nikki Beaumont.

As DFV Co-ordinator, Nikki provides support to TPCH staff who are experiencing DFV or seeking support for loved ones, provides professional consultation and advice to staff about DFV referral pathways and supports, and provides DFV education to our new staff at all-of-staff orientation training. Nikki also strives to raise awareness of DFV across the facility.

Having worked as a social worker both in Australia and overseas for more than 20 years Nikki understands the important role health workers play in identifying risk and supporting our most vulnerable patients. Nikki believes that supporting people who have a lived experience of domestic and family violence is everyone’s responsibility. She feels privileged and passionate about supporting people who are at their most vulnerable and helping staff to do the same.

When not supporting people at work, Nikki is kept busy being active with her own family, including her two boys, fulfilling the very important role of ‘mum taxi’ to swimming, rugby, cross-country and volleyball training. Nikki was also a recent participant in the Tour de Brisbane cycle, completing the 50 km course!

Closing thought

This week I was reminded about how our emotions and moods can affect others around us, even when we don’t mean them to. The reminder came from my 10-year old fur baby, Panda.

I had come home feeling a bit tense and stressed after a big day at work, and decided to retreat into the garage to do a quick workout to clear my head and unwind.

When I finished, I walked into my lounge room where I was confronted with the remnants of one of my favourite (not to mention expensive) cushions which Panda had partly destroyed. Panda is not normally a chewer so it was very strange that he had done this. I proceeded to rouse on him but then realised that his act of destruction was a direct response to my stress which he had picked up on.

What this showed me is that our moods and emotions can cause similar feelings in others, without us realising it. When we are feeling good and positive, it can lift and stabilise others around us. When we are feeling stressed, frustrated or angry, these feelings can impact others in a negative way, resulting in destructive or non-cooperative behaviours – as Panda clearly demonstrated!

My point is that while we all feel different emotions at various times which is normal, it is about keeping them in check so we can keep others around us in a good place. In busy hospitals, when we are caring for sick patients who are feeling anxious or scared, our attitudes and moods as staff members can have a big effect on how people respond to their care and their trust in us as health care professionals.

People, like animals, can feel what is going on around them, and we need to be aware of this when are in a position of responsibility for the care of others.

Tami.