Message from TPCH Executive Director

Tami Photinos, Executive Director, The Prince Charles Hospital

Earlier this week we heard about the tragic incident involving Queensland Police Service officers. We were saddened to learn soon after, that one of the two officers who did not survive, was the daughter of a former TPCH staff member, Judy McCrow. The officers were Constable Rachel McCrow and Constable Matthew Arnold.

Judy McCrow worked at TPCH from the 1990s through to 2007 in the Adult Intensive Care Unit and in the Internal Medicine Dementia Research team while undertaking her PhD. Judy was a strong advocate for improving the care of the older person, leading and supporting a number of research projects relating to the care and management of patients with delirium in the acute setting.  Her late daughter, Rachel supported Judy in her research, going on to be a Research Assistant at QUT before joining the police service. Judy was well known by many staff still working at TPCH today.

On behalf of the team at TPCH, I convey my sincerest condolences to Judy and her family, and we pay tribute to her late daughter and her colleague and the dedicated service they gave to our community. Our thoughts are with their families during this sad time

Rachel and Judy McCrow

Regrettably, this tragedy reminds us that there are people around us struggling, particularly in the lead up to the holiday season. We need to be mindful that the festive season is not always a happy time for all people, as it can be a reminder of the loss of a loved one, and often a lonely time for those who don’t have family or friends to connect with.

If you know someone in your local work area who may need some extra support, there are a number of support channels available to them. More information can be found on the Metro North Staff Wellness intranet page.

Launch of new ICU of the Future

World first at TPCH

This week I was proud to help launch our new ICU of the Future. This world first initiative, which is a partnership between Metro North Health, Critical Care Research Group and the Common Good, has seen the redesign of the Intensive Care Unit environment to be more patient-centric and recovery focused.

The project, which has been about five years in development, has sought to address the environmental factors of an ICU environment such as noise pollution from alarms, lack of natural light, and social isolation that may contribute to the psychological and cognitive difficulties that patients can experience during and after an ICU stay. Research shows that a large number of ICU patients experience anxiety, depression, and other cognitive or psychological problems such as delirium and PTSD, and these can result in patients having a sub-optimal quality of life after leaving hospital.

The new ICU of the Future introduces technologies that can reduce the amount of noise that is experienced by the patient, lighting that can mimic natural light and help maintain the body’s natural circadian rhythm, and digital interaction screens to improve how patients connect with their family members and the outside world. It is a very impressive set up to say the least!

We are very excited to bring this innovative project to TPCH, which has been implemented in two of our ICU bays. This initiative will support our ICU team to continue providing outstanding clinical care to our critically ill patients, in a more patient-centred environment.

I congratulate the many people, teams and organisations who have made this project possible. A special thanks goes to Professor John Fraser, Oystein Tronstad, Dr Jayshree Lavana and the ICU team, and Michael Hornby and his team and supporters from the Common Good for their leadership and input. What a wonderful achievement for TPCH. Well done everyone!

Executive Update

Last Friday evening, some of our senior leaders and I attended the Metro North annual Staff Excellence Awards. It was an enjoyable night and great to see some of our TPCH teams recognised for their excellent work in supporting the delivery of high quality patient care. Congratulations to the following teams:

• Surgical Ikigai (Department of General Surgery) – the journey (Highly Commended – Values in Action category)
• Grand-Friends intergenerational care project, Metro North Mental Health and The Prince Charles Hospital Early Education Centre (Highly Commended – People Focus category)

This week I also attended a scope procedure in our Endoscopy Unit led by Dr Tony Rahman, Director of our Gastroenterology and Hepatology Service. Our Endoscopy Unit is one of the busiest in Queensland, performing an average of 675 procedures every month. It was great to see the team in action!

Yesterday, I attended a special thank you event to acknowledge the ‘Wrapped in Culture Quilts’ initiative which involves gifting long term and critically unwell First Nations patients with specially designed quilts during their hospital stay. The handmade quilts are made by Aunty Jeanette Kelly, who has a long-term family connection with TPCH, and are designed to bring comfort and cultural connection for patients when away from country, family and friends. They have been well received by our patients and families, and we thank Aunty Jeanette for her wonderfully creative work.

Aunty Jeanette Kelly showing one of her quilts

In the spirit of the festive season (noting that I am a known Christmas grinch!), yesterday I attended the Clinical Nurse Clinical Facilitator Christmas meeting. It was good to catch up with staff after a busy year and I thank the team for their invitation. (As a side, I put my request in for next year to have more dark chocolate items as I’m a big fan of 70% dark chocolate – remember that everyone!)

Clinical Nurse Clinical Facilitator Christmas meeting

FAST FACTS

This week we will focus on the Central Sterilising Department (CSD).

Did you know?:

• The Central Sterilising Department (CSD) is responsible for reprocessing reusable medical devices (RMDs) or surgical instruments, for 11 operating theatres, surgical day care unit, endoscopy procedural unit, emergency department and other external areas to deliver high quality surgical services for elective and emergency procedures.
• In any one year, CSD can reprocess over 125,000 items, of which at least 55,000 are instrument trays made up of multiple instruments. Trays can contain anywhere from 4 to 60 instruments
• There are strict standards to follow, known as AS/NZS 4187, and these ensure compliance to infection control principles so that each time an item is processed, the same result is achieved.
• CSD has a team of 32 staff consisting of AINs, Registered Nurses, Clinical Nurse and a Manager who come from across 11 different countries.
• CSD is located on the lower ground floor near the loading dock.

Central Sterilising Department team

Staff Profile

This week we will profile TPCH’s new Clinical Nurse Consultant Indigenous Outreach Programs, Bruce Martin. Bruce, who has connections to Badu Island within the Torres Strait, joins TPCH with previous experience in the Metro North Health Equity space and holds various affiliations with both state and federal First Nation portfolios.

In his new role, Bruce will be responsible for the clinical redesign of Connecting Care to Country; sharing ICOP and IROC knowledges across Queensland. This will involve meeting with all 22 sites across from across the state, to co-design and build relationships to ensure services continue to deliver culturally safe care which is responsive to community needs. Bruce is passionate about improving access, placing skills back into the community, breaking down institutional barriers and challenging the status quo, and believes everyone has a role to play in closing the gap towards achieving health equity.

Outside of work, Bruce is an avid gardener, doing his part towards a sustainable environment future through composting and recycling in his commitment to care for country.  Welcome Bruce!

Bruce Martin

Shout out

A few shout outs this week. The first goes to Anaesthetic Health care Practitioners, Mark Amos and Lyn Watson who recently marked 44 and 24 years of service respectively. Mark, who began working in theatres in 1980 is known for his cool, calm head, ability to handle pressure, and his superb rostering skills. Lyn, who has been an Anaesthetic Health care Practitioner for almost the last quarter of a century, is a strong advocate for patient safety, always promoting a positive patient experience. They are valuable assets to the theatre team and we thank them for their great service and commitment.

Lyn Watson and Mark Amos

The next shout out goes to Stephen Conroy, Paul Barber and Peter Drew from our Building and Engineering Maintenance Service (BEMS), who recently marked 35, 30 and 15 years of service respectively. These staff and the entire BEMS team do a great job in supporting TPCH to deliver a high quality care experience for our patients, staff and visitors and we thank them for their great work throughout the year. Well done team!

Stephen Conroy (2nd left), Paul Barber (3rd left) and Peter Drew (3rd right).

The other shout out this week goes to our Nurse Practitioners (NP), Nurse Practitioner candidates and students in light of it being Nurse Practitioners Week. A NP is a registered nurse with the experience, expertise and authority to diagnose and treat people of all ages with a variety of acute or chronic health conditions. To celebrate NP Week, the NP team hosted an information booth in The Café for the Common Good, speaking to patients and interested staff about NP pathways, careers and roles.

Well done team!

Cardiology NP, Kimberley Bardsley and student NP Kellie Mikkelsen

Today’s quote
“The best way to find yourself is lose yourself in the service of others.” – Mahatma Gandhi
Tami Photinos
Executive Director