A patient and her family approached the Patient Advisory
and Liaison Service (PALS) to raise concerns about the way
in which the patient had been treated. Like all PALS issues,
the feedback the family gave was used to raise staff
awareness and improve services. They were very aware
that those who had heard the patients’ experience first
hand, found it very powerful and consequently responded
by improving their own practice. A training DVD of the
patient and her family, talking about their experiences and
care was produced, and this is now used to train staff in
communication, breaking bad news and generally
responding to patient’s concerns. Everyone who has seen
the DVD agrees it has a much greater impact than the usual
training programmes and has made them realise the
consequences of poor communication.
The PALS staff worked with the patient and her family to
design the project and were the interviewers for the DVD.
The Trust’s Patient Experience Group (a group of staff,
patients, and the public who identify key themes with
patient feedback and ensure appropriate service
developments are made) provided support, advice and
funding for the filming and production, and the project
was championed by the Patient Partnership manager.
The improvement in the service as a result of this training is
described in a patient’s own words. “It feels like more of
the control in the situation has been given back to me, the
patient….. I haven’t really been involved that much in
improving health services before now, but I did feel the
staff were much more receptive to my suggestions and did
not seem to feel we were being negative or critical of
them. They were very open to discussion and
suggestions.”
For more information on this project, please contact:
Rachael.Murfin@derbyhospitals.nhs.uk
