Aims and objectives:
The Ward Housekeeper monitors levels of cleanliness on the ward, in addition to being a point of contact for all housekeeping issues. The Trust implemented this role in response to the overall need for a national reduction in hospital acquired infections and the recent National Patient Survey results for Inpatients, which highlighted concerns about cleanliness.
The aim of Patient Awareness Sessions was to simply highlight to frontline staff how their role can positively influence the overall experience of a patient. The sessions aimed at bringing the patient's experience to life - from the horse's mouth - to stimulate discussions and ideas on how to improve the patient's experience.
Support for the change:
The introduction of the Patient Awareness Sessions was supported by the Trust's Patients' Reference Group. The Patients' Reference Group nominated a suitable patient representative to facilitate and design the sessions. This patient representative informs the wider Patients Reference Group of progress, and regularly seeks input from the Group members.
Patient and public influence:
The Patient Awareness Sessions were designed and facilitated by a patient, along with the Trust's Patient and Public Involvement Manager. The views of the wider services users and carers of the Patients' Reference Group were incorporated into the final scenarios, with every scenario relating to a real-life experience of a patient.
In addition, the scenarios also take into account real-life anonymised examples from the Trust's Patient Advice and Liaison Service.
The scenarios range in topic, covering cleanliness, lost property, discharge procedures and mealtime hygiene.
Impact on the workforce:
The Ward Housekeeper role was a new role piloted across the Trust in the summer of 2004. The Ward Housekeepers are responsible for paving the way for patient responsive housekeeping services focusing on improving the patients experience whilst relieving nursing staff from housekeeping duties.
By introducing Patient Awareness Sessions the Ward Housekeepers have been able to do exactly that, assisting both staff and the Trust to provide patient centred housekeeping services.
Measuring the results:
Results were measured by training evaluation - feedback from the evaluation was positive, with participants finding the sessions informative and thought provoking.
The Patient Awareness Sessions are, to our knowledge, unique to Sherwood Forest Hospitals Trust.
Improved performance:
Reflecting diversity:
The content of the Patient Awareness Session case samples are based on the experiences of those patients who attend the Patients' Reference Group, in addition to anonymised examples taken from the Patient Advice and Liaison Service.
The scenarios used have been designed to reflect the trend in enquiries received in the Patient Advice and Liaison Service to be as representative of the true patient experience within Sherwood Forest Hospitals Trust.
Sharing the learning:
Patient Awareness Sessions have been shared at Trust Board level via the quarterly Patient and Public Involvement update. In addition, the progress of the sessions has been reported on regularly at the Patients' Reference Group. Members of the local Patient and Public Involvement Forums attend both of these meetings, in addition to various representatives of local community voluntary organisations, and members of staff.
Outstanding features:
The Patient Awareness Sessions are successful at bringing the REAL patient experience to the heart of training, enabling delegates to hear first hand what it is like EXACTLY to be a patient in hospital today.
Delegates do not have the opportunity to think that the scenarios are not real, do not apply or are out of date, as they are delivered and facilitated by real-life patients, with real-life scenarios. Delegates have to respond, discuss and commit to making differences at ward level, whilst, at the same time, returning to their work place with a clearer idea of how the little things can make big differences to patients.
