Thousands of pounds and thousands of tonnes of carbon emissions saved as part of Trust drive to achieve net zero by 2030

A team working to reduce carbon emissions across Hull Hospitals has turned its attention to the anaesthetic gases given during labour – with staggering results.

Until recently, almost one fifth of all the carbon emissions generated by Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, around 17% or 5,000 tonnes, have come from anaesthetic gases. Of these, around 4,000 tonnes have been generated through the use of Entonox as a pain relieving gas for women giving birth in Hull Women and Children’s Hospital.

Anaesthetic gases have significantly higher environmental impacts than other sources of emissions and are hundreds to thousands of times more harmful than carbon emissions.

With a self-set target to halve gas emissions by 2025 as part of its Zero30 ambitions, a hospital team including midwives, pharmacy and estates staff, and colleagues from PFI company Apleona, began to investigate Entonox use and found that a few small changes could make a huge difference.

Marc Beaumont, Head of Sustainability for Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, explains:

“We began by looking at our data and noted that the amount of Entonox used in the Women and Children’s Hospital was much higher than the national average when you consider how many births we have each year.

“This suggested there may be an issue with leakage, so working alongside our midwives, the estates and PFI teams set about investigating possible leaks throughout the system, from the actual gas cylinders to the point of use by women in labour.”

Julia Chambers, Lead Midwife says:

“Entonox is an anaesthetic gas that we use in maternity for labouring women. As a unit, we are the highest users of Entonox in the Trust and so massively contributing to overall carbon emissions, but it’s not something that I or probably my colleagues had ever really thought about before.

“Tests were carried out on labour ward and we found small leaks at both the bedhead panels and at the demand valves which ladies use to inhale gas. The bedhead seals were changed, and now we only plug the valves into the Entonox supply when they’re in use, rather than having them connected all the time.”

Julia Chambers, lead midwife

And the results have been phenomenal. Since September 2021, the replacement of seals combined with a simple change in practice by the maternity team has led to a significant reduction in the consumption of Entonox, and seen associated carbon emissions drop by 87% – from 347 tonnes per month to just 45.

Over an average year, emissions associated with Entonox use amounted to over 4,000 tonnes, equivalent to an average car driving round the earth 592 times, but this has now fallen by over 3,500 tonnes per year, or 514 round-the-world trips, to just 540 tonnes.

Reduced carbon emissions aren’t the only benefit either; saving gas has also helped the Trust save money, some £3,300 per month to be precise or £40,000 per year. Plus, with the number of gas cylinders being delivered to site falling from 250 to just 33 each month, this has freed up more time for porters and estates teams to work on other jobs and further reduced carbon emissions by cutting the number of journeys required to collect and deliver cylinders.

Julia continues:

“There has been no change to the high quality of care we are able to offer women in labour, but just by looking at our practice and checking our gas supplies, we’ve been able to reduce the emissions created in maternity by a staggering 87 per cent. This has actually been quite simple to do, and knowing we’re making a difference for those children we’re helping to bring into the world, it’s something we’re all really proud of too.”

An intensive care consultant in Hull has translated an organ donation video into 17 different languages to help people from all cultures consider the gift of life.

Dr Harish Lad, Clinical Lead in Organ Donation at Hull University Teaching Hospitals (HUTH), has produced a series of videos in 17 different languages to promote organ donation.

The NHS Organ Donation video is used by NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) in television and social media advertising to support their “Leave Them Certain” message, asking people to ensure their families are aware of their decision to donate organs in the event of their deaths.

Dr Lad, who works in the Intensive Care Units at Hull Royal Infirmary and Castle Hill Hospital, said: “We want to reach out to all communities to make them aware of the importance of organ donation.

“These videos share key messages in people’s own languages, allowing them to reflect and relate to the issue and to help them begin to have those vital conversations with their loved ones.”

Each year, hundreds of opportunities for transplants are missed because families aren’t sure what their loved one would have wanted.

The “Leave Them Certain” video shows a son sharing memories of his father, with the man laughing and dancing at family parties and having fun on family holidays.

The son says: “I remember Dad’s dance moves, his killer ‘tache. Dad was just a really happy character. I remember his smile.”

The video cuts to the son standing in a hospital corridor. “But I also remember when they asked if he wanted to be an organ donor – and I just didn’t know.”

It ends with the message “Talk to your loved ones about organ donation.”

Dr Lad has arranged for the video to be translated into Arabic, Bengali, Urdu, Gujarati, Hindi, Punjabi, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Polish, Latvian, Lithuanian, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, Russian, Romanian and Greek.

A spokeswoman for NHSBT said: “The translated versions of our Leave Them Certain videos will really help to engage with a wider audience about the role of the family in organ donation decisions and why it’s so important to talk to your loved ones.

“We really appreciate the time and effort that Dr Lad has committed to the project to enable this key activity and look forward to hearing the impact these videos have within communities.”

• Leave Them Certain – Arabic
• Leave Them Certain – Bengali
• Leave Them Certain – French
• Leave Them Certain – Greek
• Leave Them Certain – Gujarati
• Leave Them Certain – Hindi
• Leave Them Certain – Latvian
• Leave Them Certain – Lithuanian
• Leave Them Certain – Polish
• Leave Them Certain – Portuguese
• Leave Them Certain – Punjabi
• Leave Them Certain – Romanian
• Leave Them Certain – Russian
• Leave Them Certain – Simplified Chinese
• Leave Them Certain – Spanish
• Leave Them Certain – Traditional Chinese
• Leave Them Certain – Urdu

Well done to Lois Anderson-Leary, who works as a trainee Respiratory Physiologist in our Pulmonary Function Unit at Castle Hill Hospital.

Lois was named “Apprentice of the Year” in Sheffield Hallam University’s “Inspirational Student Awards 2022.”

Lois joined the trust on a level 2 Clinical Support Apprenticeship programme, specialising in GI Physiology, in September 2016 and went on to undertake a degree apprenticeship, studying a BSC HON Healthcare Science in Cardiovascular Respiratory and Sleep Sciences.​

Her citation from unit manager Harriet Hearn stated Lois had “shown true passion for the speciality and this is reflected in time spent with patients and staff and the quality of clinic work produced.

Harriet wrote that Lois brought “an excellent working attitude every day” and was “a massive influence on the workplace in only a positive way.”

Anne Burdis, Assistant Learning and Development Manager (Widening Participation), said: “This is an outstanding achievement for Lois, and we simply couldn’t be more proud of her and her achievements.”

It took just five months to install, but now a local hospital trust’s investment in solar technology is paying dividends.

Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust began installing solar panels on land adjacent to the Castle Hill Hospital site in Cottingham in September 2021

Alex Best, Head of Capital

The project, which quickly became known as the ‘Field of Dreams’, saw 11,000 panels installed at a cost of £4.2m in order that the Trust could begin to lower its carbon footprint and generate its own electricity.

Work was completed in February 2022, and now that the clocks have sprung forward, the arrival of longer days means the panels are now generating enough electricity to meet the complete daytime power needs of the entire Castle Hill site.

Alex Best, Head of Capital for the Trust says:

“Back in November 2020 we were lucky enough to receive a grant from the Department for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy as part of its Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme to enable us to embark on this ambitious solar panel installation project.

“Our aim has always been to generate enough electricity to make the hospital site self-sufficient in the summer months when the days are longer, and now that the clocks have gone forward, the panels are generating around 26MWh per day so far in May, and are anticipated to rise to a peak summer load of 50 MWh per day*.

“Not only does this represent a significant contribution towards our plan to become carbon neutral by 2030, but the project is also saving us a significant amount of money on hospital energy bills; approximately £250,000 to 300,000 every month.

Marc Beaumont, Head of Sustainability for the Trust says:

“Castle Hill Hospital is a specialist regional centre for cardiology, oncology and haematology for example, and it boasts one of just a handful of specialist infectious diseases units around the country. When you consider the size of the Castle Hill Hospital site and the amount of activity that goes on here, that’s a huge amount of power that’s required to keep it running.

“Now if you stop to consider what the solar panel project is actually contributing, it’s incredible to think that the power used to deliver patients’ radiotherapy treatment sessions, to support many life-saving surgical procedures, and to keep our intensive care unit running right now is all completely self-generated, green electricity.”

Alex adds:

“The team which has worked on the solar field has done a fantastic job and we’re really pleased to be leading the way in this respect. We hope our patients and visitors will also see the value in what we’re doing for them, and for generations to come.”

Notes

* 26MWh is equivalent to the average daily energy needs of 3,250 UK households, or roughly the same amount of energy as would be needed to run 10,400 1-hour washing machine cycles.

**50MWh is equivalent to the average daily energy needs of 6,250 UK households, or roughly the same amount of energy as would be needed to run 20,000 1-hour washing machine cycles.

A hospital researcher was joined by comedy actor and writer Lucy Beaumont as he attempts to run 5k every day to raise money for Hull’s hospitals.

Clinical Trial assistant Paul Harper, who works in cardiology research to help patients with heart conditions, aims to raise at least £1,000 for independent hospital charity WISHH by running at least 5k a day, covering 1,825km (1131.5 miles) throughout 2022.

Lucy, creator of the Channel 4 comedy Hull Raisers, got in touch with Paul after hearing about his challenge through social media and offered to run the distance with him last week. They set off from Castle Hill Hospital to run through the streets of Cottingham to cover the distance, which is 3.1 miles.

Paul said: “I was blown away when Lucy got in touch. It was so nice of her to offer to run with me because it’s helping me raise awareness of my challenge.

“Every pound I raise will make a real difference to the lives of our patients, visitors and staff.

“It can be tough finding the motivation to run 5k every day so it was fantastic having Lucy with me on my run.”

Lucy said: “We’re so lucky to have the NHS and I was really happy to help Paul. We’d a great run and I wish him all the best for his challenge.

“He’s doing a wonderful thing to benefit people coming to the hospital and the people who work there so I was really glad to help.”

WISHH undertakes projects to make life better for patients, visitors and staff at Hull Royal Infirmary and Castle Hill Hospital.

Paul has linked his JustGiving page to his Strava account so people can follow his progress and would appreciate any support from staff.

“No matter how big or small your donation, it all helps,” said Paul, who aims to donate 10p for every mile he runs so aims to contribute £120 by the end of his challenge.

WISHH manager Lisa Whitton said “We are really grateful to Lucy for helping us to promote the amazing challenge Paul is undertaking.

“Every penny he raises will make life better for patients and their families.”

To find out more about the WISHH Charity and how they help our hospitals, visit www.wishhcharity.org.uk or follow them on social media @WISHHcharity

They were just about to board a flight to see their children for the first time in a year when The Philippines announced a national lockdown at the start of the pandemic.

Hull nurses Michio Abe and husband Lieffen Schuck had no choice but to abandon their plans and return to Hull from London.

Now, two years on, the couple have finally been reunited with their children Yumi, 14 and seven year-old Yuri.

Michio, a Junior Charge Nurse on the Winter Ward at Hull Royal Infirmary, said: “We hadn’t seen them for three years as they were being looked after back in the Philippines by our families while we came here to make a better life for everyone.

“It’s worked out so well because we’ve managed to save enough to buy a home in Hull for us all with our own mortgage. We will have a far better quality of life here than we ever would have back in the Philippines.

“The children are still adjusting to the cold because it’s 34 degrees all the time in the Philippines so the weather has come as a surprise to them but they’ll get used to it. It’s just great that we can all be together again.”

The couple decided to apply for nursing roles in the UK with international recruitment agency Resource Finder.

They chose Hull because Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust does not expect successful candidates to pay the costs of their recruitment and training upfront and then reimburse them later, like some other organisations.

Michio and Lieffen were also drawn to the city because of the way of life, the lower cost of living here compared to other cities and the opportunities available to them.

Michio said: “We wanted to establish our family here in Hull, especially when we found out that the cost of living was really cheap. We really want to save as much money as we can to send back to our families.

“When we knew we couldn’t go home, we saw it as a good thing because we were able to work lots of overtime before we could bring the children here.

“Because of that, we can now make a good life for our family, far better than we could have in the Philippines where the salaries aren’t as good and you have to work and work so there’s no time to spend together.

“The trust is also really good at taking care of its employees and are really accommodating. Simon Nearney, the Director of Workforce, is always asking us how we are and checking we are all ok so we feel like we’re being looked after.

“The nurse educators, led by Karen Mechen, are always there for us to guide and look after us especially with OSCE, which is a big part of the training and qualifications we need to obtain to practice here.”

Hundreds of international nurses are now settling in Hull after finding rewarding careers in East Yorkshire.

Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust began an international recruitment campaign almost five years ago to offer internationally educated nurses the chance to work in East Yorkshire.

Since then, 316 nurses, mainly from the Philippines but also from Nepal, have started working at Hull Royal Infirmary and Castle Hill Hospital.

And once they arrive in Hull, they’re happy to stay. Our retention rate for overseas nurses is 97 per cent, meaning they’re enjoying working for the trust and living in East Yorkshire.

Karen Mechen, Practice Development Matron for Nursing Workforce and Education, leads the team of Clinical Nurse Educators who support the international recruits to meet UK nursing standards.

She said: “We began our international recruitment programme in August 2017 and, since then, we have recruited a total of 316 nurses. We’re preparing for the arrival of a further 20 in a few weeks.

“These nurses go on to work in every area of our hospitals, from oncology and theatres to critical care and elderly medicine. They are a fantastic asset and we’re really lucky to have them here to look after our patients.”

HUTH works with recruitment agency Resource Finder to review and approve applications to find the right staff to work in East Yorkshire’s hospitals.

Overseas nursing staff have to pass an International English Language Testing System (IELTS) and a computer-based test to ensure their communication skills are of a very high standard before they fly to England in groups of around 20 at a time.

A highly experienced team of Clinical Nurse Educators assess the skills of the new recruits as part of an intensive three-week training course at HUTH’s dedicated training facility, Suite 22, at Castle Hill.

Using the suite’s mock ‘wards’, the overseas nurses are trained in assessing, planning, implementing and evaluating nursing care in line with UK standards. The international nurses are also trained in medicines management and a range of around 10 clinical skills from injections and delivery of IV fluids to resuscitation.

When their in-house training has been completed, the international nurses then sit the Objective Standard Clinical Examination (OSCE), designed by the Nursing and Midwifery Council to ensure all applicants meet practical nursing standards. All overseas nursing recruits must pass the OSCE within 12 weeks of arriving in the UK and then receive their nursing PIN numbers, entitling them to work as fully qualified nurses in the UK.

Two birth partners will be able to accompany a woman in labour from next week as part of Hull’s hospitals plan to adapt to life with Covid-19.

Hull University Teaching Hospitals (HUTH) NHS Trust is easing restrictions put in place at the start of the pandemic as community infection rates continue to decline.

From Monday, April 18, women in active labour can now be accompanied by two birth partners on the Labour Ward at Hull Women and Children’s Hospital and at the Fatima Allam Birth Centre.

Lorraine Cooper, Head of Midwifery at HUTH, said rules introduced at the start of the pandemic to protect women and babies in our care and staff had been kept under constant review.

She said: “We thank families for their patience and understanding.

“Two birth partners can accompany women in labour from Monday thanks to the protection offered by the vaccine combined with the fall in infection rates.

“While the current variant does appear to be more infectious than previous variants, we now know it is causing less severe illness in the majority of people who contract the disease.

“Despite the introduction of two birth partners, we ask that all birth partners and visitors continue to wear masks and follow the instructions by staff on all of our wards.”

Despite the new arrangements, birth partners should not attempt to accompany a woman in labour if they are showing any symptoms of Covid-19 or are unwell for any other reason.

Visiting restrictions were eased in other parts of Hull’s hospitals outside maternity services in February to allow one family member or friend to visit a patient in most parts of Hull Royal Infirmary and Castle Hill Hospital. Visiting slots of one hour must be booked in advance with the ward sister or charge nurse and the visitor must be the same person for the duration of the patient’s stay in hospital.

The named visitor must also carry out a lateral flow test to prevent people with the virus coming to hospital and spreading the potentially deadly virus to already sick and injured patients.

Rules were also amended for parents of children undergoing care and treatment on Acorn and Ward 130

Two parents or carers can now visit their child at the same time for up to an hour a day and a parent or carer staying on the ward with their child can swap with the child’s second parent or carer if required.

Further visits – such as those on compassionate grounds or following a life-changing diagnosis – will continue to be considered on an individual basis.

Patients with suspected or confirmed Covid-19 cannot have visitors unless in exceptional circumstances.

Restrictions remain for oncology wards in the Queen’s Centre and in some surgical wards because these patients are at much higher risk of becoming gravely ill if they catch Covid-19. Please check arrangements with ward staff before attempting to visit.

Anyone coming to hospital for any reason must also wear a face masks as soon as they enter any hospital building although the requirement to wear a face mask on hospital grounds has been lifted.

All visitors should wash their hands thoroughly when they walk into a ward, use hand sanitizer when they leave their relative’s bedside and wash their hands for at least 20 seconds as they leave the ward. People should also follow the two-metre social distancing rule on hospital grounds and in our buildings.

Hospital managers in Hull are reaching out to former P&O workers to consider a career in health.

Just like the crew of the North Sea ferries, the NHS is no stranger to timetables, to keeping people happy, to managing resources and problem solving on a daily basis.

That’s why hospital teams are now looking to former ferry workers to help fill more than 30 clinical administration vacancies plus many other roles across Castle Hill and Hull Royal Infirmary.

Melanie Leedham, Head of Patient Administration for Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, says:

“We all felt for the staff of P&O after we heard the recent news about job losses. Many of the crew had spent the best part of their careers with the company, and at a time when the cost of living just seems to keep going up, it must have been a real blow for them.

“While nothing can quite make up for that, we’re confident that many of those who now find themselves without a job will have transferrable skills which would be really well suited to the NHS.”

Melanie manages the Trust’s Clinical Administration Service, a 900-strong team which collectively provides the support that hospital doctors, nurses and other clinical teams need to provide great care to patients. She continues:

“So many people see the NHS as just doctors and nurses, but the clinical admin team provides essential behind-the-scenes and front-of-house support for staff and patients, helping to ensure our wards, theatres and clinics all run smoothly. From customer service and administration to IT and data entry, we have lots of different roles to suit a range of different skills at both Hull Royal Infirmary and Castle Hill.”

The Clinical Administration Service will celebrate the upcoming Administrative Professionals Day on 27 April with a high profile online campaign; a pre-cursor to an open recruitment day in May where details of all current admin vacancies will be up for discussion. Interviews will also be held on the day for the right candidates. Examples of current vacancies within the Trust include a full time receptionist at the Queen’s Centre, Castle Hill, and a part time senior administrator for the outpatients service at Hull Royal Infirmary.

Melanie continues:

“Our Trust is a very flexible employer so we can offer a variety of full and part time roles, as well as different working hours and shift patterns to help staff achieve that all-important work life balance. We also offer full training for the right candidates, and there’s a whole programme of staff events, staff support and health and wellbeing initiatives going on behind the scenes too.”

NHS workers receive a number of enviable benefits including a generous pension scheme and up to 33 days’ annual leave per year plus Bank Holidays¹. NHS staff also enjoy access to discounts from a wealth of local and national retailers², plus local hospital workers can take advantage of free or discounted travel to and from work and around the city³.

For more information on the upcoming Clinical Administration Service open recruitment day, follow Hull Hospitals on social media – www.facebook.com/joinhullhospitals or www.twitter.com/hullhospitals

Details of all current job vacancies with Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust can be found at www.joinhullhospitals.co.uk

Notes

1. Annual leave allowance for directly employed NHS workers (with the exception of very senior managers and staff within the remit of the Doctors’ and Dentists’ Review Body) is set nationally and is based on full time hours (pro rata for part time):

• 0-5 years’ service – 27 days’ leave plus Bank Holidays
• 5-10 years’ service – 29 days’ leave plus Bank Holidays
• 10+ years’ service – 33 days’ leave plus Bank Holidays

Full details at https://www.nhsemployers.org/publications/tchandbook

2. Blue Light Card and HealthServiceDiscounts.com are among those offering discounts with national and online retailers for NHS staff. Other locally negotiated benefits are also available to local NHS staff such as discounted gym membership/corporate leisure schemes with the Hull and East Riding local authorities.
3. Hull Hospitals staff can travel for free anywhere on the 63 and 154 bus routes between HRI and Castle Hill Hospital, and can also use the Priory Park & Ride service between Priory Park (Hessle) and Hull Royal Infirmary for free. Hospital staff wishing to travel by bus can also take advantage of the Hull SmartCommute card, which offers discounted monthly travel on both Stagecoach and East Yorkshire services in and around Hull.

People living in the Londesborough Street and Anlaby Road areas of Hull are among those being asked for their views on proposals to redevelop and redesign the area.

New hospital wards, car parking options, more green space and safer cycling routes are among the ideas being put forward in a new Masterplan covering the Hull Royal Infirmary site and surrounding streets.

Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust is seeking to develop facilities on the HRI site, creating purpose-built inpatient wards that will replace the outdated wards in the Hull Royal Infirmary tower block. The plans also involve re-purposing some of the vacated space in the tower block for non-clinical use.

The work would form part of a wider masterplan, developed with Hull City Council,  which could open up opportunities for new developments on the current Argyle Street car park, such as new housing for hospital staff or a multi-storey car park. Proposals also suggest that, over the next 15 years, the nature of the Anlaby Road area could change significantly, making the route greener and more environmentally friendly to make it more attractive to users, encouraging more staff and visitors to travel other than by car.

The local authority and the Trust are now urging hospital staff, patients and visitors, local residents, landowners, business owners and anyone else with an interest in the future of the area to review the plans and feed back their thoughts.

In a joint statement, Trust chief executive Chris Long and Councillor Daren Hale, Leader of Hull City Council, said:

“This programme is an important part of improving healthcare for local people, so that is why your NHS and local authority are working together in partnership.

“The masterplan will be underpinned by funding from central government. This will help us to achieve significant and much needed investment in healthcare provision, serving people that live in the city and beyond. Our key objective is to improve the health and wellbeing of people in our communities, ensuring that any development is visually, environmentally and user friendly.”

The draft masterplan is available to view by following the link from the council web page.

Feedback must be provided using the form on the Hull City Council website or in writing to:
HRI Masterplan, Hull City Council Planning Services, The Guildhall, Alfred Gelder Street, HU1 2AA, or email: dev.control@hullcc.gov.uk.

Closing date for responses: Monday 2 May 2022.