Clinical Support Worker, Jo Howley, retires just days before her 75th birthday

A Beverley woman whose NHS career spans more than 33 years is set to retire today, less than a week before her 75^th birthday.

Jo Howley spent five years nursing at Beverley Westwood Hospital before moving to Ward 11 at Castle Hill Hospital when it opened 28 years ago. She has worked on the ward as a Clinical Support Worker ever since, caring for patients who have undergone colorectal surgery.

But on Friday 20^th April, Jo will work her last shift before finally retiring from Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.

Jo says:

“I’ll be 75 next week but I really don’t feel it. I just love working here, I’ve been so happy and I’m really going to miss the people; both the patients and the people I work with, it’s such a great team.

“The NHS has changed a lot over the years, but things have definitely changed for the better and I’ve loved being a part of it.”

Colleagues have already treated Jo to farewell flowers and gifts, and around 40 work colleagues, past and present will, be joining her for a celebratory meal this evening.

Tracy Kelly, Staff Nurse on Ward 11, has worked alongside Jo since the ward opened. She says:

“I have worked with Jo for 28 years, so she really has become my right hand woman. She’s such a calm and caring professional, you can trust her with anything, and she’s been an emotional support for hundreds of patients over the years as well as someone who provides them with physical nursing care. She’s one in a million.”

Junior Sister, Catherine Hellewell, says:

“There’s never any drama or crisis with Jo, she just goes about her business; we often say she never rushes around, she just floats! When I met Jo I remember saying she’s just like a mum, she is so thoughtful and supportive. They certainly don’t make them like Jo any more, and we’re sad to see her go.”

Ward Sister, Sam Bell, says:

“Jo has been such a good role model for our new starters. We know that if we put a new auxiliary or student nurse with Jo, we know she will support them and teach them right. She is a credit to the Trust and to the NHS in general and even now, she can still knock spots off some of our younger nurses; she’s going to be irreplaceable.”

Once she has formally retired, Jo plans to holiday in France with her family and spend some of her spare time gardening.

A neonatal unit caring for the region’s sickest babies has undergone a £45,000 transformation to protect vulnerable infants.

Work has just been completed to increase the floor space in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Hull Women and Children’s Hospital caring for sick babies.

The unit is a regional specialist centre caring for premature infants and desperately ill newborn babies from Hull, Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire.

NICU manager Kate Lamming said the work, paid for by Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, had extended the “Red Room”, where the most critically ill babies are nursed.

She said: “The way we were working meant the babies we were nursing were very close together which did raise safety and infection control concerns.

“We knocked through into an office area to increase the space between the babies as an infection prevention measure and to create a better working environment for staff.

“Some of our most seriously ill babies can require three machines around their incubators right up to the next baby’s space, meaning our staff didn’t have much space between them.

“It’s far better for the babies, gives better access for families and staff and creates a more open lay-out.”

NICU, before the refurbishment was carried out

The new extension has been fitted with sliding doors so it can be partitioned off if a baby requires nursing in isolation.

Parent and family facilities such as the bedrooms and the Kitching and dining areas have also been fully refurbished thanks to the generosity of family and the general public raising funds for the unit.

Kate said: “While the babies are our priority, the comfort and wellbeing of their families is also very important to us.”

Babies normally treated in the Red Room were nursed in other rooms on the unit while the area was fitted with new flooring, sinks, ceiling tiles and redecorated.

Staff are now planning to raise funds to refurbish the Blue Room, the area where seriously ill babies are nursed by the team. Visit www.hey.nhs.uk/babyunitfund for details on how you can help or support the staff.

The public have a key role to play in preventing the spread of life-threatening infections, a hospital consultant says.

Consultant physician Dr Gavin Barlow will give a free public lecture on the need for people to protect antibiotics after seeing the problem worsen since joining Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust in 2004.

Dr Barlow, who leads the trust’s work on antimicrobial stewardship, said: “I will explain to people what antibiotics are, what they are used for and why they are so important to us.

“I’ll explain why it’s so important that we only use them when they are needed and that’s in contrast to the way they are used at the moment because they are being used when they are not needed.

“This is about protecting antibiotics and optimising their use so we reduce the risk of drug-resistance evolution.”

Dr Barlow, who is based at the Department of Infection, will present the lecture on Tuesday, May 1, at 2.30pm in the lecture theatre at Castle Hill Hospital.

People should email membership.team@hey.nhs.uk if they would like to attend the lecture, which starts at 2.30pm, to find out more about antibiotics and the growing problem of multi drug-resistant bacteria.

Hospital staff will be cooking dishes from around the world next month at a special event to welcome overseas nurses, doctors and healthcare workers to the NHS.

Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust will host the food event on Nurses Day on May 9 to celebrate the diverse cultures now working at Hull Royal Infirmary and Castle Hill Hospital.

In the past few years, the trust has welcomed staff from countries including Spain, Bulgaria, Hungary, Finland, Portugal, The Philippines and the Indian sub-continent through its “Remarkable People, Extraordinary Place” recruitment campaign.

Now, staff from wards and departments will be invited to taste massaman curries from Thailand, hamburgers from the USA, Neopolitan pizza from Italy, spring rolls from China and Indian speciality Masala Dosa to welcome the different nationalities devoted to caring for sick people from Hull and the East Riding.

Senior nurse Louise Beedle, head of patient experience, said: “We now employ nurses, doctors and healthcare staff from all over the world.

“We hope this event will mark the richness in cultures we now have right here in Hull.

Louise Beedle, right, with her Indian-born mother Jan Handley with some of their family’s favourite food

“We want our staff, no matter where they come from, to feel welcome in the city and to highlight their heritage through food. It might be a dish passed down their family for generations or something that reminds them of a place that means a lot to them.

“Food is a great way to break down cultural barriers and create new friendships, celebrating strengths in diversity but also the common bond we share in doing the best for our patients.”

The World Food event will be held at Castle Hill Hospital’s Nightingales Restaurant on May 9 between 4pm and 8pm.

A hospital team is marking its most successful year after a record number of families agreed to save lives.

Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust has revealed 35 families agreed their loved one’s organs could be used to save a life last year compared to 13 in 2016/17. This mean 54 life-saving transplants could be carried out.

Trust staff also referred more patients to the organ donation team than other hospitals in the country, achieving a referral rate of 94 per cent compared to a national rate of 90 per cent.

Now, the team will visit the University of Hull on Wednesday to encourage students to sign the register and donate blood.

Alex Wray, specialist nurse for organ donation at the trust, said: “By signing the organ donor register, you can be the difference between life and death to someone waiting for a transplant.

“No one wants to be faced with their own mortality.

“But taking this step can not only save someone else, it can let your family know what your final wishes are.

“We hope people will discuss organ donation with their loved ones during their lifetimes but signing the register means hospital staff, doctors and your family will know what you want to happen should there come a time when you can’t communicate your wishes.”

The success came after Alex and the organ donation team worked tirelessly throughout 2017/18 to raise the profile of their work.

A branded fire engine, based at Bransholme, was launched and the team spoke to hundreds of members of the public to explain the importance of organ donation during a special event at St Stephen’s.

Lift wraps spreading the word about organ donation were also placed on the elevator doors in the tower block of Hull Royal Infirmary.

The team also attended Health Expo 2017 at City Hall when TV presenter Peter Levy agreed to sign the organ donor register.

Alex Wray said: “All of our efforts have resulted in a 38 per cent increase in the number of people on the organ donor register in Hull and the East Riding.

“We’re just so proud of all team and everyone who has made that happen.”

The team, nominated for a Golden Hearts award in the trust celebration in June, is planning a series of events to continue the momentum ahead of Organ Donation Week in September by taking part in the Humber Street Sesh and a Celebration of Life event in June.

She was the first baby to open her eyes in the plush surroundings of the Fatima Allam Birth Centre and now one-year-old Connie Houghton is back to celebrate.

Arriving at 4.49pm on April 10, 2017, and weighing in at 8lbs 9.5oz, Connie is one of over 340 babies born to date at the city’s £470,000 midwifery-led unit, within Hull Women and Children’s Hospital.

Parents Ellen, 32, and Gareth, 34, who also have a son Charlie, now four, hadn’t planned to use the birth centre but agreed to be the first family when Ellen arrived at the hospital in labour.

Ellen Houghton with midwife Anna Harrison, who helped her during the birth of baby Connie

Ellen, a pharmacy manager at Lloyds, said: “I had decided on a water birth any way so we just thought ‘Why not?’

“We had Connie in the Jasmine suite and it was absolutely fantastic. My husband remembers the music playing in the background and I remember the mood lighting. She was born under water and the whole experience was just so calm and amazing.

“It’s definitely something I would recommend to other women.”

To mark baby Connie’s first birthday, she was invited back to the birth centre to take part in a ‘cake smash’ and celebrate with staff.

Work began on the construction of the birth centre in November 2016 after a donation of £370,000 from Fatima Allam and her family. The trust contributed £100,000 to the total cost of the centre.

Around 1,400 East Yorkshire women give birth each year without the need for medical intervention, supported by midwives, and the birth centre was created to meet the needs of women with low-risk pregnancies who wish to birth their babies naturally.

Ellen and Gareth Houghton with newborn daughter Connie

Although the unit is self-contained on the second floor of the main Women and Children’s Hospital, it was built next to the labour ward to provide swift access to medical assistance in the event of an emergency.

With valued input from Mrs Allam, three rooms – Lotus, Jasmine and Persea ­ – were decorated in the style of luxury hotel rooms each featuring a birthing bed, birthing pool, en-suite wet room and muted colour changing light scheme. Faux wood panelling conceals medical equipment, all within easy reach of midwives.

Janet Cairns, head of midwifery at Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, said: “The Fatima Allam Birth Centre is a fantastic addition to our maternity services and has increased the options available to women when they consider where and how they would like to give birth.

“Women in Hull and the East Riding now have the choice of having their babies at home, in a unit led by skilled midwives or with the expertise provided by dedicated staff in the labour ward at Hull Women and Children’s Hospital.

“We receive new enquiries every day from women keen to use the birth centre and we’re so pleased to have such a wonderful facility in the city.”

Connie, age one, (left); newborn Connie (top right); Connie with mum Ellen and dad Gareth outside the Fatima Allam birth Centre (bottom right)

Midwifery sister Suzanna Lascelles, who runs the Fatima Allam Birth Centre, led her team of midwives in the celebrations, organising a special cake smash for 1-year-old Connie as well as balloons and a birthday cake of her own.

Suzanna said: “We have had wonderful feedback from the women who have chosen to have their babies at the Fatima Allam Birth Centre.

“It is a real gift having it here in our city and we expect the number of women using the centre to continue to rise.

“They tell us they’ve had a great experience in relaxing and comfortable surroundings and that was our mission from the start.

“While the birth centre is not an option for all women, it has provided a beautiful start to life for our new arrivals and their parents and we’re very proud of what we have achieved.”

If you would like to find out more about the Fatima Allam Birth Centre, speak to your midwife or attend one of the monthly HEY Baby Carousel events held on the last Wednesday of every month, 6-8pm, on the ground floor of the Women and Children’s Hospital.

A group of volunteers from Hessle who work tirelessly to raise funds to support people with epilepsy have presented thousands of pounds worth of equipment to the Trust.

Members of Hessle Epilepsy Society have presented staff on Hull Royal Infirmary’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU) with two new Hamilton ventilators, used to help people who are too poorly to breathe for themselves, and a state of the art ‘Mindray Sonosite’ ultrasound scanner which can help doctors to pinpoint and then resolve potentially life threatening problems.

This is the latest in a string of donations made to the intensive care units at HRI and Castle Hill Hospital which collectively amount to more than £100,000. The charity’s fundraising efforts, coupled with proceeds of sales from their charity shop on Tower Hill, have seen five beds, eight clocks, two bladder scanners and 22 bedside trolleys purchased in addition to today’s ventilators and ultrasound scanner.

The ventilators are better for the patient, as the respiratory support they receive is via face mask, rather than an invasive tube into the trachea which requires patients to be sedated. Instead, patients are awake and breathing for themselves with some extra support. This kind of therapy is more comfortable for the patient and, in some cases, can help patients to leave ICU sooner.

The ultrasound scanner will now enable doctors to see inside parts of the body such as the neck, chest or abdomen to identify serious or potentially life threatening issues, such as restricted blood vessels or excess fluid, and then take action to address them.

Helen Wilson, Sister within the ICU, says Hessle Epilepsy Society’s support makes a massive difference:

“Nobody expects to be in intensive care, so it’s wonderful that the volunteers from Hessle Epilepsy Society think of us and are able to support the people who find themselves here.

“People need intensive care for all sorts of reasons; as a result of road traffic accidents, deteriorating health or following major surgery, for example, so these really are the most critically ill patients in our hospitals and they often need urgent intervention.

“The equipment and the support we receive from the Hessle Epilepsy Society really helps to make sure patients can be cared for using the most up to date equipment. It also helps to make them more comfortable at a really crucial time in their lives, and this in itself offers reassurance for worried relatives and friends too.

“We’re really grateful to the volunteers of Hessle Epilepsy Society for all their support and for this latest, incredibly generous and very significant donation.”

He remembers the swarm of wasps shooting out of the ground when his lawnmower clipped a nest in Hedon Road cemetery.

Hull City Council worker Marc Gabriel, 39, felt a sharp pain in his neck and called his boss to tell him he’d been stung.

However, seconds after hanging up, he was overcome by an intense feeling that his life was in danger, the “sense of impending doom” recognised in people experiencing a severe allergic reaction known as anaphylaxis.

Marc jumped back on his lawnmower and headed to the nearest house before collapsing on the doorstep. By chance, the home owner had an oxygen cylinder and gave him oxygen therapy until paramedics arrived.

Realising he was in anaphylactic shock caused by wasp venom, he was given two shots of adrenalin before being rushed to Hull Royal Infirmary where he was monitored closely until his blood pressure recovered and he was well enough to go home.

Now, Marc is one of the patients undergoing three years of treatment at Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust to build up tolerance to wasp and bee stings.

Marc said: “I started out by getting an injection with a tiny amount of wasp venom but now, I’m getting the equivalent of two wasp stings in an injection every four weeks.

“My arm goes red still but the reaction is nothing like as bad as it used to be.

“I run away as soon as I see a wasp now but, hopefully, this treatment will protect me in the future.”

Anaphylaxis induced by venom triggers cells to flood the body with histamine, causing the blood pressure to crash and the person to collapse. Without treatment, their lives are at risk.

Nurses at Castle Hill Hospital see patients with potentially deadly allergies to wasp and bee stings at a dedicated allergen immunotherapy clinic every week.

Clinical nurse specialist Jackie Moor said people who suffer reactions to stings are usually referred either by their GP or A&E to the nurse-led allergy assessment clinic  where  a full history of the reaction is taken and tests determine the severity of their allergy.

Patients who can benefit are referred to venom immunotherapy  for three years of treatment with injections to build up tolerance levels.

She said: “When we discuss immunotherapy with people, we take into account the severity of their reaction, other medical history, what they do for a living and the likelihood of them being exposed to future risk.

“It’s a three-year course of treatment and injections are weekly to start with then build up over time to every four to six weeks. It impacts on their lives because they can be here for up to two hours with every appointment so they have to be committed and have very supportive employers.

“But it can give them vital protection against life-threatening reactions in the future.”

Patients are given incremental doses of venom, taking into account their personal histories and reactions to their allergen. Some start off with an injection containing as little as one hundredth of a wasp sting, building up to two stings in each session.

They are observed for one hour by the nurses after each injection to ensure they do not suffer adverse reactions.

Jackie said: “They come to us for a long time so we get to know them. We see people from all walks of life like beekeepers and people who work outdoors. It becomes quite social and we get to know all about their lives and their families.

“Our service makes a real difference to the lives of our patients.”

Patients coming into Hull Royal Infirmary and Castle Hill Hospital this month will be encouraged to take off their pyjamas as part of a national campaign.

Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust is launching #EndPJParalysis, a 70-day initiative running in hospitals from April 17 to June 26 to get patients wearing everyday clothes instead of nightwear.

Studies show keeping hospital patients in their pyjamas can result in reduced mobility, greater risk of falls, loss of independence and longer stays.

Simon Knopp, practice development matron at the trust, said: “It’s become the norm for people in hospital to put on their pyjamas, get into bed and stay like that until it’s time to go home.

“We’re trying to shift that mind-set so people put their everyday clothes on when they’re clinically well enough so they take more control and play a part in their recovery.”

The trust is adopting the national initiative to achieve one million patient days of people up, dressed and back on their feet as part of the NHS’s 70^th anniversary celebrations.

Staff will download a special app to record the number of days a patient will be in their normal clothes to join hospitals around the country aiming to hit the one million target..

Nottingham University Hospitals achieved a 37 per cent reduction in falls, an 86 per cent drop in pressure injuries and an 80 per cent decrease in patient complaints after introducing #EndPJParalysis on its trauma ward. The average length of stay for patients was also reduced by 1.5 days.

Patients coming into hospital from April 17 will be asked to bring their normal clothes as well as their pyjamas so they can adopt more normal routines in hospitals.

Health care staff at Hull Royal and Castle Hill will help patients into their day clothes as soon as people are well enough.

Other wards will be following the success of Ward 29 at Castle Hill Hospital, the rehabilitation unit for patients recovering from traumatic brain injuries and illnesses, where patients wear their day clothes as part of their recovery.

Senior sister Rachel Hoggarth heard about #EndPJParalysis while on secondment to the regional Trauma Network covering the Humber, North Lincolnshire, York and Scarborough last year and promoted the idea during Dignity Day in February when she went around the wards at Castle Hill in her pyjamas to educate staff on the benefits for patients.

“Some of our patients can be with us for some time and the average length of stay is three months so we encourage them to establish routines such as getting up and dressed and going to our breakfast club,” she said.

“Wearing your own clothes means you’re already doing more for yourself rather than having things done to you or for you.”

“When you’re dressed, you feel more like yourself and more able to do things rather than think ‘I’m in my pyjamas, I must be unwell’.

“Not only is that a really good thing for patients, it’s a really good thing for families to see their loved ones getting better and stronger every day.”

Search for old health artefacts and memorabilia to help celebrate the NHS’s 70^th birthday

The National Health Service turns 70 years old this year, and local health and care organisations are planning to mark the occasion in style.

The 2018 Health Expo will be a free event taking place on Thursday 5^th July, 70 years to the day since the NHS was created. It will be held at the new Doubletree by Hilton on Ferensway, where organisers are seeking to fill the 856sqm ballroom with hands-on displays, a recruitment fair, activities and demonstrations, and an archive display representing the last 70 years of local health history.

Mike Pearson, who maintains the hospital archive at Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, says:

“The hospital archive is not something that people see or explore on a regular basis, so this is a fantastic opportunity to be able to share some of our items with the public and, for the older generation, take them on a bit of a trip down Memory Lane.

“We have old uniform, pieces of medical equipment, books and newspaper cuttings to display, as well as more significant items such as a visitors book signed by Her Majesty, The Queen, when she officially opened Hull Royal Infirmary in 1967, and the ceremonial trowel and mallet used by Enoch Powell , Minister of Health, on the laying of the Foundation Stone in 1963. We also have old archive footage from the past 70 years and even further back.

“But we’re now on the hunt for anyone who may have additional items which they would be willing to include in our archive display for the day, to complement the items we already have. It could be different styles of uniform, pieces of medical equipment, artefacts, pamphlets or photos which we could use as part of the display, but all items will be returnable.

“With so many people having worked in the NHS over the last 70 years, there are bound to be unusual and interesting things stashed away in people’s cupboards or lofts across the area. On such a special and significant occasion, it would be a wonderful thing to share as much as possible with people and show how far the health service has come.”

Myles Howell, Director of Communications for Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, is among those organising the Health Expo. He says:

“This will be the third year of the Hull and East Riding Health Expo, and also a very special year for us as we celebrate the NHS’s 70^th birthday.

“The Expo will be free to attend and will be open to everyone to come and celebrate the many ways in which the health service touches our lives, day in day out. More details on what’s in store at the event will be revealed over the coming weeks.”

If you have something you think would be of interest and you’d be willing to share this with others as part of the Health Expo archive display, please get in touch by emailing hyp-tr.events@nhs.net  Perhaps it’s something that has been handed down through the family, or maybe it’s something you’ve hung on to from when you started your own NHS career. Please provide a full description (or as much as you know) and where possible, please attach a photograph. A member of the Health Expo organising team will get back to you in due course if your item is suitable, to make further arrangements.