CAREERS STUDENT LIFE
A student place on the panel As one of the contributors to a Keogh care review team, Lowri Aldworth learned the value of being listened to I first heard about the Keogh review when my university department head invited me to join a review panel as a student member. Last February, the prime minister asked NHS England’s medical director Sir Bruce Keogh to review patient care in 14 hospital trusts with persistently high mortality rates. Sir Bruce established a series of multidisciplinary panels to review the quality and outcomes of care in these trusts. I participated in a three-day review of one trust. Each panel was provided with trust performance data and lines of enquiry before we started review visits. Our panel included lay representatives, senior clinicians and managers, junior doctors and nursing students. At a panel induction day, the 16 members discussed their objectives and roles. I agreed to help run a nursing student focus group. Each of four panel teams was assigned to meet staff, patients and the public. Each visit day involved meetings with board members, ward staff and focus groups, after which we presented our findings to the full panel later in the day. My first meeting was with the trust
Participating in the Keogh review: Increased my confidence . Reinforced the importance of communication. Helped me identify good leadership and the relevance for my future practice. Emphasised that nursing students can contribute to improving care.
66 january 15 :: vol 28 no 20 :: 2014
medical director. I heard about how the board’s work affects daily care, and realised the importance of communication between clinical leaders and the workforce.
Role of placements
My focus group with nursing students demonstrated that they have a valuable role because rotating placements mean students can make comparisons between clinical areas and can see teams’ relative strengths and areas for improvement. One way of mitigating staff shortages and the effect of poor staff morale on quality of care is to provide positive placement learning environments, encouraging them to remain with the trust after qualifying. A focus group with senior nurses gave us insights into the working environment and the value of a culture in which team members feel confident to Lowri Aldworth believes nursing students have much to contribute
report problems. It also showed us how staff morale can affect patient care. The panel wanted to encourage patient feedback rather than focusing solely on complaints, as patients often suggest simple ways that care can be improved. When patients and relatives, MPs and community figures attended a local listening event, it was moving to see how many people came to tell us their stories. The panel met several times a day to share their findings. As the review proceeded, some issues were raised repeatedly. For example, staff shortages were often cited as a cause of low job satisfaction and poor patient experience. At the end of our visit, each panel member recommended areas to be raised in our report. Nursing students should be valued as the nurses of the future, and trusts should provide good placements, mentors and career opportunities for the newly qualified. Our recommendations were included in the final report, which was presented at a summit meeting and formed the basis for a trust improvement plan. The review found that poor management and weak leadership, staff shortages and low staff morale have a huge effect on the experiences of patients, relatives and staff. The review process could be replicated in all areas regardless of mortality statistics, as it can only lead to positive change NS Lowri Aldworth is a third-year mental health nursing student at Oxford Brookes University RESOURCES The Keogh reviews tinyurl.com/Keoghreviews Student Life on the internet www.nursing-standard.co.uk/ students
NURSING STANDARD
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A student place on the panel As one of the contributors to a Keogh care review team, Lowri Aldworth learned the value of being listened to I first heard about the Keogh review when my university department head invited me to join a review panel as a student member. Last February, the prime minister asked NHS England’s medical director Sir Bruce Keogh to review patient care in 14 hospital trusts with persistently high mortality rates. Sir Bruce established a series of multidisciplinary panels to review the quality and outcomes of care in these trusts. I participated in a three-day review of one trust. Each panel was provided with trust performance data and lines of enquiry before we started review visits. Our panel included lay representatives, senior clinicians and managers, junior doctors and nursing students. At a panel induction day, the 16 members discussed their objectives and roles. I agreed to help run a nursing student focus group. Each of four panel teams was assigned to meet staff, patients and the public. Each visit day involved meetings with board members, ward staff and focus groups, after which we presented our findings to the full panel later in the day. My first meeting was with the trust
Participating in the Keogh review: Increased my confidence . Reinforced the importance of communication. Helped me identify good leadership and the relevance for my future practice. Emphasised that nursing students can contribute to improving care.
66 january 15 :: vol 28 no 20 :: 2014
medical director. I heard about how the board’s work affects daily care, and realised the importance of communication between clinical leaders and the workforce.
Role of placements
My focus group with nursing students demonstrated that they have a valuable role because rotating placements mean students can make comparisons between clinical areas and can see teams’ relative strengths and areas for improvement. One way of mitigating staff shortages and the effect of poor staff morale on quality of care is to provide positive placement learning environments, encouraging them to remain with the trust after qualifying. A focus group with senior nurses gave us insights into the working environment and the value of a culture in which team members feel confident to Lowri Aldworth believes nursing students have much to contribute
report problems. It also showed us how staff morale can affect patient care. The panel wanted to encourage patient feedback rather than focusing solely on complaints, as patients often suggest simple ways that care can be improved. When patients and relatives, MPs and community figures attended a local listening event, it was moving to see how many people came to tell us their stories. The panel met several times a day to share their findings. As the review proceeded, some issues were raised repeatedly. For example, staff shortages were often cited as a cause of low job satisfaction and poor patient experience. At the end of our visit, each panel member recommended areas to be raised in our report. Nursing students should be valued as the nurses of the future, and trusts should provide good placements, mentors and career opportunities for the newly qualified. Our recommendations were included in the final report, which was presented at a summit meeting and formed the basis for a trust improvement plan. The review found that poor management and weak leadership, staff shortages and low staff morale have a huge effect on the experiences of patients, relatives and staff. The review process could be replicated in all areas regardless of mortality statistics, as it can only lead to positive change NS Lowri Aldworth is a third-year mental health nursing student at Oxford Brookes University RESOURCES The Keogh reviews tinyurl.com/Keoghreviews Student Life on the internet www.nursing-standard.co.uk/ students
NURSING STANDARD
Downloaded from RCNi.com by ${individualUser.displayName} on Nov 16, 2015. For personal use only. No other uses without permission. Copyright © 2015 RCNi Ltd. All rights reserved.
