Online Covid-19 vaccination bookings now available

A new online booking system for staff to book their own Covid-19 vaccination appointment is now live for those in eligible priority vaccination groups, which have also been updated.

With incredible progress made in vaccinating staff who are the most vulnerable and who carry the greatest risk, we are now able to open the bookings system for all staff in patient- or public-facing roles. We will offer appointments to staff outside of these groups as soon as possible.

You will need your assignment number to hand in order to book an appointment.

If you experience problems registering, please note:

• when you book a slot, you are booking the date, the time and the location of the slot all in one go. Please be clear when you do this, that you pick the site (ie Poole or RBH) that you wish to attend.
• the site may have rejected you on the grounds of not being a member of a priority group, this part of the software has now been updated you may now be able to book a slot.
• with a large number of staff trying to access this site, please be patient and allow the system time to respond to the information you are putting in and the choices you make.

If you believe you meet the criteria for a priority vaccination and you are unable to book an appointment on the new system, please speak to your manager who will contact the vaccination service on your behalf.

The booking system can be accessed here. For a poster to help make staff without regular access to email or the intranet aware and which can be displayed on staff noticeboards please check the intranet.

Consent for the removal of relevant material from the deceased

The medical examiner office has seen a number of occasions recently where Covid swabs may have been taken from patients after they have died. As per the Coronavirus legislation doctors are not required to have a positive swab result to enter Covid-19 on the MCCD as a cause of death, only to suspect it. Check the clinical information area on the Covid-19 intranet pages to see the consent for the removal of relevant material from the deceased document.

Covid-19 vaccine fraud

Criminals are using the Covid-19 vaccine as a way to target the public by tricking them to hand over cash or financial details. They are sending convincing-looking text messages letting people know they are eligible for the vaccine or phoning people directly pretending to be from the NHS, or local pharmacy.

Check the counter fraud page on the intranet to see examples of the fraud taking place and how to prevent it.

RBH - Stour Building: reminder not to congregate in toilets and kitchen areas

Staff are reminded not to congregating in toilets and kitchen areas when they are taking lunches/breaks in the Stour Building.

Please be mindful that this is a work area and staff wish to keep it as Covid safe as possible.

Library service opening hours and virtual support

During the current lockdown both our libraries are staffed Mon-Fri, 8.30am–5pm. The library team is also able to offer training and help virtually using MS Teams for those working from home.

Email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. if you would like any training. In addition, all books borrowed in December 2020 have been renewed until 1 March.

Reminder on PPE and clinical practice

Please ensure you follow good infection prevention and control practices, and ensure your use of PPE is appropriate. Check the intranet latest news for a handy summary of some of the key actions staff can take. If you are unsure about the correct use of PPE, or what PPE to wear, speak to your manager.

Have you had you flu jab externally?

If you have had your flu jab outside of the trust, eg at your GP or pharmacy, please contact occupational health to let them know at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

It's not too late to have your jab to be as protected as possible this winter. You should not have the flu vaccine within seven days of a Covid-19 vaccination as a precaution, and it is safe to have the flu vaccination between the two Covid-19 vaccination doses. Please check the flu vaccination intranet section.

Your Staff Bulletin – coming to you twice a week

The Staff Bulletin will now be published twice a week on Tuesdays and Fridays, bringing you news and information even faster.

Please submit items by 10am Monday for consideration in Tuesday bulletins and by 10am Thursday for consideration in Friday bulletins.

Your January edition of The Brief is out now!

Included in this edition:

• an update on our hospitals from Debbie Fleming
• Covid-19 update, including vaccinations and staff swabbing
• wellbeing and emotional support for you
• download your 2021 Inclusion Calendar - see below
• sign up to one of our staff networks
• transformation update – what's happening when
• education and training news
• developing our UHD intranet

Click here to read it and please share the key messages with your colleagues.

Home First – free online events for healthcare providers

We have joined NHS colleagues and social care services in Dorset to help people out of hospital more quickly and recover in the comfort of their own homes. To support staff during this campaign, Dorset Healthcare is hosting a series of webinars this month about the Home First programme, and what it means for healthcare providers.

You can find out more about the webinars as well as register your interest here.

Healthcare students return

During the next week we will see the return of healthcare students onto placement across the trust. This includes a large number of first years who have had no previous hospital experience.

Please welcome them as part of your team and be mindful of their well-being needs as well as their clinical learning outcomes.

The education team is on hand to support and ask that you contact us directly with any concerns or issues that arise.

Poole: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or ext.8771

RBCH: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or ext.6501.

Drop-ins every Friday, 10am-12pm, in the Oasis café.

Occupational English Test (OET) for HCSWs

Are you are an overseas qualified nurse working in the trust as a Healthcare Support Worker role who needs to achieve OET to apply for OSCE training and NMC registration?

The trust is funding a group to study for the Occupational English Test (OET) at Bournemouth and Poole College.

If you would like to apply to be assessed for this course please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by Sunday 24 January.

A farewell to Julia Hopper

Julia Hopper, Royal Bournemouth Hospital's first director of nursing, died earlier this month aged 87.

She had a 39-year long career in the NHS, working in Manchester, Sheffield, York and Dundee before moving to Dorset in 1971 where she first worked at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Boscombe.

Julia was instrumental in setting up the MacMillan Unit, our hospice at Christchurch Hospital, with Dr Ronnie Fisher and was also involved with planning hospice-type care and specialised nurses in the NHS.

Simplified HSJ access

The HSJ has made access even simpler than before. The subscription, paid for by the Library and Knowledge Service, is available for all UHD staff using their trust email address.

To sign up and keep up to date with the latest Health Service news click here.

RBH - Road closure outside the Eye Unit and Jigsaw Building entrances

In advance of the new west entrance construction, initial ground investigation work will require the closure of part of the road outside the Eye Unit and Jigsaw entrances as well as the introduction of a priority traffic system.

These changes are expected to be in place from Monday 18 January until Friday 22 January. We apologise in advance for the disruption this might cause to the flow of traffic in this area.

Pedestrian routes to the Eye Unit and Jigsaw entrances will be maintained from both directions from car park A&B and Derwent/Multi Story Car Park.

RBH - check of Marsden scales

An engineer will be on site to check all Marsden scales from 26-29 January. Please ensure your scales are available for inspection.

Your 2021 Inclusion Calendar

We're so pleased to bring you your 2021 Inclusion Calendar, packed with actions and ideas you or your colleagues can take to help create happier and more inclusive teams. The calendar includes information on key national and local campaigns and events and gives you an idea of how you can get involved in UHD organised events, but also how you can get involved independently if we cannot support anything centrally.

Leadership development session: difficult conversations

The trust is offering a leadership development session aimed at those with line management responsibilities and is designed to help attendees develop techniques for managing difficult conversations.

The virtual programme, delivered by Practive, aims to support delegates to increase their confidence and skills in handling difficult conversations and tackling poor behaviour and under performance.

For information on dates and to apply, please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Care First webinars

Care First, our employee assistance programme, is putting on webinars this week and next. The themes are:

• Tuesday 12 January, 12-12.30pm - Mental health
• Wednesday 13 January, 12-12.30pm - Alcohol awareness
• Thursday 14 January, 12-12.30pm - Wellbeing
• Friday 15 January, 12-12.30pm - Isolation and loneliness
• Monday 18 January, 12-12.30pm – Care First
• Tuesday 19 January, 12-12.30pm - Lockdown
• Wednesday 20 January, 12-12.30pm - Keyworkers
• Thursday 21 January, 12-12.30pm – Health anxiety
• Friday 22 January, 12 -12.30pm – Home schooling and children at home

Survey on improving short term management of patients with dementia admitted to hospital

Based on interviews conducted at RBH, a researcher from Bournemouth University's Ageing and Dementia Research Centre has develop a support bundle aiming to reducing length of stay through improvements in discharge planning and falls prevention.

Staff caring for people with dementia are asked to complete two short surveys on factors identified as contributing to a reduction of falls and the improvement of the discharge planning process.

Click here to complete the questionnaire on falls, and here for the questionnaire on discharge planning.

For more information contact Mary Duah-Owusu White This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

March for Men returns

Registration is now open for Bournemouth Hospital Charity's March for Men. You're invited to walk, jog or run either 1km, 5km or 10km in solidarity with the thousands of men from every part of our community facing men's health concerns, such as prostate or testicular cancers.

The event will be a little bit different in 2021, as we want you to undertake your walk or run at a location of your choice between Friday 12 and Sunday 28 March. Find out more and sign up now here.

Roadworks

Click here for a list of the current roadworks taking place.