Lateral flow test - new priority ordering

NHS staff including those at Team UHD can now use priority ordering on the Government's lateral flow test online ordering portal. Simply log in, select acute hospital, then the name of the trust.

Please continue to do lateral flow tests regularly and [mytest.uhd.nhs.uk]upload your result – especially now as cases of Covid-19 in the community are significantly high.

Tests may be ordered here https://www.gov.uk/order-coronavirus-rapid-lateral-flow-tests.

Be alert to norovirus

Norovirus is a highly infectious virus that is circulating in the community, and can rapidly spread in our hospitals if good hand hygiene and infection control practices are not followed.

Soap and water should be used to clean hands where there is known or suspected norovirus or undiagnosed diarrhoea.

If you suspect your patient may have norovirus, ensure you take precautions as soon as possible.

For more information on norovirus check the infection control pages of the intranet.

Covid-19 services of reflection

We will be holding special services of reflection and remembrance across our hospitals from 11.45am tomorrow (23 March), to reflect on the pandemic and to remember the family, friends, patients and colleagues we've lost.

The simultaneous services at Christchurch, Poole and the Royal Bournemouth will be led by our chaplains and include the observation of a minute's silence at 12pm. There will then be an opportunity to add a ribbon to our ribbon trees.

You are welcome to join the services in person but please maintain social distancing.

• Christchurch: at the front of Christchurch Hospital
• Poole: on the lawn behind Churchfield House
• RBH: by the lake

Alternatively, you can tune into the services as we stream them live on our social media channels:

• Christchurch: UHD Instagram
• RBH: UHD Facebook
• Poole: UHD Twitter

We hope you can join us.

Reminder: car parking charges to be reinstated from 1 April

The government's funding to enable free car parking for NHS staff during the pandemic is coming to an end, meaning staff car park charges need to be reinstated from 1 April, subject to board approval in March. You can find out more information about the planned changes, and how to contact the team, in the updated Q&As here. The update includes details on why we're not able to publish the scoring criteria as well as information for staff blue badge parking.

Understanding Covid-19 and its effects on staff

As part of our work to fully understand the impact that the Covid-19 pandemic has had on staff, our occupational health team would like to hear from those who have recorded a positive PCR Covid-19 swab test result at any time during the pandemic. Your answers to a short survey will help us better understand the pandemic's effect on our staff, and identify any areas that we can learn from. This includes helping us better assess whether staff contracted Covid-19 as a result of their work and if any protocols, policies or practices need to be reviewed.

The survey is part of our commitment to RIDDOR (Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013) and takes just a few minutes to complete. Complete it online here by 14 April 2022.

It's time to update your computer

To ensure our Windows PCs and laptops are kept up to date all Windows 10 devices across the trust need a large update installed, which each of us will need to activate on our own devices. This update will take approximately 30 minutes and your device will need to restart and a restart.

You can find out which version of Windows 10 you are using by clicking on the start button (bottom left hand corner), typing 'about' and clicking on 'about your PC'. This shows the version under Windows specification, and if it states 'Windows 10 Enterprise, version 1909' please complete the update.

The update can be found in the software centre/update section which can be located on your desktop or via the start menu. Follow the below steps to complete the instillation and plan the reboot of your machine - taking into consideration the longer process and ensuring you do not power off the device whilst it is updating.

Please contact the IT Service Desk if you have any problems.

Supporting your neurodiverse colleagues and patients

This week is neurodiversity celebration week, where we are all encouraged to listen to understand the experiences of our colleagues with neurodivergence.

People with neurodivergence may process, learn, or behave differently from what is considered to be neurotypical - and these divergencies can range from being very mild to very obvious. Neurological differences include ADHD, autism, dyslexia and dyspraxia, among others. Find out more on the intranet. You can visit the neurodiversity celebration week website here to sign up for free courses to help you understand and start conversations about neurodiversity. Don't forget – our UHD website includes the accessibility tool from Recite Me, which allows users to change the colour, size and font on our website pages to help make them accessible for all.

Purple Day for epilepsy awareness

Did you know that there are 10,000 people in Dorset who have active epilepsy? Would you know how to recognise one of the 40 different types of epileptic seizures and would you know what to do if someone had a seizure?

Dorset Epilepsy Service along with the paediatric epilepsy nurses provide free epilepsy awareness training to all NHS staff. To find out more, please e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

March 26 is Purple Day for epilepsy. In celebration of this, the epilepsy specialist nurses and neurophysiology will be in the dome on Wednesday and Thursday (23 and 24 March) raising awareness about epilepsy. They will be holding a raffle and will also have some freebies to hand out. Pop down to learn more and to meet the team.

Nutrition and hydration week

With many different clinical, cultural, and religious needs, it is essential that during patients' stay they have a menu that caters for their requirements. Nutrition is a vital part of all our patient's recovery.

Our dietetic students recently undertook an audit at ward level to raise staff's awareness of the different patient menus. This has highlighted the importance of ensuring that all staff are aware of the variety that we have on offer across UHD. Visit the SALT intranet pages to find out more

A big thank you to Jackie

This month, Jackie Oxborrow was presented with her gifts from the director of midwifery Lorraine Tonge. Jackie has been a valuable, highly respected and loved, member of our maternity team for 40 years. In that time she has worked as a midwife, the safeguarding lead and since retirement, for the last three years as a maternity receptionist.

Meet our recovery teams

Last Thursday our recovery teams held a stand at RBH to raise awareness about what the team does. They spoke to the public about the different types of surgery and pain management they work with and encouraged them to take part in a quiz to test their knowledge.

To find out more about what the team gets up to, recovery can be found on the intranet or contact practice educator Tammy for a chat on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Cross-site clinical skills differences

Do you practice venepuncture, cannulation and/or IV therapy? Find out more about using these skills cross site at both Poole, RBH and Christchurch hospitals. Find out more here.

What should I do if a patient or relative wants to make a donation?

University Hospitals Dorset NHS Charity receives many donations each year from grateful patients and relatives as a result of the great care that the Hospitals provide. Sometimes you may get asked about this or be given a donation to pass on. The charity team is here to manage all fundraising and donations received alongside supporting the spend of the donations to enhance patient treatment, staff wellbeing and the environment we work in.

All enquiries, donations to the trust and donation correspondence, including solicitors letters about a legacy being left to the hospital, should be directed to the charity office at Poole Hospital or RBH; if you receive a donation on your ward then please follow the procedure as outlined in the ward donation policy.

Please note that:

• only the charity office can confirm how donations will be spent
• receipts and acknowledgement letters will be issued by the charity office
• donation envelopes are available for direct donations – if you receive one please ensure this is locked away safely until it can be taken to the charity office
• the easiest way to make a donation is online here
• cheques should to be made payable to: University Hospitals Dorset NHS Charity.

The charity team is located in:

Poole – charity hub, main entrance or charity office, north entrance

RBH – charity office – management suite, East Wing

If you would like any further information about the charity or would like a member of the charity team to talk at a team meeting please contact us on 4060/8449.

Workshops for care and clinical staff

As part of Dorset's ICS transformation programme, we have secured support from Deloitte to gather views and experiences of staff working in a care or clinical setting.

Book your place at a workshops and share you views with the team.

Sessions last up to 90 mins and the next ones are on:

• Thursday 24 March at 6:30pm
• Wednesday 30 March at 5:30pm

If you are unable to make a workshop, please fill out this survey, it will take about 10 minutes to complete.

Car scheme staff benefits: new log in from 1 April

We can make our salary go further with the car benefit scheme from Tusker, offsetting some of our salary in exchange for a brand new car.

Plus there are huge savings available on pure electric vehicles as benefits in kind is just 2% from April 2022 and then remaining at 2% until April 2025.

To access the scheme today:

• To get a quote and see the range of cars available simply visit vivup.co.uk to create an account.
• If you need a hand with the site, or you want to chat to Tusker about ordering a car, you can get in contact through 'live chat', an online instant messaging service that will put you in touch with one of the team, who will guide you through the process. You can also get in touch by phone: 0333 400 7431 or email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

You can also email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Covid Voices premiere

A film which explores the experiences of a diverse range of people during the COVID-19 pandemic is being launched online on 23 March at 6pm as part of a national archive project. The film features an ICU consultant, a businessman and Patricia Miller OBE, designate chief executive, NHS Dorset Integrated Care Board (ICB) Click here to find out more and register for the premiere.

Women of Filipino nurses association webinar

In celebration of Women's History Month, Filipino Nurses Association UK invites us to a webinar highlighting the women – including our own Minnie Klepacz, matron for ophthalmology - for breaking barriers to make history in their respective fields of nursing. Join on Zoom this Friday (25 March) 6-8pm.

Zoom ID 83580190899, password 495077.

Ticket offer for UHD staff from Lighthouse, Poole

Our friends at the Lighthouse have offered UHD staff 2-4-1 tickets to see Speakeasy. Set in the roaring 1920s, this show is performed by some of the UK's finest break dancers and contemporary dancers.

The show is on 5 April and 2-4-1 on tickets. Enter promo code Speak241 and book online here.