Obtaining new lateral flow kits

NHS England is no longer supplying the trust with lateral flow testing kits for staff. This means when our very limited stock runs out you will need to order your own tests via the government portal here.

If there are no tests available to be posted to you, please check here for where to collect lateral flow tests in person locally.

These tests are really important, especially with the increase in cases of the Omicron variant. Please remember, every time you take a test you need to upload your results to our portal – mytest.uhd.nhs.uk.

Our own limited stocks are being prioritised towards care groups – please speak to your care group management to make a request in the first instance.

There are also extremely limited supplies available to collect at RBH and Poole, and requests can also be made to the clinical management team on your site or by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (Poole) or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (RBCH).

What to do if you are a contact of a Covid-19 case

The guidance for staff who have been identified as a contact of a Covid-19 case has now changed:

• Staff can now return to work as long as they are fully vaccinated (currently two doses), have a negative PCR result following the contact and can complete daily lateral flow tests for the 10 day period following identification as a contact.
• A risk assessment must also be completed to help line managers document this and is available on the IPC pages of the intranet.

Symptomatic staff should continue to follow the guidance regarding staying away from work, seeking a test and only returning when the negative PCR test is reported. All staff should complete a lateral flow test twice a week, reporting them here: https://mytest.uhd.nhs.uk/.

Any updates to this guidance will be highlighted in the Staff Bulletin and available on the intranet.

Join us for the first Ask Aly of 2022

Join us at 12pm on 13 January for our first Ask Aly of the year, hosted by our chief medical officer, Dr Alyson O'Donnell.

It's a great opportunity to ask questions, raise concerns or share your views.

You can join the meeting here and if you'd like to send any questions in advance, pop them through to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and we can ask on your behalf.

Help our therapy teams by returning unwanted therapy equipment

Our therapy teams need the correct equipment to help our patients get home safely and are appealing for the return of therapy equipment so it can be reused and recycled for other patients. Items include walking aids, crutches, toilet aids and kitchen trolleys.

Please ensure that you do not have any unwanted equipment, and advise patients that any unwanted equipment can be returned to:

• returned therapy equipment store at RBH next to ED minors
• NRS Wallisdown Service Centre, 498 Wallisdown Road, BH11 8PT

If equipment cannot be returned in person NRS can arrange collection. Either call 03448936364 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

RBCH: New nebuliser boxes to replace the need for piped medical air

To comply with a patient safety alert, nebuliser boxes will be available to order from equipment library for patients requiring nebulised medications. This will replace the need to use piped medical air in most clinical areas and estates will be capping off piped medical air ports in January and removing all air flowmeters.

The boxes stay with the individual patient, including during any ward moves, until it is no longer required or the patient is discharged. When a patient no longer needs a box it should be cleaned, labelled as 'clean' and returned to the equipment library.

From next Tuesday (4 January) you can order nebuliser boxes via Siso.

If you have any questions please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Modified moving and handling sessions available from January

From January, we are offering modified moving and handling sessions, which can be booked through ESR. These shorter sessions are an hour long and are for staff who are not ward based.

Staff who do not undertake lateral transfer movements or hoist patients within their daily roles can take this new training.

If you have a bank contract alongside your normal contract you must book and complete the full moving and handling training sessions not the modified versions.

Plus, if you would like to be an extension of the moving and handling team you can now sign up for one-and-a-half-day champion training on ESR.

Contact Claire Waugh and Vivienne Thompson on ext 6183 if you have any questions.

RBH: Marsden scale checks in January

An engineer will be on site to check all Marsden scales from 10 – 13 January and 17 to 19 January.

Please ensure your scales are available for inspection.

Submit your New Years Eve requests to Hospital Radio Bedside

This New Years Eve tune into Hospital Radio Bedside (HRB) for a music request show, and a 2021 news in review segment.

Our teams and our patients can request songs to be played on HRB from 2-4pm. Requests will be taken from 1.30pm on Friday, simply call ext 4451 or let patients know they can call free directly from their Hospedia units using the touchscreen (RBH) or by calling *800 from their handset (Poole).

The station will also be broadcasting a live New Year's Eve party 8pm-1am, where staff and patients are still encouraged to ring in their favourite party anthems to help bring some cheer to the New Year at our hospitals.

You can tune in to HRB here.

Job of the week - placement education facilitator at RBH

The pre-registration student support team are seeking a highly motivated and proactive nurse to join their team for a 12-month fixed term or secondment period.

As the placement education facilitator your primary role will be to facilitate direct and indirect coaching, guidance and pastoral care for all pre-registration students across the organisation.

You will support the learning development facilitator and placement education facilitator co-worker in the promotion and delivery of training and provide advice and guidance with clinical assessments in practice.

You will be a point of contact for student concerns and difficulties, provide wellbeing care, and signpost students to other support services.

The job closes on the 8 January, click here for more information.

Yellow Buses to run reduced Saturday service in January

Yellow Buses is going to be providing a reduced Saturday service from Tuesday (4 January).

This reduced service may affect your planned commutes into work, so please check their website for full details of their service changes.

Stay alert to potential phishing emails

Our emergency services colleagues at Dorset and Wiltshire Fire Service have let us know that they have received phishing emails, requesting staff change their passwords. These emails were not legitimate and were sent by a party trying to obtain sensitive information.

Please make sure you follow these cyber security precautions:

• If the email looks suspicious, has a link or attachment, don't click on it, report it to our IT team
• If in doubt – think and look carefully before taking any action – ask IT for guidance or advice
• Be particularly wary emails request personal or sensitive information
• Always use strong, unique passwords for all systems, and don't share them with anyone
• Set up multi-factor authentication (MFA) where available

Happy New Year from Beryl

Our friends at Beryl bikes have offered UHD staff 30 minutes free on every Beryl bike ride taken on New Year's Eve and New Years Day. This is to say thank you for all of our hard work and support this year.

The discount will be automatically applied, all you need to do is sign up to the Beryl app using your UHD email address.

Your weekly wellbeing

Don't forget to check out our wellbeing pages on the staff intranet, to help you kickstart your new year with positive physical and mental wellbeing. Today, join in with Our Dorset's 'Improving Self-Care and Wellbeing: Webinar for NHS Professionals' from 3.30pm.