LHCH an Excellent Example of Patient Care says Chief Nursing Officer

Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital has been praised as an “excellent example” of patient care in today’s NHS by the country’s most senior nurse.

Jane Cummings praised the achievements of staff at the hospital in developing and implementing its pioneering Patient Vision at a conference in Liverpool.

Ms Cummings, England’s Chief Nursing Officer, said: “The work of everyone at Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital in implementing their Patient Vision Experience during the past three years is a great example of best practice in today’s NHS.

“The work of the hospital fits perfectly with Compassion in Practice – the three year vision and strategy for nursing, midwifery and care staff I launched at the end of last year.”

At the heart of the strategy are the 6Cs – Care, Compassion, Competence, Communication, Courage and Commitment.

Ms Cummings added: “The 6Cs recognise the changing landscape of the healthcare sector and articulates the values for the nursing and midwifery professions’ role in delivering the highest possible standards of care.”

The Chief Nursing Officer’s speech to the first ever UK Conference on Patient and Family Centred Care highlighted that patient mortality rates are lower in hospitals “where staff have the opportunities to influence and contribute to improvements at work.

“A positive organisational climate is associated with low and declining levels of patient mortality.”

Three years ago, Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital – which organised today’s conference – introduced its Patient Vision which insisted upon a standard by which all activities – clinical and non-clinical – are measured.

The vision comprised six steps – Reputation, Arrival, Patient Contract, Stay, Treatment and After Stay – and gave staff permission to challenge care they did not feel met the hospital’s ambitious standards. Both staff and patient experience measures have shown significant improvements as a result.

Among the many successful initiatives introduced were:

Majoring on the Minor – a concept that recognised that often the seemingly small things really matter to patients and their families;

Patient and Family Engagement – events are held four times a year to gain feedback which is then used to make system and environmental changes;

Major capital schemes – patients, their families and staff helped to design a new Day Unit and inpatient ward at the hospital;

Relaxation of visiting times – families can now come and go as they please in the hospital’s Critical Care Unit.

Raj Jain, Chief Executive of Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital, said: “As we say at LHCH, we are the visitors in our patients’ lives, not their relatives. By ensuring that our patients and their loved ones are treated as partners in their healthcare journey, we will continue to provide them with the finest possible standards of care and continue to improve their individual outcomes.”

The conference also heard from patients who had experienced first hand the hospital’s Patient Vision in action.

Teacher Lorna Collier, a mother of two young children, was born with a hole in her heart and has been monitored regularly throughout her life. Lorna underwent pioneering treatment at LHCH becoming the hospital’s first recipient of a mini mitral valve – a minimally invasive procedure to repair her heart valve rather than the alternative of open heart surgery.

Lorna, from Northwich, said: “Every member of the staff was brilliant. It’s stressful having an operation but it helped to have a direct contact number for pre-op nurses and the consultant’s secretary so any niggles could be quickly soothed.

“The anaesthetist came to see me and explained what he was doing and what pain relief would be available. The staff on the ward were brilliant, and it was very reassuring to know that I could call the Patient Advice Line for 28 days after discharge to discuss any issues. 

“I was discharged within a week and back at work three weeks later. Straight away I was amazed at how much better I felt.  I could run up the stairs again. I went to a wedding three weeks after the operation and danced most of the evening. And we went on holiday and I was out in the woods building dens with the kids.

“My scar is tiny and tucked away around the right hand side of my body, which is hugely important for a woman. And because it was minimally invasive I could go back to work quickly, drive again and look after my children.”

Businessman Paul Twiname, from Warrington, who underwent a three-way bypass, said: “I was struck by how professional the staff at the hospital were. While I personally did not need to take up a lot of nursing time, I was hugely impressed by the care and compassion staff showed to other patients and their families whose requirements were greater.

“I will always be grateful to LHCH for the job they did fixing me. Within six months I was back playing squash and running and I am busier than ever at work.”