Patients in the East of England are set to benefit from better healthcare after an NHS Foundation Trust in the region took onboard patient feedback and made the requisite changes to improve.
The Pre Assessment team at James Paget University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust ensures that patients are prepared for the physical, emotional and social effects of their surgery.
To do this, the team evaluate the potential risks the patient could face and help to minimise or mitigate against them via effective communication, careful planning and shared decision making between staff and patients.
With backlog for surgeries still a prominent issue at the trust and the demand for the Pre Assessment Clinic therefore growing, James Paget has made changes to support the service being fully nurse-led.
In view of this, the trust’s Nurse Practitioners have undergone Enhanced Clinical Assessment and Independent Prescribers training, meaning they are now able to prescribe medications, clerk patients and perform clinical assessments; something that would normally be done by junior doctors.
This has led to patients spending less time in clinics and junior doctors being able to use their time more efficiently.
The small change of installing a curtain in the trust’s Electrocardiogram (ECG) room is also expected to greatly improve patient privacy, following a suggestion from a patient.
Pre Assessment Clinic Nurse Practitioner at the trust, Zoe Lawn, said: “Our nursing staff are highly knowledgeable and skilled in risk identification, problem solving and critical thinking, and they work autonomously to manage their own clinics each day whilst also being a friendly, supportive team.”
“We love getting positive feedback and we receive lots from patients who are pleased that they have been made to feel welcomed, informed, put at ease, listened to and treated with respect and kindness. This is always passed on to our team but we also use any negative feedback or incidents reported as learning opportunities to improve practice and patient experience.
“We do not receive many comments on how we could improve our service, however one suggestion made recently by a patient was to have a more private space for ECGs, so we have had a curtain installed in the room to provide more privacy and dignity for our patients who require an ECG.”
