Published on: 30 November 2020
A team of community nurses, who have used technology to support local care home staff to monitor the day to day health of residents, have been recognised by MPs and NHS leaders in the 2020 Parliamentary Awards.
The Older Person Community Team at South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust was handpicked as a regional winner across the whole of the North East and Yorkshire in the ‘Future NHS’ category, after being nominated by MP for Sunderland Central, Julie Elliott.
The team of 15 community nurses work closely with care home staff across Sunderland supporting some the most vulnerable people in the local community. They were recognised for their continued efforts during COVID-19, which included providing advice and psychological support to care home staff, helping them to undertake COVID-19 swabs and offering virtual or face to face consultations for all residents discharged from hospital.
The team also developed a programme funded by All Together Better Sunderland to train care home staff to use National Early Warning Score (NEWS) technology to observe residents’ vital signs, including oxygen level, blood pressure, temperature and respiratory rate. The aim was to give carers the confidence to use the technology, which is commonly used in emergency A&E departments and flag if a patient is deteriorating and needs additional care.
The training programme was initially rolled out to a small number of care homes, but this was rapidly expanded to all 49 care homes across the City in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and thanks to support from all health and care partners working together through the All Together Better Alliance.
The digital system has helped care home staff to identify when a resident is becoming unwell and gives them a common language to use with nurses and GPs when they need further support. It has also allowed many more residents to stay in their preferred place of care and prevented them from becoming more unwell and having to be admitted to hospital.
Charge Nurse, Adam Remmer who is part of the Older Persons Team and led the project on behalf of the Trust said: “We are absolutely delighted to have been recognised in the Parliamentary Awards and to have had the opportunity to showcase this very important project nationally. COVID-19 has placed an extra level of risk on care home residents who are already extremely vulnerable. This technology has empowered staff to spot the first signs that a resident may be unwell and provides them with evidence to support their concerns, rather than just relying on softer signs like loss of appetite or reduced mobility. It has made a huge difference in terms of how quickly residents are assessed and helps the nursing team and GPs take appropriate action to try and prevent a hospital visit.”
Sunderland’s 49 care homes look after 2,000 residents. Before COVID-19 over 1,800 scores were being recorded every month through the NEWS system. This increased by over 20% to 2,200 scores every month from March 2020. Without the use of the system it is highly likely that hospital admissions and emergency A&E department attendances would have been higher.
Regional winners of the NHS Parliamentary Awards were chosen from over 700 nominations across 10 categories. These regional champions will now go head to head with other winners from across the country to be judged by a national panel made up of senior leaders representing staff and patients.
England’s Chief Midwife and chair of the National Judging panel this year, Professor Jacqueline Dunkley-Bent, said: “A huge congratulations to all those who have been recognised for their outstanding contribution to the NHS as well as making a genuine difference to the patients they care for.
“NHS staff and volunteers make the health service what it is today – the largest and greatest care team in the world.
“This year more than ever, the nation owes a debt of gratitude to the 1.3 million-strong army of nurses, midwives, GPs, physios, pharmacists, healthcare and maternity care assistants porters, cleaners, and countless other staff who ensured no patient who could benefit from NHS care was unable to receive it.
“It will be a tough task selecting our overall winners – I look forward to hearing more about their fantastic achievements and celebrating with them all at the national award ceremony.”
The coronavirus pandemic, the greatest public health challenge in the history of the NHS, has prompted a record number of nominations from MPs across the country who have sought to shine a light on the heroic efforts of NHS staff through the NHS Parliamentary Awards.
All of the regional winners will now be invited to the national awards ceremony. The overall winners will be announced in July at special ceremony in the House of Commons.
Melanie Johnson, Director of Nursing, Midwifery and Allied Health Professionals at South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust, said: “This is marvellous recognition and testament to the continued hard work shown by our Older Persons Team. COVID-19 has undoubtedly brought with it extra challenges, but the team has worked above and beyond to support our dedicated care home staff in Sunderland and provide them with the skills and knowledge to spot the signs of illness or deterioration quickly. This has been invaluable in helping our community nursing teams and GPs to act fast and respond to concerns before they become an emergency. Well done to everyone involved. There is no doubt that this has been a tremendous team effort.”
Martin Weatherhead, Chair of All Together Better Sunderland added: “This award shines a light on the way that health and care staff across Sunderland work together across organisational boundaries to safely care for some of the most vulnerable in our community. As a GP, I know how important it is to act quickly when care home residents become unwell and how valuable it is for carers to have the tools to monitor day to day changes in their condition and the confidence to flag when something is wrong. Despite the challenges of COVID-19, we have seen exemplary efforts from staff across health and social care and I am proud to see some of this work formally recognised by Government and NHS leaders.”
