Anne Stratton, the Chief Operating Officer of HRCH (Hounslow and Richmond Community Healthcare NHS Trust), kindly presented to the members and Trustees of the League of Friends of Teddington Memorial Hospital at the AGM on Monday, 17 October.
A very interesting and informative talk. This is what Anne Stratton had to say.
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Thank you!
I wanted to start this presentation with a big thank you. The League of Friends is an essential part of the community supporting staff and patients of Teddington Memorial Hospital by enabling and enhancing the quality and quantity of the provision of medical services, facilities and general improvements above the NHS-funded baseline; you support ensuring the long-term future of the hospital. HRCH feels entwined with you and always will.
HRCH and Friends of TMH Working Together: Medicarts, ECG acute care analyser, Dermatoscope
I started to list all the things that you had supported us with over the years, and it was a long list, and the range is amazing, you have helped our staff to deliver the best care they can. I haven’t included everything but the things that have stuck with me. That does not mean we don’t appreciate everything you support us with, it just says more about my memory! Let me tell you about some of the things you have funded. Firstly Medicarts to help staff on the ward get around the ward quicker and in a more efficient way, you have also funded an ECG -acute care analyser, and Dermatoscope, these allow UTC and outpatient staff to diagnose and treat patients more effectively and quickly as we don’t have to refer these patients elsewhere for further test and we can let them know more quickly about the issue they came to see us about.
New X-ray Facilities funded by the Friends
Vital state-of-the-art equipment has further enhanced the type of treatment that patients receive.
Munira Wilson opened the new paediatric audiology suite
And who can forget the recent opening of the new paediatric audiology room, you may recognise some of the people in the photograph. The Friends of Teddington Memorial Hospital has always helped us to keep at the front of technology and to help us to rise to the needs of patients. This year we saw a second paediatric audiology screening room opening at TMH on 13 June. More local children with hearing problems will now get the care they need quickly, and HRCH can deliver this in a way that meets the best standards in the country.
Urgent Treatment Centre Waiting Room Refurbishments
The League of Friends is always at the forefront of improving our environment, understanding how important that is to staff and patients. This can be seen in the redesign and refurbishment of the UTC reception area at TMH, where the reception was developed with a lower counter for wheelchair users and better acoustics to ensure improved patient confidentiality and the bespoke children’s play area to occupy children and sometimes their parents.
Gift Boxes and Food Donations to Staff
However, what has meant the most to our staff in recent years has been the way the League of Friends has stood by us during the toughest of times. At the height of the pandemic, you were there supporting them, coordinating meals to keep them sustained when they were at their busiest. This made staff feel valued when they were sometimes at their lowest ebb. Your support in helping us put together the thank you packs for our staff was really appreciated.
HRCH and The Friends of TMH working together: what next
Simon and the Trustees are always looking at ways to support the hospital and staff and keep me on my toes at our regular meetings. A few of the ideas we are considering at the moment are:
- A Relatives Room – trying to find the space is not easy but nearly there
- Improvements to the garden so the space is better for patients and staff
- Point of Care testing – this is to support the work of our RRRT service based at TMH, this service is responsible for patients who need rehabilitation at home, but it is also the team responsible for a two-hour response to ensure that we get to patients quickly and treat them at the place they usually live and where appropriate to keep them at home with support rather than be admitted to an acute hospital. This team are also piloting work with the London Ambulance Service (LAS), where we will have a team member share a car with the LAS to respond to emergencies and keep as many people as possible at home rather than being conveyed by an ambulance to hospital.
Anne Stratton and the League of Friends
I have also had a very personal experience with the League of Friends.
- Joined as TMH manager in 1999, at that time, the smallest Trust in the country
- The interview panel included Pamela Bryant
- Always had a clear history of how the importance of the League of Friends and their commitment to the hospital
- Pleased to be back again working with the League of friends in my new role
How are HRCH and TMH doing? Staff survey… great place to work
I just wanted to give you an idea of where HRCH is currently with some of our highlights and challenges. Staff like working at HRCH, and we are really proud of that.
- Best trust in London for compassionate culture, having a voice that counts, staff engagement and working as a team.
- Best community trust nationally for having a voice that counts and staff engagement
- 2nd among Community Trusts nationally for recommending the trust as a place to work,
Patient care is the Trust’s top priority.
HRCH takes a lot of time to listen to employees and make changes accordingly.
Recruitment and Retention of Staff – a challenge
However, even though staff like working for us, we, as are many organisations, health or otherwise, are struggling to find and retain staff. Staff turnover has been a significant challenge for the Trust, ending the year at 17.8% turnover against the 14.5% target. During the year we have seen colleagues making life choices, moving out of London, taking early retirement and leaving the NHS. We have had to work hard to retain staff and to recruit new staff into the organisation, including recruiting more international nurses this year. The key areas of challenge are in community nursing and Allied Health Professionals (AHPS), this includes staff such as physios and OTs.
However, we have recently strengthened our recruitment activities by joining the SWL Recruitment Hub. I am pleased to report that we are seeing early signs of our turnover rates levelling off.
Moving beyond the pandemic
Recently, we have engaged with staff through our work to support them in Move Beyond the Pandemic to ensure the actions we are taking are the right ones.
- Health and well-being (more recent challenges of the cost of living)
- New ways of working
- Enabling and supporting leaders to lead
- Staff communications and engagement
Staff away days
Some of our teams have had an opportunity to take part in away days to help them reconnect and plan ahead. We have asked them to have fun as well as do work.
We continue to promote apprenticeships in the trust, offering more clinical apprenticeship opportunities, and now have 16 apprentices across the trust, including 3 staff undertaking Master’s degrees.
Your Healthcare Partnership: 5 key areas
Our relationship with Kingston Hospital is not the only partnership that is developing. HRCH are working more closely with Your Health care, with HRCH as the lead contractor. This helps strengthen the voice of the community and allows us to share ideas and developments. We have agreed on 5 areas (also called pillars or workstreams): Long COVID, Digital, virtual ward, equality, diversity and inclusion and urgent and emergency care.
Better Together
Nationally, and across London in particular, changes are happening to join up care within integrated care systems – and so at a local level we are joining up with Kingston hospital to secure our future and to ensure that we are doing all we can to join up care locally and ensure that we focus on providing care in the community for local people.
Our Board of Directors
We remain as separate organisations, with separate Boards but one leadership team across the two – which is facilitating much closer working across the two organisations. As of 01 April, we have had a shared leadership team across HRCH and Kingston Hospital FT. There are two Chief Operating Officers (one of which is Anne Stratton) operating as part of the single executive team. One for the community, me and one for the acute Trust, she is not on our board of directors.
Areas of Focus
- Workforce: Health and wellbeing, recruitment and retention
- Urgent and emergency care: Flow
- Elective recovery (including outpatients): Supporting the acute with their elective work, but also worth noting community services has a waiting list too
- Finances
Thank you for your continued support.
Download Anne Stratton’s PowerPoint presentation
Download Anne Stratton’s slides in pdf format
The Friends would like to extend a big thank you to Anne Stratton for an excellent talk.
Glossary of Terms
AHPS – Allied Health Professionals
Dermatoscope – a hand-held device to examine skin lesions & diseases
ECG acute care analyser – cardiac diagnostic equipment
FT – Foundation Trust
HRCH – Hounslow and Richmond Community Healthcare (NHS Trust)
LAS – London Ambulance Service
Medicarts – Medical trolly
OTs – Occupational Therapists
Paediatric audiology – children’s hearing services
Physios – Physiotherapists
RRRT – Richmond Response and Rehabilitation Team
SWL – South West London
TMH – Teddington Memorial Hospital
UCC – Urgent Care Centre
UTC – Urgent Treatment Centre
Your Healthcare – Community healthcare provider for Kingston & Richmond
Anne Stratton, Chief Operating Officer of HRCH
How can you help
There are numerous ways you can get involved with the Friends to ensure the hospital’s continuing existence and keep Teddington Memorial Hospital open.
Donate
One of the easiest ways is to simply make a one-off donation using the Donate button on this page. Or, tap the contactless donation point (currently in Squires Garden Centre, Twickenham, to give a £3 donation or drop your change in the slot.
Join
Alternatively, you may wish to become a Member of the Friends. As a member, you will be making a vital contribution and be kept in touch with the Friends’ activities and projects to further improve the facilities and equipment at the hospital. You will also be invited to attend and vote at AGM and EGM meetings.
Volunteer
If you would like to be more actively involved, become a volunteer. Our volunteers help in the Friends shop in the hospital, with fund-raising activities and at local community events. Volunteers play an essential role in enabling the Friends to maintain its services within the hospital.
Partner
We also invite local businesses and organisations, large and small, to support The Friends by sponsoring events, providing volunteers, and promoting The Friends as their chosen charity.
Click Get involved to join, donate, or volunteer to find out more.