Patient Experience Newsletter | North Bristol NHS Trust

Newsletter #3 March 2024

Emily Ayling, Head of Patient Experience

Welcome to the third edition of the Patient Experience Newsletter. As we welcome Spring, a time for new beginnings, we hope you have a lovely Easter and enjoy reading. Remember to follow us on X to keep up to date: @NBTPatient

Since the start of 2024 we have welcomed around 50 new volunteers to the team and the wonderful Fresh Arts Team have joined Patient Experience. From art classes to live music, exhibitions and more, we look forward to hearing more from them in this newsletter. We also had the pleasure of hosting the first in person Bristol Deaf Health Partnership meeting since 2019.

Patient Feedback & Engagement

Troy Crompton, Patient Experience Manager

We have recently welcomed a number of new Patient and Carer Partners to the Trust, taking the group to 16 members. The Partners volunteer their time to help guide and advise the Trust on a wide range of topics. They review policies and strategies, attend different committees and sit on interview panels. The Partners have also been undertaking “Patient Conversations” with a variety of different staff members and Patient Feedback Volunteers. Patient Conversations is a way of receiving real-time feedback from patients whilst they are still in the hospital, we can then use this feedback to make quick changes/improvements.

If you would like to involve our Partners in your work please let us know. We also welcome more Partners and Patient Feedback Volunteers.

Fresh Arts

Donna Baber, Arts Programme Manager

Photo of a wooden sculpture called 'Hospital Reimagined' by Jonathan Van Beek. Sculpture is surrounded by chairs in a bright room.

Fresh Arts and GOSH (Great Ormond Street Hospital) have been working with the University of Bristol ‘Sensing Spaces of Healthcare’ project since 2020. At NBT, the project is based in Women’s & Children’s.

The project aims to explore the sensory past, present and future of NHS hospitals. Design is a pressing issue in healthcare. Poor hospital design impacts staff, patients and visitors. The project rethinks healthcare environments through the body and the senses.

Photo of Two light boxes by artist Rebecka Fleetwood-Smith. Both lightboxes have two abstract red and green shapes.

Rebecka Fleetwood-Smith, artist and researcher, worked with staff, patients and maternity service users on Quantock and Percy Philips wards to understand their experiences of the hospital environment and curated an exhibition of artworks designed in response to her research.

The project also developed Mindful Moments; a vending machine of carefully curated activities which was installed in the Family Room in February. It is hoped it will offer patients an enjoyable moment of relaxation during their time on the ward.

Photograph above and to the right by Dan Weill.

Mindful Moments vending machine on wall with a gap where the activity packs are dispensed.

Spotlight on: Young Carers at NBT

Sam Radford, Carer Liaison Worker

We recently supported a group of Young Carers (YC) from Bristol and South Glos aged 14-17 who provide care and support to a sibling or parent with care needs to visit the Trust and take the 15 Step Challenge (photo at the top).

This was met with great enthusiasm by the YC’s who met key staff from the patient experience team and NMSK. We broke into teams of 3 and supported the YC’s to visit AMU, 7A and Respiratory. They were invited to consider if the ward was; welcoming, safe, caring, involving, organised and calm.

Returning to the YC Hub for feedback and discussion, they each contributed their experience and how being a YC at NBT affects / may affect them. They asked many great questions and explored how things may work differently in the future; especially around sharing information.

On 13th March for Young Carers Action Day we were one of the first organisations to pledge commitment to YC’s through the Young Carers Covenant. We look forward to supporting YC’s at NBT.

I am the Carer Liaison worker for NBT. My role is to provide support and advice to unpaid carers – “a carer is someone who provides support to family or friends who could not manage without this help”. I explain hospital processes and pathways, support unpaid carers to attend health meetings and support the NBT Carers Strategy.

You can find out more about Carer Support at NBT or you can contact me via email carersliaison@nbt.nhs.uk or telephone: 07557 418692

Spiritual, Pastoral and Religious Care

Mark Read, Chaplaincy Team Leader

Elgar House

Group of four Chaplaincy staff and volunteers and a Fresh Arts Musician in Elgar.

In addition to our weekly visits in Elgar, every month a small team of Chaplains, chaplaincy volunteers and a Fresh Arts musician lead a singing group and a service of worship on each ward in Elgar House. These groups are accessible for elderly patients and people living with dementia, their families and staff. Singing is very stimulating for older people, and it is always lovely to see them participating and enjoying being together.

Last year we held special services for Harvest, Remembrance and Christmas. Our Christmas services were made particularly special by the arrival of children and teachers from the Little Saplings Nursery. The children told the story of the very first Christmas and the patients joined in singing carols. It was beautiful and very much enjoyed by everyone - young and old. We are now looking forward to celebrating Easter with our patients and to it being a special time of joy and hope.

Volunteer Services

Bwalya Treasure, Voluntary Services Manager

NBT Cadets

Three NHS Cadets looking towards a powerpoint screen about NBT volunteering

NHS Cadets is a youth volunteering programme established by NHS England, delivered by St John’s Ambulance, in partnership with local NHS trusts. As an NHS Cadet, young people learn about life in healthcare from inspiring professional speakers. They develop key skills, boost their self-confidence, and explore careers in the healthcare sector through volunteering experiences. With our new cohort of young people who started NHS Cadets in October 2023, now settled into their programmes, we have taken this opportunity to present to them and talk through volunteering opportunities currently available at NBT as well as engaging previous NHS Cadets who are now volunteering in the Trust.

This programme engages those who may face barriers to accessing volunteering opportunities in health due to their personal and family circumstances, or those from communities who may not naturally consider a future career in our sector. This is being achieved through a focus on recruiting young people from underrepresented groups.

These groups include young people who are not in education, employment or training, who have a learning disability, come from low-income families, are young carers, have mental health conditions or are from ethnic minority backgrounds.