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May 2009

Key appointment in multi-million pound redevelopment project Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust has appointed a resident of Merton and architect to oversee a multi-million pound scheme to redevelop St Helier Hospital. As Project Director, Tim Wilkins will lead the Trust's element of the Better Healthcare Closer to Home initiative that will eventually see Ferguson House demolished and replaced with a state-of-the-art building housing the majority of the hospital's wards and clinics. 29 May 2009
Safety first for Trust staff Epsom and St Helier hospitals are now even safer places to be for patients and employees, as 25 staff gained a national qualification in health and safety last week. The staff, who range from midwives to assistants in the Trust's IT team, have just passed the level 3 NVQ in Operational Safety and Health. 29 May 2009
Hospitals can now be found twittering and tweeting Epsom and St Helier hospitals have joined the latest online craze by signing up to the social networking site, Twitter. The Trust opened a page on the microblog site - which allows members to post short updates about their latest news - to keep local people up-to-date on all the recent happenings at the hospitals. 27 May 2009
Giantkillers still have what it takes for victory The giantkilling Sutton United veterans team saw victory again last Wednesday (20 May), in a charity football match against a team of celebrities. The match, which featured 25 veterans and 18 celebritities, was held to raise funds for the Queen Mary's Hospital for Children, part of St Helier Hospital, and a local support group for people living with ME. 27 May 2009
Huge thank you to helping hands Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust is paying tribute to its team of 500 volunteers this week, ahead of a special seven day celebration. As part of national Volunteers' Week (1-7 June), the Trust would like to say a huge thank you to each person that gives up their time by supporting the day-to-day running of its hospitals. 26 May 2009
Government project is not just a spring clean From December 2007 until March 2008, the government ran a project to 'deep clean' all the hospitals in England. The initiative formed part of a range of measures to further improve cleanliness and help reduce healthcare acquired infections, such as MRSA and Clostridium Difficile in the NHS. 22 May 2009
New infection control campaign proving to be a knockout The equivalent of five baths worth of alcohol hand rub have been used at Epsom, Sutton and St Helier hospitals since the Trust's latest infection control campaign was launched in March. 22 May 2009
Specialist baby unit open day The neonatal unit at St Helier Hospital is throwing open its doors to local residents after having undergone a £200,000 refurbishment which has transformed the look and feel of the facility. The neonatal unit, which has 20 cots, is used to look after and treat babies who are very premature, or who have respiratory or feeding problems or other illnesses. 20 May 2009
Nurse/Midwife of the Year announced Maggie George, a counsellor/midwife has been crowned Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust's Nurse/Midwife of the Year for 2009. The annual award is given to the nurse or midwife who the Trust feel has gone above and beyond the call of duty in providing patients with the best possible care. 19 May 2009
Good news from Samantha Jones, Chief Executive Peter Coles, the Trust's interim Chief Executive, is extremely pleased to report that on Thursday 7 May, Sam and her husband had twins. 19 May 2009
Hospitals improve patient care with herd of COWs Patients who come into hospital may find they have a new bedside friend - a COW! Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust has recently purchased a Computer On Wheels (COW) for every ward. The COW means that doctors can wheel the computer round to the patient's bedside and use it whilst examining them, instead of having to write down information and transfer it to computer later on. 18 May 2009
May bank holiday warning Staff at Epsom and St Helier hospital's Accident and Emergency (A&E) departments are urging people to take extra care during this bank holiday weekend (23 - 25 May) and to only visit the A&E department if it's an emergency. 15 May 2009
Fighting the silent killer - nurses back thrombosis awareness week Nurses at Epsom and St Helier hospitals teamed up to raise awareness of a condition that kills more people than cancer and road traffic accidents put together this week. Thrombosis - commonly known as a blood clot - is estimated to kill 25,000 people per year in the UK alone. But sadly, many people do not know the cause or effects of thrombosis, or how it can be prevented. 14 May 2009
Happy 60th birthday to good Friends The actresses June Whitfield and Liz Fraser popped into St Helier Hospital last night (13 May), to wish the League of Friends a happy 60th birthday. June, who is Patron of the charity, and 'Carry On' star Liz attended the friends' Annual General Meeting to cut a birthday cake and help other members mark the special occasion. 14 May 2009
Independent patient survey shows significant improvements Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust is showing significant improvement in the experience patients have in its hospitals, according to a survey published today (13 May) by the health watchdog, the Care Quality Commission (CQC). The Inpatient Survey 2008 reveals the Trust's patients rated it as showing improvements, with nine out of ten areas showing positive results compared to just five last year. 13 May 2009
Nurses' Day is double the fun for Trust staff Every day, nurses and their colleagues around the world dedicate their lives to helping other people. International Nurses' Day is a time for everyone to pay tribute to the dedication, commitment and hard work of nurses, midwives and healthcare assistants. 13 May 2009
Trust announces £1.1million to help eliminate mixed-sex accommodation Patients at Epsom and St Helier hospitals will soon benefit from greater levels of privacy and dignity during their hospital stay, thanks to a massive £1.1million cash injection. The money will help the Trust to fast track its efforts to ensure that men and women do not have to share sleeping areas, bathrooms or toilets when admitted to hospital and that their privacy and dignity is upheld wherever possible. 08 May 2009
Midwives join together to get their voices heard Midwives from Epsom and St Helier hospitals took part in the celebrations of International Day of the Midwife on Tuesday 5 May. The day sees midwives across the globe join together to promote the good work that they do while raising money for maternity services in poorer countries. 07 May 2009
Football match kicks off to support children's hospital A fun football match between the veterans of Sutton United Football Club and a team of professional footballers and celebrities has been organised to raise funds for Queen Mary's Hospital for Children, which is based at St Helier Hospital. 07 May 2009
Treading carefully - Trust reduces carbon footprint Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust saved energy and money this Easter, following a campaign to turn off lights and computers that were not in use. New figures from the Trust show a record breaking dip in the amount of energy used over the Easter bank holiday. 06 May 2009
Breastfeeding - every day makes a difference to your baby Midwives from Epsom and St Helier hospitals will be hitting the streets next week to spread the word about the benefits of breastfeeding. As part of national Breastfeeding Awareness Week (10 to 16 May), the Trust's breastfeeding experts along with the National Childcare Trust, health visitors and the La Leche League will be hosting road shows in Sutton and Epsom. 05 May 2009