9 September 2010
As part of the ongoing work to further improve the care Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust provides to its patients, the Trust has appointed a new Director of Service Improvement, Joe Smyth.
Joe has joined the Trust from the Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, and has taken on the role following the departure of Sue Jones.
Joe has already picked up some major projects, including work to further improve the efficiency of the Trust's 26 operating theatres. He said: "Our operating theatres are at the heart of our hospitals and are central to the care we provide for our patients. They're also one of our most expensive resources, which is another reason why it's so important that they operate smoothly and efficiently.
"The aim of the project is to empower staff to be able to make changes that will ensure our theatres are as streamlined as possible. Making these improvements will mean that our patients experience fewer cancellations and it will also improve waiting times. This also means that the Trust is in a better position to manage peaks in demand more effectively."
The service improvement team are also working with doctors, nurses and other clinicians from across the Trust to make sure our patients do not stay in hospital for longer than they need to be here. Keeping people in hospital longer than necessary is inconvenient for them and their loved ones, and means the Trust is not working as efficiently as it could be.
Despite a busy start and some tough challenges ahead, Joe is confident about his role at the Trust. He said: "The way in which the NHS works has changed considerably since it was created. Advances in technology and new medicines have revolutionised our approach, with operations that used to last hours and involved patients having to stay in hospital for weeks now being done a lot quicker. In fact, many patients now go home on the same day as their surgery.
"Along with these advances have come new challenges which mean the NHS, including trusts like ours, need to adapt so that we can meet them head on.
"This Trust has a great appetite for change and staff here are always ready to do things differently if it will improve the service for our patients. So far, it's going really well and I'm sure we can continue making these strides forward for the benefit of our patients."
In recent months, the Trust has implemented a number of new projects and initiatives to improve the service we are providing to local people, including launching a new telephone reminder service for our outpatients.
The service calls patients approximately one week before they are due to come into hospital and reminds them of the time and date of their appointment. The service has already significantly reduced the number of people missing appointments, which not only saves the Trust money but means that other patients are not inconvenienced.
