City Hospitals Sunderland NHS Trust
Name of Contact: Prof. Steve Campbell
Phone: 0191-565-6256 Ext. 42692
E-mail: Steve.Campbell@chs.northy.nhs.uk
Description of Trust
The Trust is an acute based organization with a full range of medical and surgical specialties for a large general hospital, with some community paediatric services and child psychiatry. The Trust is the second largest organization in the North-East of England and has a reputation for high quality services as shown by its “3 Star” evaluation for the last three years, and impending Foundation status. On the various sites (largely now at the Sunderland Royal Hospital site), there are 975 acute bed & 18 ITU/HDU beds and the Trust had an income of
£167.7million in 2002/03. There are
4,600 staff of whom approx 1300 are registered nurses with a further 600 auxiliary nurses/HCAs. The Trust cared for
58,179 inpatients, 259,265 outpatients, 36,073 day cases, 234,498 AHP contacts, 106,238 A&E attendances
(well above the national average for the population served).
Infrastructure to support R&D
Include here any reference to R&D strategy and HEI links / joint appointments, career pathways, IT access, research support networks, evaluation / outcomes etc
Systems to support R&D are complex and have been established over a number of years. Central in these systems is the Nursing Practice Research Centre (NPRC), led by the Professor of Nursing Practice who is also the Head of Nursing Research and Development in the Trust. The NPRC is part of the Directorate of Nursing and Quality in the Trust, and the Head of Nursing R&D, partnered with the Head of Nursing/Chief Matron are the two senior support posts to the Executive Director of Nursing and Quality.
The staffing in the NPRC is the Head of Nursing R&D, who is a joint appointment (50:50) with Northumbria University, a Principal Lecturer (vacant 20:80) again with Northumbria University (earlier in the development this post was at SL level and with University of Sunderland). Currently Dr. Helen Hancock is a Research Associate working on a variety of projects with a particular focus of clinical decision making.
Other joint appointments exist within the Trust, two lecturer practitioners with Northumbria University, one in cancer care, and the other in ICCU, who has a largely teaching function. There are five nurse consultants in the Trust, who are professionally accountable to the Director of Nursing via the Head of Nursing R&D. All of these are developing or are established researchers.
The NPRC has strong “insider” relationships with a number of integral services with the Trust, these include: Organisational Development and Modernisation (OD&M), Clinical Governance, and Research and Development. As described later, the NPRC complements it partners, such as conducting a number of research projects that could be termed modernisation, with OD&M, providing qualitative input with clinical governance, as well as providing qualitative expertise in partnership with R&D, and for governance purposes.
The Head of Nursing R&D sits on a number of key committees in the Trust and outside: The R&D Strategy Group, The Scientific Review Committee, the Education and Training Steering Group, the LREC, the Steering Group of the TPCT, the Research Conscious Workforce sub-group of the TPCT, the SHA Nurse Consultant Review Committee, the Modernisation Team, and not least the Strategic Nursing and Midwifery Forum, which from time to time he chairs on behalf of the Director of Nursing.
While being an integral part of City Hospitals, the NPRC is also allied with Northumbria University’s Nursing, Midwifery, and Allied Health Professions (NMAHP) R&D unit. Members of the NPRC have membership of NMAHP. This relationship provides a degree of wider academic community, and has afforded secondments into projects, and access to patients and staff at CHS for research purposes.
With colleagues from clinical governance, and R&D, the NPRC provides support to the nurses in the Trust for a variety of research projects, whether for degrees, clinical need, or academic interest. The NPRC leads the “Research Appreciation” course for the Trust with support from colleagues. This provides insight into methods and access and governance issues – a study has been carried out into its effectiveness and alternative forms of delivery.
Examples of clinically based research and development projects / activity that have made a difference to patients experience / outcomes
Each year the Trust holds a nursing conference in partnership with the Royal College of Nursing and the University of Sunderland. This affords locally based researchers the opportunity to present their work in preparation for national and international conferences.
Patient Journey project. Part of the modernisation work, twelve services have participated ranging from Acute Coronary Syndrome, COPD to the last 72 hours of life of lung cancer patients. Resulted in more patient-focused services.
Essence of Care. The NPRC leads this project with one of the matrons, and is a good example of collaboration with the Practice Development Nurse team.
Health Care Assistants. Are they prepared to take on a wider role, and those that have undertaken more training – what impact are they making with their colleagues and patients. £17.5k from Culyer funds.
LEO – impact. Similar methodology, about whether LEO makes a difference to colleagues working with the G-Grade. £17.5k from WDC funds.
Nurse Practitioner training and evaluation. A study into the development of nurse practitioners to cover jhunior doctors’ hours reductions on nights, development of the training, as well as evaluation of impact. £42k from Department of Health (via CHS).
Patient Involvement Toolkit. (MS Word, 225.5K) The purpose of the Toolkit is to provide practical ideas for involving patients/carers. Please note this toolkit opens as a MS Word document. If you have difficulty opening it, please contact Dave O’Carroll at david.ocarroll@rcn.org.uk with the Subject Heading “City Hospital Sunderland Patient Involvement Toolkit”
Others …
Any internet links
Strategy enmeshed into the Modern Nursing project, and into the R&D strategy, where the NPRC leads the Delivery of Care programme. Contact Steve Campbell for details.