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Chief Executive Fortnightly Blog to NHS Orkney Staff – 11 November 2024
Message for All NHSO Staff Dear all I start this week’s blog with many positive news stories and progress to share and celebrate with you all. Firstly, many congratulations to our three members of staff from NHS Orkney who were finalists at this year’s Scotland Health Awards for the outstanding work they do for our patients and community. Anne Gregg, Macmillan Specialist Nurse and Amanda Manson, Cardiology Specialist Nurse, were both nominated for Nurse of the Year Award and Melissa Lindsay, Midwife and Sonographer, was nominated for Midwife of the Year Award. A special congratulations to Anne who won the…
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We did it – NHS Orkney secures two National Awards
Last night, the prestigious Scotland Health Awards were held in Edinburgh at a dazzling awards ceremony to celebrate the outstanding work and commitment colleagues across the Health and Social Care network show to our patients and communities across Scotland. We firstly want to recognise our three finalists, Anne Gregg, Macmillan Specialist Nurse and Amanda Manson, Cardiology Specialist Nurse, who were both nominated for Nurse of the Year Award and Melissa Lindsay, Midwife and Sonographer, who was nominated for Midwife of the Year Award. We were so incredibly proud when we heard Melissa win Midwife of the Year and, Anne win…
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Daisy Villa and Heilendi Update
Following the news of the contract for Daisy Villa Surgery being awarded we wanted to provide an update as we continue to work through logistics with both practices ahead of the handover in January (2025). Following some recent questions, the team at the Heilendi Practice have shared the following information: John Daniels, Head of Primary Care Services said “This is welcome information from Heilendi Practice and I’m confident it will help to reassure the communities of South Ronaldsay and Burray who we will continue to update as things develop. NHS Orkney remain committed to facilitating a smooth transition of care for…
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Return to Practice Programme – Nursing
NHS Orkney is encouraging anyone who has let their nursing registration lapse and interested in returning to practice to attend an upcoming meeting about what’s available. The return to practice programme for nurses involves a short course to prepare for re-joining the NMC register and enables nurses to return to their field of practice in a safe and confident manner. The course can be completed via a full or part-time route and hours are negotiated depending on length of lapse of registration. Funding is also available to undertake the programme. Georgie Green, Practice Educator at NHS Orkney said: “This is an…
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Working together to improve Orkney’s Health and Wellbeing – Dentistry
This feature on our Dentistry Service is the first of what will become a regular series of patient information updates to put the spotlight on clinical services at NHS Orkney. As an organisation, we want to share with you and be open and transparent about how we are addressing the challenges we face in supporting you. Dental provision in Orkney is under pressure and we need your help. We start this feature by asking for your help to make the best use of every clinical appointment slot we have. We need to ask you, our patients, to attend appointments and…
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Chief Executive Fortnightly Blog to NHS Orkney Staff – 28 October 2024
Message for All NHSO Staff Dear all Last week we had our first named storm of the season hitting Orkney and it very much feels like winter is approaching. I know this time of year can be challenging as we move through the seasons and as we find ourselves indoors more than many of us would perhaps like. Please look out for each other and support each other now more than ever – let’s take good care of each other and remember in doing so – that the small things matter eg; asking how people are, saying thank you, and…
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NHS Orkney Annual Review – Reconnecting with our Community – Agenda
Our NHS Orkney Annual Review will take place on Tuesday 3 December from 12pm – 2pm both in-person at The Balfour and virtually via MS Teams. We are pleased to share the agenda for the session, which has a clear theme and focus: ‘reconnecting with you, our, community.’ We will hear from our Board Chair, Chief Executive, Executive Directors and wider Board members who are responsible for the care and services you receive. We will share an update on our progress and achievements over the last year and our plans and priorities for the year ahead, based on what matters…
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How NHS Orkney is performing against its priorities for 24/25
When we launched our new Corporate Strategy earlier this year, we committed to keeping our patients, community and partners updated on how we’re performing against our five strategic priorities (and the specific deliverables within each) which were agreed for 24/25. Our promise to our community (our vision) is looking after our community and providing excellent care. Our Strategic Objectives are People, Patient Safety, Performance, Potential and Place. This is our second quarterly update which was discussed at our public Board meeting this morning. How we did in Quarter 2 There are 77 deliverables in our Corporate Strategy Delivery Plan 2024/25…
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Refreshed Process for Patient and Patient Escort Travel
In line with the priorities set out in our Corporate Strategy, we are committed to further improving the experience for patients and our community. As part of this commitment, we have reviewed and improved how patient and patient escort travel is processed to benefit our patients. While the national policy has not changed, i.e., the requirements around patient and patient escort travel, we have revised our local processes to make them more patient friendly for people in Orkney. One of the key changes is how you, as a patient, provide details to us for any patient travel or patient escort…
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Chief Executive Fortnightly Blog to NHS Orkney Staff – 14 October 2024
Message for All NHSO Staff Dear All I am mindful, including from your feedback, that we all too often focus on our challenges, where we have more to do and what we need to do to respond to our challenges. Whilst this is entirely right and proper and is central to our continuous improvement, so we know where we start from and our key issues and have plans to improve in these areas, we must spend more time recognising our progress. On this note, let me share a good news story with you. Last November, our Board and Senior Leadership…
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Three finalists from NHS Orkney to be recognised at Scotland’s Health Awards 2024
Not one, not two but three finalists! We are delighted that three members of NHS Orkney have made it to the final of this year’s Scotland’s Health Awards. Each of these finalists live our promise, values and priorities every day, looking after our community and providing excellent care. Anne Gregg, Macmillan Specialist Nurse and Amanda Manson, Cardiology Specialist Nurse have both been nominated for Nurse of the Year Award respectively. And Melissa Lindsay, Midwife and Sonographer has been nominated for Midwife of the Year Award. Scotland’s Health Awards acknowledge and celebrate those working across NHS Scotland and its partners to…
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Service for Baby Loss Awareness Week 2024 #BLAW2024
NHS Orkney in partnership with Orkney SANDs will once again be hosting a service as part of Baby Loss Awareness Week (BLAW). Baby Loss Awareness Week runs from the 9 – 15 October each year and is a time for everyone in the baby loss community and beyond to come together, to remember our much-loved and missed babies, and raise awareness of pregnancy and baby loss. Few experiences compare to the trauma and pain of pregnancy and baby loss. During this year’s Baby Loss Awareness Week, we will acknowledge that finding ways to nurture your mental and physical wellbeing is…