Our Discharge Team are on an amazing roll at the moment, notching up another major first in patient care which is a tribute to working together at its very best.
CHFT hospital and community staff and Social Services colleagues have achieved a milestone with zero patients with us for more than 100 days*. And even better... our 50-day stay numbers are at an all-time low too, currently at around the 20 mark.
The trigger was after an infection on Ward 20 where we needed an extra 25 discharges above and beyond the normal levels to cope with the increasing bed demands.
Matron Rachel Rae, said the key was flexibility, taking responsibility, fast-tracking funding issues and simply building on excellent relationships with our partners in Calderdale and Kirklees Social Care, Locala, and the CCGs.
Our Chief Operating Helen Barker, described the achievement as "amazing". She added: "The commitment of the everybody from social workers, discharge teams, pharmacy, flow and nursing and medical staff was amazing as was the response of colleagues in Locala and our community division.
"As a result of this we discharged significantly more patients than usual allowing us to enact the deep clean and have also achieved a position where NO patients have a length of stay over 100 days.
Rachel explained just how it came about. For starters, Trust colleagues got together and systematically went through all our medically fit patients and made decisions above and beyond normal practice.
Other factors, in Rachel's view, included:
- We sit and discuss each patient and problem solve, each taking jobs regardless whether it’s our traditional role
- CHFT staff have assessed for social care services through trust and joint working
- Senior manager dropped other work and focused on hospital discharges
- Funding agreed there and then rather than go through the traditional routes
- It was both sites, both local authorities
- Work done together throughout the year has built the strong relationships which enables trust
- Each person held to account for actions and these followed up daily
*Obviously, achieving the 100 days target was excellent teamwork and is very much ongoing work. There maybe some occasions where patients are with us for longer than 100 days however we are aiming to make this as rare an occasion as possible for our patients and their families.
