Hasta luego and a cup of awesomeness

It’s been a difficult couple of weeks. There’s been change and loss and it’s come in very different ways

We’ve said goodbye to many of our colleagues as they’ve left to join the Northern Care Alliance. I know this transfer is a positive opportunity and the best thing to do for patients, but it’s impossible not to feel sad at saying farewell.

I like to think it’s more ‘Hasta luego’ than ‘Adios’, which the Spanish say when they are likely to see someone again or cross paths in some way. It’s still hard not to feel a bit wobbly when you hear about some of the wonderful send-offs people have given in our boroughs and within teams.

There have been cards, cakes, pizzas, balloons, gifts and songs.  We’ve also had ‘cups of awesomeness’ presented as gifts and rapping farewells with guitars.

And then two days ago we said a heart-breaking goodbye to Phil Cheetham, a truly special and wonderful man.

The large church was absolutely packed for his funeral, a measure of how loved and popular Phil was. He brought the best out of people and the sheer number of his work colleagues attending the church service reflected the huge contribution he made to Pennine Care in the 15 years he worked here.  He has had an immense impact on everyone who was lucky enough to know him.

As we said in our eulogy; if Carlsberg did work colleagues, then Phil would probably be the best colleague in the world. One of the musical pieces played during the service was Handel’s ‘See, the conqu’ring hero come’. What a fitting piece of music for Phil. He conquered with kindness, humility and humour. He had huge integrity and inspired us all with his positivity and calm determination. He was very much a hero, albeit a quiet one. It was an honour to work with him and we will miss him greatly.

I know the incredibly ambitious timescales for this first transfer of staff, and the sudden death of a colleague, has left many reeling as well as feeling depleted. Some teams have not only had to put in a huge amount of effort to manage the transfer, but have been directly affected by it.

You have been so professional in managing your anxieties and feelings, whilst cracking on with work. I am so appreciative of your commitment in doing so.

We’re still on a journey, as we’ve got more transfers taking place later this year, but taking some time to recoup and reset is important. So, put yourself at the top of your next to-do list. Whether it’s doing something fun with family or friends, watching an entire season of television in one weekend or exercise. Whatever soothes the soul.

As we launched our new values yesterday, I can’t help but reflect on just how meaningful they are right now. There’s a quote from Bernie Sanders, the American politician which says, ‘Difficult times often bring out the best in people’.  And I’ve definitely seen so many examples during the last tough few weeks of our values being lived in all their glory.

I’ve seen kindness in people supporting others who have felt overwhelmed with work, worried about change or facing looming deadlines. I’ve also seen kindness between colleagues united in grief at the loss of Phil.

There’s also been fairness demonstrated throughout the transfer process, with people trying to be as inclusive and open as possible, as well as even-handed with decisions. And with that, reassuring others there is no hidden agenda or secret plan.

I’ve heard about great ingenuity in how teams have juggled capacity issues with workloads and gaps. There’s also been wonderful ingenuity in creative send-offs for colleagues, which couldn’t fail to make someone feel special.

And, your determination in the continuous provision of high-quality services amidst all the change has been tremendous. I stand in awe.

You are already living and breathing these values. They’re not a collection of four good words we think people will like; they represent the essence of our organisation.

They’ve come from you because they reflect who you are, what you stand for and how you act. So I know they will continue to serve as a guiding light in everything we do.

Best wishes,
Claire

Leading by example

My latest blog is helped by the Chief Operating Officer at Oldham Clinical Commissioning Group, Denis Gizzi.

Denis doesn’t blog, many say he should, but he does offer great leadership insights.  I was lucky enough to be copied into a note he sent to his staff one Friday afternoon recently.  It neatly described how the CCG had worked with our community services to respond to a family’s concerns about the care provided to their relative. 

It was really well received and I asked him if he’d have any objections to me sharing it. I will let his words speak for themselves, please read below:

“Dear colleagues,

It's been a strange week, but I thought I'd do something I've not done before (and probably won't make a habit of), which is to share a couple of thoughts at the end of a busy week.

You've all heard my mantra on 'time to value' over the last 12 months and I know there is a healthy slice of polite acknowledgement.  Here is a local patient example I’d like to share: 

The family contacts me directly as they are worried and concerned about the lack of care co-ordination following the hospital discharge of a 94 year old gentleman with many co-morbidities.

The CCG team reacts. Clinical advice is sought. Community clinicians are engaged. Mistakes are corrected. Care co-ordination is put in place. The family are understandably anxious. Full assessment and care package in place within a few days.

The family contacts me again.  State 'we had no idea what a CCG was, we now know, the CCG has saved my father’s life.   This may be a little exaggerated, who knows.  What really matters is that 'time to value' has been demonstrated, it is real, it touches people’s lives, and it works because people care about bringing a resolution to an individual's problems as quickly as possible. Time to value? Yes it is very important.

I'm not going to pick out individuals for praise, it's a team effort. Some of these problems were resolved out of standard hours. It is noted and greatly appreciated.

So you see, it's not management mumbo-jumbo, it's what our public expect from us. They want us to make good decisions, act on them, and make change happen quickly. We are getting better at it, but clearly we need to do more.”

I just thought it was a great example of how leaders can show a commitment to staying true to what the public want to see in how we lead their NHS.