What is the alternative?

[Neil]

Originally Posted by Margaret Pilkington

Some rules can be bent without compromising safety.
My immediate manager knew of my infraction of the rules. She accepted my reasons as valid.

If you had a genuine safety concern you should have taken it through your safety rep or union. You could have found that name badge anywhere.

Where do you stop at letting people bend the rules? I've seen all sorts of rule bending going on in hospitals that shouldn't happen. I've probably mentioned a few on here before like putting cups into the waste linen bags after stripping beds off. Not wiping beds down before the next patient uses it. Rules are in place for a reason and management should have pulled you up on it.

[Margaret Pilkington]

Neil I was management. I did take my concerns to the appropriate bodies and they supplied lanyards( eventually). Just so that you could be garrotted by some disorientated patient coming round from anaesthetic.

Yes, I could have found the badge, but why on earth would I attend to do a physical and mentally challenging job on a busy ward just to use a name badge I had found? You would have to nuts to do that.
My photo was in a large frame with all staff pictures at the doorway of both wards I managed.
I worked at the hospital for 29 years. I was known to staff and patients alike.
People still call out my name when they see me in the street.
There are much bigger issues in the NHS that need radical and immediate attention...many of which have been highlighted in this thread.

[Margaret Pilkington]

I hope you reported those incidents you observed.
I can't recall throwing used cups into linen skips, or seeing anyone else do that either,as for washing down beds, I have probably washed down more beds than all the hot dinners you will consume in your life.

[gpick24]

This is an old story and maybe incidents like this are the reason hospital staff have to wear photo I'd badges - http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/1...ntal_hospital/


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[Margaret Pilkington]

For those who wish to perpetrate such acts there will always be a way.
There are far more cctv cameras now, and in maternity units there is enhanced security.

I always had my photo ID with me, but I just did not wear it and I was never asked to prove who I was...but as I say this is going back 14 years.

[odders]

Anyone could be anyone at BRH, I think Neil has been watching diagnose murder too much.. Things have changed and BRH don't even know most of the staff they have. Especially if he's talking about urgent care or a+e if you want to call it by it's old name. But still it takes about 3 people to get you to the treatment, so the pretenders would be found out.

[Guinness]

Originally Posted by gpick24

This is an old story and maybe incidents like this are the reason hospital staff have to wear photo I'd badges - Baby kidnap woman sent to mental hospital (From HeraldScotland)


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Link is almost 27 years old...

Someone as unbalanced as that person in this day and age could...with a little knowledge of Publisher, access to a £30 printer and a £20 laminator, create a facsimile NHS photo ID in less than 10 minutes...they ain't banknotes, nor are they scrutinised by patients under an ultraviolet lamp

[Guinness]

Originally Posted by Rowlf

Another way to save the NHS money would be to stop the practice of not taking back walking aids after folk have had for example knee or hip surgery and no longer need them. The same goes for unused dressings etc that have not been touched. It does seem a terrible waste.

Unfortunately in this 'blame' culture led by coffin chasing 'accidents 4 u' money grabbers...a walking frame/crutch that may have a slightly worn grip or a dressing that you cannot prove was not contaminated when you opened the pack could cost the NHS more than the cost of a new frame etc..etc..

[Guinness]

And this is why Doctors close for training days and lessen the amount of appointments and care they can give (which puts more pressure on A&E)...

Blackburn GP practice placed in special measures after lowest possible rating (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Absolutely nothing wrong with patient care..yet they are in special measures..simply because they have not hit the CQC pen pushers targets of having bucket loads of 'risk assessments' for them to tick off their lists and 'staff training in safeguarding'..which pretty much means staff haven't been trained in common sense like 'what to do if you see a fire' or 'what to do if you see a doctor behaving inappropriately'

Unfortunately for Doctors surgeries like this, there is absolutely no comeback, they HAVE to comply... CQC like FIFA has no real governance

[Margaret Pilkington]

We also had to have training in all manner of things. We still had to run a service and ensure that patients had safe standards of care.
It can be done but it has to be managed.
There is no excuse at all for practices closing for lunch...unless there is only one doctor and one nurse. I do not recall EVER being permitted an hour for lunch.

[Margaret Pilkington]

Originally Posted by Guinness

Unfortunately in this 'blame' culture led by coffin chasing 'accidents 4 u' money grabbers...a walking frame/crutch that may have a slightly worn grip or a dressing that you cannot prove was not contaminated when you opened the pack could cost the NHS more than the cost of a new frame etc..etc..

It is easy to change the grips on both crutches and walking frames...cleaning them is also a simple matter (soap and water works well, or steam clean them).
As for dressings, I was always taught to inspect the pack to make sure there were no breaks or perforations and also to make sure there was no evidence that the package had been wet.
These are measures that would save maybe only a small amount, but a saving is a saving.

Years ago at a budget meeting I suggested that when patients came into hospital on multiple meds. That we did not send these home, but used the meds that the patient had been prescribed and had brought in with them.
All kinds of reasons were given as to why this could not be done...so what has changed, because it IS what happens now.
Obviously we would not use medications unless they were in the bottles or packages they were supplied in..But way back then this was deemed impossible.

There has to be a will to make the effort to implement savings...and often that is not there...well not in the smallish things anyway, but they spent untold cash in getting bank staff in to cover staff shortages.

[Guinness]

Originally Posted by Margaret Pilkington

We also had to have training in all manner of things. We still had to run a service and ensure that patients had safe standards of care.
It can be done but it has to be managed.
There is no excuse at all for practices closing for lunch...unless there is only one doctor and one nurse. I do not recall EVER being permitted an hour for lunch.

You would not believe the hoops care services like doctors, hospitals and care homes have to jump through nowadays...actual 'care of the person' is of a much lower priority than paperwork that evidences that you provided that care.

Some on this thread have disparaged the need for 'clip boarders/pen pushers'...I'm just pointing out exactly why they are there.

[gpick24]

Originally Posted by Guinness

Link is almost 27 years old...

I did say it was an old story...I also went on to say "maybe incidents like this are the reason hospital staff have to wear photo I'd badges".
Just because someone is determined to do something doesn`t mean it should be made easy for them, nothings going to be 100% but every obstacle should be put in their way. If hospital security are used to seeing staff walking around without ID how are they supposed to detect imposters, just rely on memory as to whether they`ve seen them before?

[Guinness]

Originally Posted by Margaret Pilkington

It is easy to change the grips on both crutches and walking frames...cleaning them is also a simple matter (soap and water works well, or steam clean them).
As for dressings, I was always taught to inspect the pack to make sure there were no breaks or perforations and also to make sure there was no evidence that the package had been wet.
These are measures that would save maybe only a small amount, but a saving is a saving.

Years ago at a budget meeting I suggested that when patients came into hospital on multiple meds. That we did not send these home, but used the meds that the patient had been prescribed and had brought in with them.
All kinds of reasons were given as to why this could not be done...so what has changed, because it IS what happens now.
Obviously we would not use medications unless they were in the bottles or packages they were supplied in..But way back then this was deemed impossible.

There has to be a will to make the effort to implement savings...and often that is not there...well not in the smallish things anyway, but they spent untold cash in getting bank staff in to cover staff shortages.

Totally agree about the walking frames/crutches and dressings, unfortunately smarmy coffin chasers have successfully argued and won substantial damages, hence the NHS current policy.

[Guinness]

Originally Posted by gpick24

I did say it was an old story...I also went on to say "maybe incidents like this are the reason hospital staff have to wear photo I'd badges".
Just because someone is determined to do something doesn`t mean it should be made easy for them, nothings going to be 100% but every obstacle should be put in their way. If hospital security are used to seeing staff walking around without ID how are they supposed to detect imposters, just rely on memory as to whether they`ve seen them before?

Yup..you did say it was an old story..was simply pointing out that it was as easy if you needed an ID for someone as determined, to do exactly what occurred in the article.

My point still stands with your hospital security argument ..if you have a hospital the size of BRH who would challenge the ID I've just created with my laptop/printer/laminator?