The Offender Healthcare Service (OHS) The physical demands of working at HMP Wandsworth Guidelines for Registered Nurses and Health Care Assistants All Registered Nurses and Healthcare Assistants applying to work in the HMP Wandsworth Offender Healthcare Service (OHS) must read this leaflet and complete the accompanying checklist titled: A Checklist for Registered Nurses and Healthcare Assistants who are applying to work in the Offender Healthcare Service (OHS) at HMP Wandsworth The physical demands of working at HMP Wandsworth. Guidelines for : RN s / HCA s. Updated April 2013 Page 1
HMP Wandsworth was built in 1851 during the Victorian era. The buildings that comprise HMP Wandsworth pose special challenges for registered nurses and health care assistants who work in the prison. It is important that all registered nurses and healthcare assistants fully understand the physical requirements of working in HMP Wandsworth and are able to manage the challenges of the physical environment. The layout of HMP Wandsworth means that healthcare services are scattered throughout the prison rather than being in one place. Registered Nurses and Healthcare Assistants need to be able to manage the environment physically and respond to unexpected emergencies and events in what can be an unpredictable environment. Key considerations about the physical environment at HMP Wandsworth There are no lifts and each residential wing has four floors (see page 4) Staff often have to cover long distances in a single day In medical emergencies, equipment must be carried to the site of the emergency -the emergency grabbag and oxygen cylinder (see page 5). Staff may have to attend to prisoners in an emergency situation in a number of potential locations such as outside in the gardens, education/workshop building, football fields, gyms in addition to the residential wings Floor space in the cells is very limited and may require a good degree of agility if attending an emergency situation. Most cells have static furniture making the process even more difficult. Staff must be able to get up and down from the floor unaided to provide CPR / other medical interventions if required (see page 6) Minimum physical requirements for all Registered Nurses and Health Care Assistants 1. Each staff member must be able to manage stairs unaided and be able to walk long distances during a shift as required. 2. Each staff member must be able to get up and down from the floor unaided in order to be able to provide medical interventions (e.g. CPR) 3. Each staff member must be able to carry the emergency bag (weighing approximately 711kgs kilograms) up and down stairs. The physical demands of working at HMP Wandsworth. Guidelines for : RN s / HCA s. Updated April 2013 Page 2
Managing stairs All Registered Nurse and Health Care Assistants must be able to manage stairs unaided and be able to walk long distances during their shift Offender Healthcare Services are spread throughout the large site of HMP Wandsworth. There are no lifts and healthcare staff may be required to navigate a large number of stairs and cover long distances in a single shift The physical demands of working at HMP Wandsworth. Guidelines for : RN s / HCA s. Updated April 2013 Page 3
There are two residential buildings at HMP Wandsworth: Heathfield Centre which contains the residential wings: A,B,C,D,and E (F wing is non-residential). The Heathfield Centre accommodates approx 1280 prisoners. Each wing consists of 4 floors. The Trinity Centre is smaller than the Heathfield Centre and can accommodate up to approx 400 prisoners. There are three wings (G,H and K) and each wing consists of 4 floors. Both Trinity and Heathfield Centres have an emergency grab-bag. However the Hotel 3 emergency nurse covers the whole site and may have to move from one building to another in order to respond to an emergency. E wing landings 2, 3 and 4 C wing landings 2, 3 and 4 The above photos are taken from The Centre of the Heathfield Centre and show three of the four floors of 2 different wings. The ground floor is not visible in the above photos. The physical demands of working at HMP Wandsworth. Guidelines for : RN s / HCA s. Updated April 2013 Page 4
Carrying the emergency grab-bag All Registered Nurse and Health Care Assistants must be able to take the emergency grab-bag to an emergency as required. During each shift there is a Registered Nurse who is designated to hold the emergency response radio and respond to any emergencies on the Heathfield Centre or the Trinity Centre When an emergency is called through on the radio (the emergency radio is worn on the belt of the designated emergency response nurse), the emergency response nurse must collect the emergency bag and oxygen cylinder (as seen below) and take it to the site of the emergency. The Hotel 3 nurse may already be at the scene and may request another RN or Healthcare Assistant (HCA) collect the emergency grab-bag. Emergency grab-bag Hotel 3 radio O2 cylinder O2 cylinder Note: April 2014. In June 2014 the service will be moving towards the use of small O2 cylinders which will be able to fit into the emergency bags The physical demands of working at HMP Wandsworth. Guidelines for : RN s / HCA s. Updated April 2013 Page 5
Attending a medical emergency in-cell All Registered Nurses and Health Care Assistants must be able to get up and down from the floor unaided. First aid and CPR is often provided when the patient is on the floor. There are no hospital beds in HMP Wandsworth, except on the Jones Unit (the six bedded medical unit). Cells are small and furniture is often fixed to the floor /wall therefore a reasonable degree of agility is required on the part of the staff member when attending to an in-cell emergency, and staff must be able to get up and down from the floor unaided The physical demands of working at HMP Wandsworth. Guidelines for : RN s / HCA s. Updated April 2013 Page 6
A checklist for Registered Nurses and Healthcare Assistants who are applying to work in the Offender Healthcare Service (OHS) at HMP Wandsworth Name Date Title of position applied for Please circle PERMANENT FIXED TERM CONTRACT BANK Please tick the relevant boxes I confirm that I have read the document The physical demands of working at HMP Wandsworth I confirm that I can manage stairs unaided and I understand that I may be required to walk long distances in a single shift I confirm that I can get up and down from the floor unaided in order to be able to provide medical interventions such as CPR I confirm that I am able to carry the emergency bag (weighing approximately 11 kgs kilograms) up and down stairs in an emergency. Signature Date Please send this completed checklist to the Occupational Health Department St George s Healthcare NHS Trust Blackshaw Road London SW17 0QT Tel 0208 725 0459/1662/1661 The physical demands of working at HMP Wandsworth. Guidelines for : RN s / HCA s. Updated April 2013 Page 7
The physical demands of working at HMP Wandsworth. Guidelines for : RN s / HCA s. Updated April 2013 Page 8