NEW STARTER INFORMATION PACK CONTACT WARD As soon as you have signed your contract it is advisable to contact your ward manager and introduce yourself. From there you can have a tour of the ward, get an ID badge application form and begin the process of understanding things such as how to book annual leave, who your preceptor/buddy will be, who to report to when you're off sick etc. You will be allocated a preceptor/buddy who is a member of staff on the ward who will support you through your induction process and support you through your first few months on the ward. HOW TO GET YOUR ID BADGE In order to get your ID badge you need to get a form from your ward manager which has been signed by them. Take this to Security who are located on B level at the back of the restaurant (as you enter the restaurant, veer to the left through some double doors which will be labelled staff canteen area, security have a desk just inside the staff seating area). Security will then take your picture and issue your badge, for this you need the signed form and photo ID with you. Security is open from 9:30 11:30 and 3:30 5:30 Monday Friday. It is advised that you get your ID badge as soon as possible as this will then allow you to proceed with setting up your car parking, computer log in and getting access to other resources such as ESR and the library etc. CARPARKING Once you have a computer log in you can access a car parking request form via the intranet homepage. When you open internet explorer from any computer in the hospital the Intranet site appears. On the front page in the blue main text box there is a Travel option, double click this and in large red writing there will be a link to the park and ride car parking application, Complete this online and send. Alternatively your manager can print a form for you, which you then need to take to security. HOW TO GET A COMPUTER LOG IN In order to get your computer log in you need to speak with either your ward manager or your practice educator. They need your full name and your date of birth. It is useful to have this as soon as possible as it will allow you to begin to familiarise yourself with the important intranet/desktop based resources you will use once in employment.
You can contact the IT helpdesk on 7703 2680 for further assistance with obtaining a computer login, such as getting your ID badge (once you have one) activated for the automatic log in service. This is a system where each ward based computer has a small black device attached to it, you can just touch your ID badge onto this and it will log you on without you having to enter a log in or password (a password will be needed when you log in at the beginning of the day), it will also log you off when you have finished by again touching your badge to the device. Each time this touch system is used to log off or another person overrides the session and logs on with their badge the session you were on is saved. When you touch log in your saved session is opened where you left off as long as less than an hour has passed. This is useful in ward environments where computers are shared because it allows the session you are working on to be saved even if someone comes and logs you off by using their badge to log in. There are IT drop in sessions Monday Friday in the reception area between wards E7 and E8 from 1 2pm if you need any assistance or to activate your automatic log in. TRUST INTRANET AND THE USEFUL RESOURCES YOU CAN ACCESS THROUGH IT The trust intranet is accessed through any computer in the hospital. Once you are logged in select the Internet icon on the desktop. The homepage of the Internet is always the Trust Intranet. There are several key links available on the first screen as well as up to date trust news and articles. Some of the most useful to know about are the Incident Reporting, Policies and Pharmacy. Incident Reporting There is a highlighted box at the top of the home screen with useful links, one of them say Incident Reporting; double click on this and you will be taken to the DATIX reporting form which you need to complete for any adverse incidents in the workplace, i.e. Falls, pressure ulcers, medication errors, patient accidents ect. These forms are quite self explanatory and will guide you during the completion process but it is advisable to have another member of staff with you when you first complete one to ensure it is done correctly. Policies It is important to familiarise yourself with trust policies to ensure you are working within safe guidelines. However there are a lot of policies to work through! Some of the first that it is advisable to familiarise yourself with are CPR, Anaphylaxis and Medicines Management as you will need to evidence that you have read and understood these and had your competency in your blue folder signed before being able to administer oral medication. To access the trust policies enter the Intranet as above, across the top of the page are several tabs, one of these will say Strategies, Policies and Guidelines, click on this tab and select the appropriate policy. Pharmacy
A useful resource is the pharmacy page which is accessed through the Intranet homepage as directed above, across the top of the page there is a tab which says Departments, click on this and select Pharmacy from the list. The pharmacy page offers a lot of information and is worth looking through, however a couple of the most useful features are being able to look at other ward s medication stock to see if they have a drug which you need but do not stock and the ability to track TTO s. To check other ward s stock; select the Out of hours tab on the left hand side of the pharmacy home screen and then select the does another ward have what I want option. To track TTO s there is a link on the home screen directly below the information about opening hours, click this and then select your ward from the drop down menu, this will then bring up all the information about where the TTO s are for your ward. TRUST INDUCTION/SETTING DIRECTIONS/VITALPAC/BLUE FOLDER You will have been booked onto a Trust Induction and a training course called Setting Directions within your first few weeks of employment. You will have been booked onto this either by your ward manager or your practice educator. In these introductory days your will be introduced to the Trust Director Ursula Ward as well as other key staff members from specialities such as Critical Care and Tissue Viability. These sessions will help you understand how to access specialist services if you need them whilst looking after patients. You will also have practical sessions including Basic Life Support and Moving and Handling. You will have an introduction to and guidance about the Vitalpac system which is used throughout the hospital to record patient observations. To obtain your Vitalpac login you need to request one from either your ward manager or practice educator. You will have a session on how to access the Blood Bank services and the protocols and policies surrounding safely administering blood in order to access the blood bank you need a valid ID badge. Once you have this you need to contact the blood bank who will set up an access account for you which will then allow you to collect patient blood. During these training days you will also be given a Blue Folder containing several competencies which need to be completed in order to be able to administer medicines both oral and IV, and also includes core competencies. These should ideally be completed within 6 months. Alongside the competencies in your blue folder you may be given ward specific competencies which will also need to be completed. PRECEPTORSHIP The Preceptorship Programme is for newly qualified registered healthcare professionals. The course consists of a monthly study day over the course of 6 months which aims to support newly qualified registered health care professionals in making an effective transition from student to a registered member of staff. You will be booked on to this by either your ward manager or your practice educator. For further information or to enquire about a place contact Annette Farrell on ext: 1203,
email annette.farrell@porthosp.nhs.uk or Debbie Knight on ext: 1200 email Debbie.Knight@porthosp.nhs.uk Topics that will be covered on your preceptorship days are Tissue Viability Learning Disabilities Dementia Trust DNAR workshop Trust Violence and Aggression workshop Trust Study Day IV Medication Administration Nutrition and Fluid Management Motivation Delegation Team Development Clinical supervision Breaking difficult news and grief reactions Consent and accountability Study skills session Portfolio building Patient Safety and Governance PRACTICE EDUCATORS The role of the practice educators is to provide support and help through the induction process, to aid development and provide training and reflective practice and as a resource for personal development. The current practice educators are: General Medicine Christine Cowan 02392 283940 Renal Helen Willis ext. 1080 Theatres Laura Jenkins 7700 4851 Morag Mills 7700 1256 Women & Children Neonatal Susi Hill 7700 4430 Maternity Lesley Amey 07894967590 Paediatrics Sally Gray 7700 4379 Maternity; Midwifery Angela West & Julie Woodman 7700 4537 Oncology Amanda Tonge 7700 6694
Surgery Chris Cawes 1065; ext. 6694 ED & MAU Anita Dehaviland ext.6282 MOPRS Megan Morris ext. 3747; bleep 1053 Marion Moffat ext. 3747; bleep 0026 Critical Care Sara Lilly 7700 6035 Head and Neck Lead Nurse Joanne Sealey ext. 6585 If you are unsure of whom your practice educator is, contact your ward manager. It is useful to be aware of who your practice educator is prior to starting employment as they are often the people who will set up your computer log ins, email accounts, help you with setting up your ICE and ESR accounts and will either enrol you or advise you on how to enrol on essential training such as Setting Directions, Preceptorship, IV study day and other training days appropriate to your area. ESR What is ESR? ESR is a system that the hospital uses to complete online essential skills courses and where you can book on to physical classroom based courses that are relevant to your area including the IV study day, cannulation, etc. You can also access an online pay slip, view and edit personal information, view employment information, view your online p60 etc. There are some core competency requirements that are on the left hand side of the screen. These will be red if you have not completed them and will go green once they are completed. You will need to complete these in order for you to go up a pay increment (gateways), this will be discussed in the appraisal that you will have with your manager. How to get ESR Help with setting up ESR can be found by clicking on learning and development in the blue box on the intranet homepage, alternatively call ext: 1241 or email Elearning@porthosp.nhs.uk. If you would like face to face assistance you can go along to the ESR drop in session held every Wednesday in the Library on E level between 08:00 and 16:30. How to use ESR ESR can be difficult to navigate so we would highly recommend going to one of the sessions mentioned above. However to access any e learning or to book courses you will need to click on 192 e learning user on the ESR home screen. To access online payslips etc. you will need to click on 192 employee self service.
ICE What is ICE? ICE is a system through which all patient wristbands, pathology request forms (eg. MRSA swab or MSU) and blood request forms can be requested and printed. It is essential to have access and understand how to use the ICE system because it allows you to print off wristbands (without which patients cannot be safely identified during medication rounds, blood tests, procedures such as ultrasounds, etc.) and pathology request forms so that any specimens or bloods can be appropriately labelled and sent with the correct request form. Without access to ICE you will find you have to rely on either ward clerks who usually only work 9 5 or other staff members who do not always have the time to print the items your patient needs quickly, which can result in your patient having to wait and you run the risk of not labelling documentation, swabs or samples correctly or of not being able to check a patient s wristband when administering medication. How to get access to ICE To gain access to ICE you need to complete the ICE training module on moodle (www.iaminthemoodle.com), once this has been completed you must e mail the ICT training team or contact them on extension 5867, they will then activate your ICE account. How to use ICE at work Once your account is activated it will be set up for your specific area of work. When you log on to a computer your ICE icon will be on the desktop home screen. Double click on this and click log in; from there a selection box will appear and it will request that you select your appropriate area. Select your ward or workplace from the drop down list and press return. You will then have access to the ICE system. From here you can select Patient Search which will be in the top left hand menu; this will bring up all of the inpatients currently in your ward. To select a patient double click on their name. Once you have selected a patient you can then proceed to request blood forms, wristbands, pathology forms such as MSU or MRSA, patient labels and more by selecting either Tools or Requests from the menu on the bottom left hand side of the screen. There are guidance manuals available by clicking either Requests or Tools on the top left hand side of the screen. These are identified as being instruction manuals by being accompanied by a green book logo. For further guidance re visit the ICE training module on Moodle. E Rostering What is E Rostering?
E Rostering is where you can request annual leave, days off, view your off duty; see annual leave entitlement and sickness levels. How to access E Rostering To gain access to E Rostering you will need to contact the ICT service desk on (7703) 2680 to get your log in details. USEFUL PHONE NUMBERS Switchboard 0 Emergency 2222 Security 6100 Emergency Transfusion Line (To access emergency O negative blood) 4444 To Bleep dial 88 number you are calling 7700 number you are calling from. For example: 88 1234 7700 4321