News

• Team effort to help young hear

  by User Not Found | Dec 13, 2017

  A ‘cool’ new device being developed by two NHS trusts and their supporters could bring relief to children suffering from the frustration of glue ear.

  Experts from Cambridgeshire Community Services (CCS) and Cambridge University Hospitals (CUH) NHS Trusts pooled their expertise to adapt an existing brand of sports headphone so it helps young sufferers to hear.

  Instead of fitting over blocked ears, the headphones sit on the cheek bones and contain a tiny mechanism that vibrates when it picks up a signal from a remote microphone.

  The vibrations travel along the cheekbone and skip the middle ear before arriving in the inner ear where they are interpreted as sound. It’s known as “bone conduction”.

  The development follows collaboration between CCS’s community paediatrician, Dr Tamsin Brown, medical engineer, Cara Cooper, from the CUH’s Clinical Engineering Department, and other academic and health colleagues locally.

  The development work was funded through Cambridge University Health Partners and a pilot study is being carried out with support from Cambridge Hearing Trust, Health Enterprise East, the British Society of Audiology, BAPA and Health Education East of England. The pilot study, involving about 20 youngsters will report in Spring 2018 and support submission for classification as a Medical Device. The headset will hopefully be launched late in 2018.

  By the age of ten, 80 per cent of children suffer at least one episode of glue ear, a condition where the middle ear becomes filled with fluid, preventing the ossicles amplifying sound for the inner ear.

  However, due to spontaneous resolution in 95 per cent of cases, treatments are only offered after “watchful waiting” periods of up to 18 months, but this can lead to speech and language problems.

  Mrs Cooper spoke of the collaboration at the latest Institute of Physics and Engineering in Medicine (IPEM) conference in Surrey and picked up the President’s Prize for best oral presentation.

  She said: “As clinical engineers we are delighted to collaborate on this worthwhile project, which is a good example of horizontal innovation – the process of adapting an existing product for a new application.

  “Of course the children like the headphones not only because they can enjoy things like story time with mum and dad, but because they look sporty and come in cool colours like blue, green and bright pink!”

  Dr Brown added: “Watchful waiting is a very sensible approach, but it can be a long and frustrating time for children and impact on language development. We wanted to find a solution to that.

  “Collaborating with the Clinical Engineering Department was a great success and, with the help of other organisations too, we have innovated with what we believe is a really practical and cost-effective solution.”

  Malcolm Lowe-Lauri, Executive Director at Cambridge University Health Partners, said: “Cambridge is a city of ideas and innovation where people work together to find solutions to problems and help change lives for the better. This project is great example of this tradition and how collaboration can take an idea from the drawing board to the patient – turning possibilities into better healthcare. We look forward to seeing positive results coming out of the study ahead of the project launching later next year.”

  The team has set up a website about their work at https://hearglueear.wordpress.com/

  

  Images show from left : Cara Cooper, Dr Tamsin Brown and a youngster wearing the headphones at story time

   

• Young People in Norfolk Featured in Health Podcasts for Teens

  by Alex Keep | Dec 12, 2017

  Young people in Norfolk and NHS Professionals from the Children and Young People’s Health Services have been featured in a new series of podcasts hosted by BBC Radio One presenter and actor Cel Spellman.

  The series aims to get more young people in-tune with their health and wellbeing by sharing a variety of candid discussion programs. 

  Sexually transmitted infections, self-harming, depression, drugs and more are on the agenda, as Cel lifts the lid on teenage health issues. Young people from Norfolk speak

  

  honestly about their experiences of different health problems which they say can be embarrassing, uncomfortable and sometimes misunderstood.

  There are ten shows and each focus on a different topic, the two particular episodes featuring NHS staff and young people from Norfolk are episode 3 “mental health - me and my emotions” and episode 4 “sexual health - are you ready?”

  The team behind the 20 minute episodes hope that young people going through difficulties may find it easier to open up and talk if they can hear peers discussing the same troubles.

  Presenter Cel Spellman, who hosts the Sunday afternoon slot on BBC Radio One and stars in ITV drama Cold Feet stated:

  “I feel pretty privileged to have heard such honest and touching personal stories, Young people today have to deal with all the classic teenage worries and troubles, but it doesn’t end there. With social media, current affairs and online, this digital generation have much more to deal with. Sometimes these sort of problems can be misunderstood by our peers who say we’ve never had it so easy, so get on with it.”

  The podcasts are designed for people who like to listen through headphones whilst on the move, users can search “Health Uncovered” in any popular podcasting app, like iTunes, to download or stream the podcasts to mobile devices. Alternatively, users can also stream the podcasts directly from the Children and Young People’s Health Services website using this link:

  http://bit.ly/norfolk-healthuncovered

  Sian Larrington, Head of Service, Norfolk Children and Young People's Services has expressed her delight with the outcome,

  “I would like to thank the young people that were featured in the Norfolk episodes, their openness and first hand insight is what will make these podcasts successful.”

  “We are very proud to be part of this project and thrilled with the final product. Creating resources like this really highlights that our service is a service for young people.”

  “To communicate effectively with our young people in the Norfolk community, we have to speak their language and communicate using formats they find easy and accessible, this selection of podcasts does just that.”

  Public Health, the commissioners of the service are also happy with the project. Dr Louise Smith, Director of Public Health in Norfolk, said:

  “It’s important that we get people talking about issues such as STIs, depression and drugs at an early age to help de-stigmatise them. These podcasts will allow young people to hear from their peers, rather than being talked at, which will hopefully reassure them that they’re not alone in facing these issues.”

  
  

• #hellomynameis Global Tour - Through adversity comes legacy

  by User Not Found | Dec 12, 2017

  The #hellomynameis campaign was founded by Dr Kate Granger and her husband Chris Pointon following Kate’s diagnosis at the age of just 29 with terminal cancer. 

  Since Kate’s untimely death last year at the age of 34, Chris has been keeping the campaign alive and is currently on a global tour which has so far included Australia, New Zealand and Great Britain.

  Chris explained: “As a doctor Kate was shocked during treatment to find that many staff looking after her did not introduce themselves before delivering care.  For Kate, this simple introduction wasn’t just about common courtesy but about making a human connection.  #hellomynameis was born from Kate’s passion to help health workers connect with their patients, instantly helping to build trust in difficult circumstances.  The NHS is amazing and I am so proud that my late wife’s legacy continues to change the shape of global healthcare.”

  Matthew Winn, Chief Executive, Cambridgeshire Community Services NHS Trust: “We’re proud to support the #hellomynameis campaign and to host Chris’ tour today, welcoming staff from our regional services and partner organisations.

  Few people have had such a profound impact on me as Kate had when I met her two years ago.   Whilst facing her own illness with such courage, she and Chris launched the #hellomynameis campaign which has now reached every continent across the globe. Kate truly was inspirational and her legacy continues with the slogan #hellomynameis now synonymous across the NHS and beyond for compassionate care.” 

  Julia Sirett, Chief Nurse added:  “It is extraordinary to think how many thousands of patients have benefitted from Chris and Kate’s campaign which has now had over 1.8 billion Twitter impressions.   The #hellomynameis campaign is now embedded within our quality improvement programme and, as Chris said today, if each of us makes just a small difference, together we can achieve something phenomenal.” 

  

• Amazing and Caring Paediatric Nurse wins award

  by Kirstie Flack | Nov 14, 2017
  
  
  Vicky Surrell, paediatric diabetes nurse, based at Hinchingbrooke Hospital, Huntingdon has been awarded the Cambridgeshire Community Services NHS Trust’s Shine a Light award.
  
  Vicky was nominated by the Neil Hook, the father of one of her patient’s, William who was diagnosed, at the age of three, with Type 1 Diabetes.
  
  He said: “Quite frankly Vicky is an amazing woman and a credit to the NHS as a whole. Vicky has been with us on the journey at every stage, from offering us comfort and solace on his diagnosis to holding multiple training sessions with his school so he could enjoy his first day on a level playing field with every other child, which is all anyone could ever wish for.
  
  “As a Type 1 Diabetic of over 30 years I feel uniquely qualified to back up those claims. I was diagnosed at an almost identical age to my son (four) and have lived across most regions of the UK, relying on the NHS throughout, and can genuinely say across my 30+ years of living with the condition I have never come close to having the level of attention and care my son has had from Vicky.
  
  “For that I will be forever grateful and proud that she is his specialist nurse and genuinely feel confident that my son will continue getting the highest standards of care and access to every opportunity to excel, because of that no Type 1 Diabetes parent can ever ask for more.”
  
  The “Shine a Light” scheme allows members of the public to nominate staff who have delivered a fantastic service and made a real difference to their lives. Trust staff are also encouraged to nominate their colleagues.
  
  On winning the award Vicky said: “I was surprised and delighted to be nominated as this month’s shine a light winner. 
  
  “As a diabetes team we realise how hard it must be for parents to hand over their very young children with quite complex health needs to school staff.  We try to do everything possible to make this as smooth as possible for the child and the family and also the school staff who have to take on a lot of extra responsibilities and are often anxious. It is lovely that my efforts have been noted and appreciated in this way by parents.”
  
  Every month a member of staff or a team are selected from a list of nominations as the “Shine a Light” award winner. If you would like to nominate a member of staff or a team who has gone the extra mile for you, you can nominate online at www.cambscommunityservices.nhs.uk
  
  
  Photo: Amy (mum) and William Hook, Vicky Surrell and Matthew Winn, Chief Executive

• Support to achieve success

  by Phillipa Davies | Oct 25, 2017

  Health and sport joined together last week  to celebrate the support available for patients with musculoskeletal conditions or brain injuries in Cambridgeshire.
  
  Representatives from Cambridge Rugby Club joined DynamicHealth and Evelyn Community Head Injury Service (ECHIS) staff for the official opening. The facilities at Brookfields Health Campus, provided by Cambridgeshire Community Services, include:
  • 19 treatment rooms and a state of the art rehabilitation gym for the musculoskeletal physiotherapy and specialist teams
  • Admin and group meeting spaces for the ECHIS team.  
  
  Before cutting the ribbon, Albert Portsmouth, Community Development Manager and 1XV Player, wished the team well with the innovative plans both teams have for the future. He said: “In Rugby a successful team is defined by its resilience, which includes the ability to prevent injury and to overcome physical or psychological challenges. This is similar in your daily work that helps so many people achieve the successes that they are striving for. Access to appropriate advice and treatment can help and empower people to manage or cope with their injury or condition to improve their quality of life.”
  
  DynamicHealth provides specialised services for people living with or experiencing problems from muscles, nerves and joints. These are known as musculoskeletal (MSK) problems and include symptoms such as pain, numbness, stiffness and weakness as a result of injury, strain, posture or following an operation
  
  Sarah Saul, service manager DynamicHealth said: “Co-locating all aspects of our musculoskeletal service on one site and in a modern facility with a state of the art gym has created more joined up working, improved the service we can provide for our patients and created a premises in which we can expand our physiotherapy service.”
  
  ECHIS offers assessments, individual and group sessions for both the person with the head injury and their families. Rehabilitation programmes are tailored to individual needs and goals.
  
  Andrew Bateman, clinical manager ECHIS said: “This is an excellent opportunity to celebrate and acknowledge teams who are passionate and committed to services that continue to evolve for the benefit of our local community.”

   

  
  

• 10 year anniversary of Family Nurse Partnership celebrated with Teddy Bears Picnic!

  by Kirstie Flack | Oct 05, 2017
  Children and their families, working with the Family Nurse Partnership (FNP) team, celebrated the 10 year anniversary of FNP in England with a Teddy Bear’s Picnic. 
  
  Bridget Wilkinson, Supervisor of the FNP Team said: “October is the 10 year anniversary of the Family Nurse Partnership programme in England.
  
  “The programme is for young women, under 20 (and their partners) who are having their first baby. The Family Nurse works with clients to help them have a healthy pregnancy and to enjoy being the best mum they can be.
  
  “The programme is well liked. It was wonderful to see so many families come along and help us celebrate our 10 Year Anniversary.”
  
  The specially trained Family Nurses help mothers to understand all about their pregnancy and how to care for themselves and their babies. They visit regularly during the pregnancy and then after the birth until the baby is two years old. 
  
  Research has shown that for many children whose mums have taken part do better in school. Mums are also more likely to achieve what they want for themselves and their children. Families still have their midwife and doctor and any other professionals who may be involved, and the Family Nurse will support the family to give their baby the best possible start in life.
  
  Emma, Talisha’s mum said: “I have been attending the group for just over a year, and they are really helpful and have helped me gain more confidence as a young parent. I enjoy meeting and working with my FNP Nurse, who has helped me a lot.”
  
  Also benefitting from the programme is Holly, Amir’s mum, she said: “My family nurse has helped me to feel much more confident, as at the start I was not confident at all.  If I have any questions or issues I can ring and feel better as she reassures me.”
  
  For further information on the Family Nurse Partnership programme please visit Trust website at www.cambscommunityservices.nhs.uk and search for Family Nurse Partnership or visit the national website at www.fnp.nhs.uk.
  
  

• Passion, drive and enthusiasm recognised with Trust award

  by Kirstie Flack | Oct 04, 2017
  
  Sarah Clark, specialist health practitioner in Healthy Lifestyles and Norfolk infant feeding lead, based in Norfolk, has been awarded the Cambridgeshire Community Services NHS Trust’s Shine a Light award.
  
  Sarah was nominated by Wendy Housden, assistant practitioner, for working relentlessly and passionately over the past 6 months, working well beyond her normal hours.
  
  Wendy said: “Sarah has led the new team of infant feeding champions and together they have raised standards across the service whilst working towards the Unicef Baby Friendly Initiative Level 3 reaccreditation.
  
  “Sarah is always up-to-date with new research around infant feeding and quickly shares her knowledge with the team and wider workforce. Without her passion, drive and enthusiasm we would not have achieved the Unicef Level 3 reaccreditation, which is a fantastic achievement!  She is an amazing, fun and supportive lady.”
  
  The “Shine a Light” scheme allows members of the public to nominate staff who have delivered a fantastic service and made a real difference to their lives. Trust staff are also encouraged to nominate their colleagues.
  
  On winning the award Sarah said: “I was really surprised when I was contacted by the communications team to tell me I had won a shine a light award. 
  
  “Myself and the infant feeding champions have worked so hard on the Baby Friendly Initiative reaccreditation as a team and all have gone above and beyond to make sure we reached the standard. 
  
  “They have been a great team who have come together initially to achieve a specific task around infant feeding, from each locality, not knowing each other but in the process we have developed great friendships and a real sense of team spirit and co-working which ultimately led to our reaccreditation. I'm really chuffed that they nominated me - thank you ladies.”
  
  Every month a member of staff or a team are selected from a list of nominations as the “Shine a Light” award winner. If you would like to nominate a member of staff or a team who has gone the extra mile for you, you can nominate online at www.cambscommunityservices.nhs.uk
  
  Photo: Infant feeding champions/health visiting assistant practitioners Linda Ol, Charlotte Goff, (Anita Pisani, deputy chief executive), Sarah Clark, Wendy Housden and Nicola Jones.
  

   

• Disruption near Brookfields, Cambridge

  by Phillipa Davies | Sep 29, 2017

  There will be a road closure in place on Mill Road, from the traffic lights with Brooks Road to Madras Road from 2 - 27 October. Access in to the site will be maintained.

  However, when exiting the site, from:

  • 2 – 21 October 2017 There will be no left turn. You will only be able to turn right when leaving Brookfields.
  • 22 - 29 October 2017 There will be no right turn. You will only be able to turn left when leaving Brookfields.

  There will be a diversion in place via Coleridge Road, (see the purple route on the map below).
  

  

  Please leave extra time to get to any appointments at Lime Tree Clinic in Cambridge.

  If you have any queries please contact Cambridge Water on 01223 706050.D

  
  

• Parents supported to give their babies love, care and nourishment

  by Kirstie Flack | Sep 29, 2017
  
  Lisa Wright, infant feeding lead and the Cambridgeshire Infant Feeding team were recently awarded the Cambridgeshire Community Services NHS Trust’s Shine a Light award.
  
  Lisa and team were nominated by Fleur Seekins, clinical lead, for successfully achieving the baby friendly accreditation stage 2.
  
  Fleur said: “Well done to Lisa Wright who has developed and supported a new team to successfully achieve baby friendly accreditation stage 2. The team is multi-talented consisting of auditors, trainers, infant feeding advisors and project support. 
  
  “During the past year the team has been able to evidence a huge increase in staff knowledge and confidence. They have achieved this through bespoke individual staff sessions and most importantly with their culture of kindness approach. Fundamentally it is families that benefit from this, as new parents are supported to give their babies love, care and nourishment they need to get the best start in life. 
  
  “The team work hard to ensure that the Cambridgeshire’s breastfeeding statistics remain above national average. This is achieved through raising awareness that breastfeeding matters, effective support to mothers and their families and restricting promotion of formula milks and foods. The healthy child programme is incredibly proud of the team and the whole workforce for their achievement in gaining stage 2 baby friendly accreditation.”
  
  The “Shine a Light” scheme allows members of the public to nominate staff who have delivered a fantastic service and made a real difference to their lives. Trust staff are also encouraged to nominate their colleagues.
  
  On winning the award Lisa said: “I am thrilled that this award recognises the hard work of all of my healthy child program colleagues in achieving Stage 2 of the Baby Friendly Initiative. We couldn't have done this without their support and the dedication of all the Infant Feeding Team. CCS has been incredibly supportive of the journey and I look forward to us gaining Stage 3 next year!”
  
  Every month a member of staff or a team are selected from a list of nominations as the “Shine a Light” award winner. If you would like to nominate a member of staff or a team who has gone the extra mile for you, you can nominate online at www.cambscommunityservices.nhs.uk
  
  Photo: (Hannah Mora - Health Visitor, Jo Beynon - Infant Feeding Advisor/ Nursery Nurse, Mathew Winn, Chief Executive, Clare Leaton - Training Co- Ordinator, Jo Thompson -Infant Feeding Advisor/ Nursery Nurse, Elizabeth Kurleto Slabber -Infant Feeding Advisor/ Nursery Nurse, Lisa Wright - 0-19 Specialist for Healthy Lifestyles/ Infant Feeding - plus Vicki Dye - Service Improvement and Project Support for 0-19 HCP - not in the photo).
  

   

• Fundraiser pounds the streets for dreamdrops

  by User Not Found | Sep 12, 2017

  Runner Ricky Taylor, 31, from St Neots, raised almost £1000 after he completed the Great North Run on Sunday 10 September.
  
  Cambridgeshire Community Services NHS Trust’s charity, ‘dreamdrops’’, is set to receive the donation for children who are either being nursed on Holly Ward or the Special Care Baby Unit at Hinchingbrooke Hospital, or who are being nursed in the community.  The money will be used to purchase those little extras to make life a little more comfortable for children when they are unwell.
  
  Ricky said: “I choose the dreamdrops charity because I wanted to give something back to a local charity.  Once I read what fantastic work dreamdrops do for the children and the local community that was enough for me.
  
  “I was due to run on my own, but my friend Ben Reading was doing the run also, so we run together for about 10 miles, which helped me massively.  My training has been a bit sketchy to say the least, and I trained regularly up to 10 miles at a time on the streets of St Neots.  I knew if I could do that then the great crowd in the north east would get me to the finish line, which they did thankfully.”
  
  The Great North Run is one the biggest half marathons in the world.  Ricky completed the 13.1 mile half marathon in 1 hour 48 mins, and came 5746th out of 44,000 people.
  
  Anne-Marie Hamilton, Chairman of the ‘dreamdrops’ fundraising committee said: “Thank you Ricky for choosing to run on behalf of ‘dreamdrops’.  You have raised a substantial amount of money for our charity and we cannot thank you enough.”
  
  Ricky set a modest target of £500, and on Sunday it reached £840.  Ricky’s just giving page is still open, if you would like to help him you can find his page here:  https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ricky-taylor2
  
  Money raised through ‘dreamdrops’ is used to provide additional items for the Special Care Baby Unit and Children’s Ward, as well as children who are cared for at home. For further information on how you can help raise funds for the charity please visit www.dreamdropschildrenscharity.org or email dreamdrops.dreamdrops@nhs.net.

  (Photo: Ricky Taylor with his medal after completing the Great North Run.)