Celebrating Sue Gilchrist

A warm smile and willingness to go the extra mile are just some of the attributes that have earned Dunedin Hospital ward 4A receptionist Sue Gilchrist the coveted title of ‘Receptionist of Perfection’.

Thanks to The Edge Otago and Aart on St Andrew, Sue was announced the winner of the ‘Receptionist of Perfection’ competition last Friday, and will be the deserving recipient of a beautiful restyle at Aart Hair Salon.

“Sue has been the face of 4A since 2008,” says Charge Nurse Manager Kirk Davidson. “She’s the first point of contact for all staff and does an amazing job of welcoming, directing and helping the entire crew.

“She is our organiser and gatekeeper, and my eyes and ears. Without her, my job would be nigh on impossible.” ​

Congratulations Sue!

Making values visible

Actions speak louder than words and the Cervical Screening Programme team are a true testament of this.

Having embraced the ‘It’s up to us’ philosophy, the team has established their own statement for each of the Southern Future values and behaviours, on display in each meeting as a reminder of what they have discussed and agreed to as a group. They also have several posters of the values and behaviours up around the office to reinforce a positive work culture. 

“The Cervical Screening team are committed to incorporating the values and behaviours into everyday practice, and we’re excited to see the positive outcomes benefit our staff and communities,” says Southern DHB Cervical Screening Programme leader Linda Moir.

Wonderful work!

Livia Hardy, Cervical Screening Advisor; Jan Patterson, Cervical Screening Administration Assistant; Ilona Weekley, Service Manager Population Health; Linda Moir, Cervical Screening Programme Leader.

Absent but still well worthy of celebrating: Sue Smith, Lois Pilkington and Juliet Mendoza.

Dedicated and passionate: Child Development Service staff

Parents Bonny and Dan Canvanagh have praised the Southern DHB Child Development Service staff at the Vera Hayward Centre for their dedication and passion towards their young son, Levi.

Born with Moebius Syndrome, Levi has a very rare neurological disorder which causes weakness or paralysis of multiple cranial nerves. It mostly affects nerves that control facial expression and eye movement.

Levi has progressed significantly with the support from Southern DHB Speech Language Therapist Lisa Randel and Occupational Therapist Janene Douglas, who regularly visit his home for treatment.

"He would not be doing as well as he is without the help we have had,” says his mum, Bonny. “Especially when it came to getting his (specialised) chair. It’s helped with his head control and all his other muscles have started getting stronger.

“We have a good bond with the therapists and having them following us through is important. Consistency is important.”

Levi spent six weeks in NICU, followed by two months in Starship Hospital and another six weeks in the Children’s Unit. He now lives at home with his parents.

To access the 7 Priorities for Patients click here.

Streamlining referrals

Coresse Scott, Angela Koopman, Viv Allen-Kelly​

The development of a referral flip chart has proved invaluable to the District Nursing service.

The idea, proposed by Charge Nurse Manager Angela Koopman and Coresse Scott Associate Charge Nurse and Clinical Coordinator for the District Nursing Team, was to streamline the referral process by improving the quality of referral information being received, and providing guidelines for referrers.    

Working with Innovation Facilitator Viv Allen-Kelly, the team identified there was a lot of information that needed to be communicated clearly and effectively. The flip chart concept was introduced and recently trailed within Dunedin Hospital and a GP practice and the feedback was very positive.

“According to Angela, the flip chart is visual and easy to navigate. It gives the details required to hopefully prevent hold-ups with processing requests, or additional phone calls back to the referrer to glean more information, saving everyone valuable time,” says Viv. 

When Angela recently introduced the referral flip chart at the Charge Nurse Manager meeting, Surgical Directorate Nursing Director Sharon Jones said the team involved should feel "very proud".

 “I thought the work you are doing is outstanding. You should be very proud. Well done”.

Copies of the District Nursing referral flip chart have been sent to all GP practices in Dunedin and all wards at Dunedin Hospital.

Well done Angela and Coresse!

To access the 7 Priorities for Staff click here​.