TUESDAY, 6 JUNE, 2023

Photograph attached: Victoria Richmond, NHS Tayside Advanced Nurse Practitioner and Claire Sturrock, NHS Tayside Trainee Advanced Nurse Practitioner joined by Maggie’s centre Just Sing! choir on Ninewells Hospital main concourse in front of a back drop of stories shared by staff and patients

NHS Tayside encourages patients to share what they love to improve interactions with healthcare staff

What Matters To You (WMTY) day is an opportunity to raise awareness and encourage health and social care workers to have a ‘What matters to you?’ conversation with the people they support or care for.

NHS Tayside staff and volunteers have been asking patients what’s important and what matters to them to spark more meaningful conversations which will personalise their care experience.

The WMTY day was celebrated on 6 June throughout NHS Tayside with a number of activities including:

• The Maggie’s choir singing love songs shared by patients and staff on Ninewells Hospital main concourse in front of a back drop of stories shared by staff and patients

• Bridge FM, a charity hospital radio station based in Ninewells, shared dedicated love stories and songs throughout the day for patients to tune into

• An engagement stand gathering staff feedback was stationed at the staff restaurants at Ninewells Hospital and Perth Royal Infirmary (PRI)

• Staff drop in sessions were held in Gillingham Study Centre at PRI

• Hospital Radio Perth featured around 8 interviews with listeners and one with National Clinical Director Jason Leitch on their afternoon request show

Building relationships by talking to patients contributes to improved time spent with patients on a social and personal level instead of taking a more task oriented patient care approach. Volunteers have been collecting stories through having these conversations. A patient who had been in hospital for some time was asked by a volunteer ‘What do you love?’ the patient explained that she loved her dog, this helped staff personalise her care. A therapet visited hospital grounds and staff made arrangements for the patient to visit which in turn helped personalise the patients care.

Advanced Nurse Practitioner Victoria Richmond said, “Person-centred conversations help us provide personalised care to patients and spark more meaningful conversations. WMTY day helps us continue to spread the movement and the importance of it. It’s also a way of celebrating the amazing work of our staff. 

“We will continue working to promote and improve careful, kind human interactions between healthcare staff and patients throughout NHS Tayside using the What Matters To You movement. We will focus on the action that needs to happen in response to these conversations to deliver the care and support people really need and want.”

Reflections can be shared online at www.whatmatterstoyou.scot to support learning for others.

Contact:

Abigail Reid

NHS Tayside Communications

(01382) 424138