Policy News - 12 November 2019

The following policies have recently been ratified by the Trust’s Policy Committee.   Please take the time to review those which may be relevant to your role.  

Pressure Ulcer Care and Prevention Policy

Pressure ulcers (PUs) remain a serious and mainly avoidable harm associated with healthcare delivery.  They represent a major burden of sickness and reduced quality of life for people and their family/carers.  They can be debilitating for the patient, with the most vulnerable being aged over 75.  In the NHS in England, 24,674 patients were reported to have developed a pressure ulcer between March 2015 and March 2016 and treating pressure ulcers costs the NHS more than £3.8 million every day (NHS England 2018).

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Clinical Audit

Clinical audit is a continuous quality improvement process that aims to review and improve care and services given to patients. The policy states the roles and responsibilities of staff involved in audit and provides guidance on specific aspects of the audit cycle, including details about; choosing and prioritising the audit topic, registration, audit methodology and sampling, reporting audit findings, action planning and re-audit.  The policy also standardises internal audit processes and supporting documentation across South Tyneside and Sunderland. There is also new Trust-wide group responsible for overseeing clinical audit activity  and a new format for assurance reporting for the Trust

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NICE Guidance Implementation Policy

Healthcare professionals and practitioners are expected to take NICE guidelines fully into account, alongside the individual needs, preferences and values of their patients or the people using their services. The policy sets out clear and consistent processes for the effective dissemination, implementation and monitoring of NICE guidance within the Trust. The material changes within the new policy include; standardising internal NICE implementation processes and aligning NICE templates across South Tyneside and Sunderland. In addition, there is now a single NICE database and a revised format for assurance reporting for the Trust. The NICE process will be monitored by the new Clinical Effectiveness Group.  

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Standards of Business Conduct Policy

This policy describes the business conduct behaviour required by all staff who potentially may benefit as the recipient of gifts, hospitality or sponsorship arrangements. The policy serves as an important defence against any actions brought under the 2010 Bribery Act. The policy will help staff manage conflicts of interest risks effectively by:

• Introducing consistent principles and rules
• Supporting good judgement about how to approach and manage interests
• Providing advice about what to do in common situations, such as: conflicts of interests; offers of gifts and hospitality, alternative employment, patents, loyalty interests, donations, sponsorship of events, sponsored research.

Whilst this policy applies to all staff there is a requirement for all Trust staff at Agenda for Change Band 7 and above, all consultants, speciality and associate speciality doctors, and those senior members of staff on local Trust terms and conditions, to provide an annual return via a positive or nil return for declarations of interest, gifts, hospitality or sponsorship to the value of £25 and over that they either receive or decline.   Declarations of interest should be discussed with line managers so actions can be agreed to mitigate any risk to the individual and the organisation.

The policy complies with the requirements of NHS England’s Managing Conflicts of Interests in the NHS. 

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