Caregiver upskilling to ICU and ED benefits whole Hospital
Caregivers at St John of God Murdoch Hospital have risen to the challenge of increasing their skill levels to work in the ICU and ED departments, which will create a flow on effect for all patients.
20 May 2020
As the global pandemic unfolded, a call was put out to upskill nurses in preparation for the COVID-19 response.
A total of 58 caregivers from across the Hospital are now upskilled to work in the ICU department. As of early May, 39 of these caregivers have already completed shifts on ICU, using their new-found skills.
Senior ICU caregivers have been busy training nurses from all over the Hospital, through three days of face-to-face teaching in the department, complimented by a three-day online Rapid Induction to Critical Care course that caregivers new to ICU have undertaken.
When we caught up with them, Sarah and Madeleine were busy training Euter from St Francis ward and Amina and Rachael from St Rose ward on their practical simulation using incredibly detailed dummies.
Day one of the face-to-face program includes theory on care and medication, day two is simulation training and day three encompasses a buddy shift on the ward.
Further buddy shifts are also accommodated to ensure nurses are confident with their new skills.
ICU Nurse Manager Tanya Agnew said having numerous ICU-trained caregivers in the Hospital was of huge benefit to all patients.
“Additional training of staff creates a large pool of caregivers to draw from if the need arises to provide additional critical care at Murdoch,” she said.
“With the caregivers being upskilled from various wards around the Hospital, caregivers can put these skills to use on their ward, should an emergency situation arise.
“Patients can be assured they are receiving the best level of care possible by Murdoch investing so heavily in the clinical upskilling of our caregivers.”
Emergency upskilling
In our 24/7 private Emergency Department, a total of 34 caregivers were identified to upskill in this area, also creating a new pool of highly skilled staff across the Hospital.
And while clinical skills have been a big focus for caregivers at Murdoch Hospital, other recent training takes a holistic approach to caregiver skills.
Director Organisation Development & Improvement Kirstie Bennett said developing our caregivers was so much more than improving clinical skills.
“Our aim at Murdoch is to provide a holistic approach to our training, to ensure that all aspects of our care are compassionate and caring and individual to each patient and their own story. Patient experience is at the heart of everything we do,” she said.
“Training in this area has included completing a specialist program called See Me as a Person and mindfulness training. We have also developed a Wellness program to support our caregivers through this challenging and uncertain time. As part of it, specially trained caregivers in each department will run mindfulness and meditation sessions for fellow staff.
“Investing in a range of clinical and non-clinical skills is incredibly important to developing our people both personally and professionally, so they provide patients with the best possible care on their path to recovery, and so that our caregivers can thrive.”
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