December 29, 2017 7.00 am
This story is over 52 months old
Reflections 2017: Andrew Morgan – The importance of community-based care continues to grow
Reflections from the chief executive of Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust.
Andrew Morgan, chief executive of Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust
By Andrew MorganCEO of United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust
It is easy to forget how much you have achieved in a year until you truly take the time to reflect and it is a privilege to be able to do just that in my first column for The Lincolnite.
There has certainly been plenty to write about during 2017. Nationally, we have experienced a general election which focused heavily on NHS provision, terrorist attacks and a global cyber attack, both of which demonstrated the admirable and awe-inspiring ability of NHS services and their partners to respond in an emergency.
Locally, I would like to take the opportunity to say thank you to all of our staff and volunteers at Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust who continue to work exceptionally hard to deliver great care.
The people in our teams are our greatest asset and the feedback we receive from our patients and service users continues to make me very proud to be a part of the trust.
They have risen to the challenges we have faced, including the smooth transfer of our 0-19 services to Lincolnshire County Council, taking immediate action regarding fire safety at some of our community hospitals and consultation with our service commissioners regarding the future of Lincoln Walk In Centre.
Our GP Out of Hours Service underwent an inspection by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and was rated ‘Good’ overall, while our Finance Team, along with our budget holders, helped to ensure we were able to manage our money well.
We welcomed new nurse associates, among the first in the country, to start training in the newly-created role, and were honoured to sign the Lincolnshire Armed Forces Covenant.
We have been able to showcase innovation and talent by speaking at a number of national conferences. This included Confed17, where we spoke about improvements to our community hospital discharge process to help people get home sooner, and Hospice UK, where we explained how we are working in partnership at the Butterfly Hospice in Boston to deliver excellent care for patients.
We are very proud to be one of a select number of NHS organisations among the approved training providers for apprentices with the Skills Funding Agency and even prouder to say our apprentices are flourishing.
Among them has been Atlanta Marshall, a health care support worker in Spalding, who attended the National NHS Apprenticeship Celebration Awards after being crowned the East Midlands’ area winner.
We were delighted to be shortlisted for a national award for our Clinical Assessment Service, which supports patients over the telephone to get the advice and signposting to the right service following a call to 111.
Our year ahead is set to be equally as challenging and exciting.
Helping people to receive great care close to home is our bread and butter as a provider of NHS community services and it is also a pivotal part of Lincolnshire’s Sustainability and Transformation Partnership. This work is the countywide blueprint for how and why we need to change the way we approach and deliver services to make them sustainable for the future.
Some of the specific details of this are still being determined and will need to be subject to public consultation, but we are able to forge ahead with other projects, such as the development of Neighbourhood Teams.
Neighbourhood teams will see staff from different organisations in a local area working differently together to help those in the local community to stay healthy at home, using services appropriate to their needs while avoiding unnecessary hospital admission.
While this is still in its infancy, we are already seeing very promising and positive changes, which we look forward to showcasing in the coming months.
Finally, I want to wish you all a happy and healthy New Year.
New Year’s resolutions
Personal: To continue exploring the county of Lincolnshire, having moved here in 2015.
Professional: To continue to support staff in ensuring their feedback directly shapes the future development of excellent community services.
Andrew Morgan is the chief executive of United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust and the former CEO of Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust.
The Lincolnite welcomes your views. All comments are reactively-moderated and must obey the house rules. Please stay on topic and be respectful of other readers.
It is easy to forget how much you have achieved in a year until you truly take the time to reflect and it is a privilege to be able to do just that in my first column for Lincolnshire Reporter.
There has certainly been plenty to write about during 2017. Nationally, we have experienced a general election which focused heavily on NHS provision, terrorist attacks and a global cyber attack, both of which demonstrated the admirable and awe-inspiring ability of NHS services and their partners to respond in an emergency.
Locally, I would like to take the opportunity to say thank you to all of our staff and volunteers at Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust who continue to work exceptionally hard to deliver great care.
The people in our teams are our greatest asset and the feedback we receive from our patients and service users continues to make me very proud to be a part of the trust.
They have risen to the challenges we have faced, including the smooth transfer of our 0-19 services to Lincolnshire County Council, taking immediate action regarding fire safety at some of our community hospitals and consultation with our service commissioners regarding the future of Lincoln Walk In Centre.
Our GP Out of Hours Service underwent an inspection by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and was rated ‘Good’ overall, while our Finance Team, along with our budget holders, helped to ensure we were able to manage our money well.
We welcomed new nurse associates, among the first in the country, to start training in the newly-created role, and were honoured to sign the Lincolnshire Armed Forces Covenant.
We have been able to showcase innovation and talent by speaking at a number of national conferences. This included Confed17, where we spoke about improvements to our community hospital discharge process to help people get home sooner, and Hospice UK, where we explained how we are working in partnership at the Butterfly Hospice in Boston to deliver excellent care for patients.
We are very proud to be one of a select number of NHS organisations among the approved training providers for apprentices with the Skills Funding Agency and even prouder to say our apprentices are flourishing.
Among them has been Atlanta Marshall, a health care support worker in Spalding, who attended the National NHS Apprenticeship Celebration Awards after being crowned the East Midlands’ area winner.
We were delighted to be shortlisted for a national award for our Clinical Assessment Service, which supports patients over the telephone to get the advice and signposting to the right service following a call to 111.
Our year ahead is set to be equally as challenging and exciting.
Helping people to receive great care close to home is our bread and butter as a provider of NHS community services and it is also a pivotal part of Lincolnshire’s Sustainability and Transformation Partnership. This work is the countywide blueprint for how and why we need to change the way we approach and deliver services to make them sustainable for the future.
Some of the specific details of this are still being determined and will need to be subject to public consultation, but we are able to forge ahead with other projects, such as the development of Neighbourhood Teams.
Neighbourhood teams will see staff from different organisations in a local area working differently together to help those in the local community to stay healthy at home, using services appropriate to their needs while avoiding unnecessary hospital admission.
While this is still in its infancy, we are already seeing very promising and positive changes, which we look forward to showcasing in the coming months.
Finally, I want to wish you all a happy and healthy New Year.
New Year’s resolutions
Personal: To continue exploring the county of Lincolnshire, having moved here in 2015.
Professional: To continue to support staff in ensuring their feedback directly shapes the future development of excellent community services.
Andrew Morgan is the chief executive of United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust and former CEO of Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust.
The Lincolnite welcomes your views. All comments are reactively-moderated and must obey the house rules. Please stay on topic and be respectful of other readers.
Emergency repairs to the A16 near Crowland have been completed just over 48 hours after the road had to be closed due to a dramatic lorry fire that melted the surface.
Lincolnshire County Council’s highways department was forced to close the A16 south of Crowland on Friday, following a lorry catching fire the day before on the road.
The temperatures from the blaze were so high the road surface melted, with various materials from the lorry itself welding to the road as a result of the heat.
A before and after of the road. | Photo: Lincolnshire County Council
It happened across both sides of the road, within metres of a busy roundabout, though thankfully no casualties were reported.
The road was closed over the weekend to allow for emergency repair works, and after 48 hours of intense, frantic action, it is now open again thanks to a rapid response.
The ruined road surface was removed and the damaged sides were rebuilt, with an entire new top layer of the A16 laid down, treated and painted in just one weekend.
It means the road was closed for just over 48 hours, as the road reopened to the publicly 10pm on Sunday.
An unbelievably quick turnaround given the severity of the damage caused from the fire. | Photo: Lincolnshire County Council
Councillor Richard Davies, executive member for highways, said: “What a great effort by everyone involved to get this section of damaged road up and running.
“The damage to the road surface was so intense that smaller repairs were out of the question and a full resurface of the road was the only option we had.
“We worked extremely hard to get this road stripped back and rebuilt as quickly as possible and the results can be seen for themselves.
“I want to thank everyone involved in this swift repair and I also want to thank all road users for their patience whilst we carried out the work in a very short timeframe.”
A Lincolnshire stonemason who failed to supply memorial headstones to his customers after getting into financial trouble has been given a suspended jail sentence, Lincoln Crown Court heard on Monday.
Julian Karl Gaunt, 53, from Spalding, admitted failing to supply ceremonial works to four customers in 2016 after his memorials business collapsed.
Gaunt also pleaded guilty to the theft of one memorial headstone from a supplier in Tadcaster, near York, which he failed to return after his company went under.
Lincoln Crown Court heard Gaunt did not set up his business with a fraudulent purpose but got into difficulties after he was “crippled” with a number of problems.
John McNally, mitigating, said Gaunt lost the services of a trusted secretary who then set up against him, and had to let other staff go after he was confronted with HMRC and VAT demands.
His business finally collapsed in July 2016 after his banking facilities were withdrawn, the court heard.
Mr McNally explained: “At that point Mr Gaunt buried his head in the sand.
“His marriage collapsed, he lost his home, he managed to get some employment, but was then signed off because of his health.”
Mr McNally said Gaunt was not motivated by any financial motivation for himself, but should have put better systems in place as the director of the business.
The court heard Gaunt had intended to return one memorial stone to a supplier in North Yorkshire, but failed to get round to it after his business collapsed.
Gaunt, formerly of Queens Road, Spalding, but now of Beech Avenue, Spalding, admitted four charges of consent or connivance in a fraudulent misrepresentation between April 28 and July 22, 2016.
He also pleaded guilty to a single charge of theft of a memorial headstone from Tadcaster, N Yorks, between July 1 and December 31, 2016.
Gaunt was sentenced to nine months imprisonment suspended for two years, and must also obey an electronically monitored curfew between 7pm and 7am for four months.
Passing sentence Judge John Pini QC told Gaunt he accepted that he was not motivated by fraudulent motives and had not targeted his customers.
But Judge Pini said there was a point where it should have been “crystal clear” that he could not fulfil the orders for which he had taken money in a sensitive business.
“You took orders for memorial works and failed to supply those works,” Judge Pini added.
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