The NHS's Giselle Hudson and Mountbatten's Hannah Bingley are talking about how their teams' collaborative working has developed over recent years.

They kicked off with a quote from actor and singer, Will Smith.

"Ask anyone and they'll tell you they're working the hardest. You don't see the miles anyone else runs," quoted Hannah, who said this is the critical to understanding your colleagues - especially when asking 'What DO they actually do?".

Their talk focusses on improvements and processes, brought in to enhance working relationships, since what was formerly Countess Mountbatten hospice became Mountbatten Hampshire.

The aim is to deliver more care at home, giving the people being cared for quality time with loved ones, reducing unnecessary admissions, said Hannah.

Photo: Giselle Hudson (left) and Hannah Bingley.

One improvement has been to launch joint meetings, to ensure knowledge is shared about the complexities of care for individuals.

They cited the care of one person, which involved a joint visit by NHS and hospice staff, nurturing of relationships. They talked about discussions around advance care plans and how and where the person wanted to be when she died. 

"Joined-up care can benefit our patients. The person didn't have to repeat themselves," explained Hannah. "Everyone who went into the house knew that person's story."

The teams worked to clear up confusion about who was responsible for what and, said Giselle, 'enabled the handover of complex care.'

"We weren't working in isolation. We were working collaboratively," she said.

Mountbatten set up a telephone line to talk to medical professionals, clearing the main phone for people under care and streamlined who people needed to speak to, said Giselle.

She added:  "We implemented a behind-the-scenes conversation about who was best to deliver care, so there was only one team to call", which has made it simpler for the people who need us.

Bespoke training was also created, to help upskill nurses having difficult conversations around death, dying and bereavement, including their multi-faith spiritual needs, and there was training around end-of-life medication and building confidence.

Paperwork was streamlined and a joint fact and information sheet was introduced.

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