Chief Executive COVID-19 Update: 14 August

Message from the Chief Executive

 As of today, we have:

  • 19 COVID-19 positive inpatients, including two in ICU.
  • 11 employees with COVID-19. They are in isolation at home and doing well.
  • 58 employees in precautionary quarantine.

At yesterday’s Employee Forum, we heard from the Chair of the Monash Health Board of Directors, Dipak Sanghvi, who paid tribute to all of you for your response to COVID-19. For the benefit of those who missed the opportunity to hear Dipak’s words, I have repeated them below.

“There is a saying: ‘The key to success is to focus on goals, not obstacles’.

I like this quote because it reminds me of you all, for your dedication, commitment and courage – and it deserves our deepest gratitude and appreciation.

Your untiring service to the patients, consumers and our health service is saving countless lives and making a difference to thousands of people and their families. Even through these challenging and dark times, your commitment to pursuing excellence in healthcare shines through. You have gone above and beyond in protecting the vulnerable in our community.

Thank you for not letting any obstacle dull your resilience, grit, resourcefulness and compassion. You are our unsung heroes in a trying time and, for that, we cannot thank you enough.

We know we can entrust you to work to deliver safe, high quality and timely care, whether it be on-site or remotely. We could not do any of this without you and we want to make sure you also take care of yourselves – so please make sure not to forget your needs and always stay safe.

Again, on behalf of my board members and me, thank you.”

Dipak’s sentiments are a timely reminder of how fortunate we all are to work as part of a team that is highly skilled, kind and passionate. We regularly take the opportunity to shine a light on some of these standout performers through our Say Thanks And Recognise (STAR) Awards.

In the second of three presentations, we congratulated some of our colleagues who have set a very high benchmark in the last six months. We heard about:

  • Annette Bezzant, one of the first Nephrology Nurse Practitioners at Monash Health, who is a role model for nurses across our Nephrology service.
  • Tom Chynoweth and the Pharmacy Formulary Business Development Team, who implemented and maintained a program to ensure that all sites have access to medications during COVID-19.
  • Gus Cruz, who manages the Southern Adult Mental Health Clinic and the Gender Clinic and is known as a kind, caring and calming leader who puts others at ease and allows them to be heard and supported.
  • Victoria Hornidge, a Clinical Application Specialist in the Digital Health Division, who used her own time and initiative to create a dashboard for the EMR Code Upgrade giving analysts and managers more time to focus on their work.
  • Michelle Paton, Clinical Lead Physiotherapist, who led training to upskill Physiotherapists with experience in critical care to support the COVID-19 response and co-ordinated service provision.
  • Sue Bumpstead, Research Manager, who has enabled Monash Health to be the first healthcare service nationally to lead a Local Drug and Alcohol Action Team and has been driving PPE training in ED.

You can read more about these award winners here.

The STAR awards are an important reminder that in every part of our organisation, despite workloads and competing priorities, we need to regularly stop, acknowledge the work of our colleagues and take the time to say thank you.

Thank you.

Andrew Stripp

Chief Executive

Key Messages

The relentless pursuit of excellence shines through at our STAR Awards 

For the second week in a row, our Employee Forum was filled with examples of excellence from across Monash Health, as we heard from more STAR award winners from the first half of the year.  Congratulations to all of our STAR award recipients.

Don’t forget, STAR awards are open for nominations year-round, so when you are impressed by something a member of your team has done, then make sure we hear about it too. Join us next Thursday to hear from the final recipients of the STAR awards for the first half of the year. You can catch up on previous STAR award winners here.  Read about this week’s award recipients here.

Update on Paediatric Code Blue
The PPE requirement for Paediatric Code Blue has been updated. All airway interventions during a Paediatric Code Blue are to be done in Tier 3 PPE. Please find the detailed flow chart here.

There is no change to Neonatal Code Blue PPE requirements.

COVID-19 fundraising appeal breaks records

The Monash Health Foundation has broken previous community appeal records with its COVID-19 appeal. The urgent appeal asked donors to support Monash Health research into treatments for people with COVID-19. Funds raised have now passed the $450,000 mark. Read more here.

Revised PPE tiers – familiarise yourself with and download the updated poster today

The revised PPE tiers have been developed from the latest advice and in consultation with senior clinicians and infection prevention experts. Please download the poster and familiarise yourself and your team with the updated tiers.

An update to the management of emergency surgical patients during COVID-19 at Monash Health
Following collaboration and consultation, Monash Health has revised our emergency surgery process steps to ensure timely care while ensuring employees are protected. Please familiarise yourselves with the revised emergency surgical patient flowchart and intra-operative/procedural process and PPE requirements here.

Looking after yourself – practical tips on working from home 

We are all adapting to a new way of doing things and for some people this means working from home. It can be difficult adjusting to a new working environment, particularly one which may be accompanied by new challenges. A change like this can cause demotivation, stress and anxiety, which highlights the importance of looking after our mental and physical wellbeing.

Dr Sika Turner, Senior Clinical Psychologist, emphasised the importance of taking care of yourself during this time at a recent Employee Forum. She suggested identifying small things you can do throughout your day to help look after yourself. Learn more here.

Please update your contact details in ESS today

It is vital that we have your up-to-date contact information including:

  • Your home address
  • Your personal email and phone numbers
  • The mobile phone you use for work
  • Your emergency contact person’s details (next of kin)

It only takes a minute to log into HR21 Employee Self Service and follow the link ‘1. My Details’, then ‘Addresses’. Please remember to save your changes before logging out.

Continue to take advantage of wellbeing resources

Take advantage of the health and wellbeing resources we have available for you, including the Call a Psychologist service and the employee assistance program.  Don’t forget the basics of your physical health and remember we have links to resources online for you and your teams, including a helpful guide to stretching at your desk, wherever that desk might be.

Ensure you are working to the most up-to-date advice

The information about COVID-19 is changing rapidly. Ensure you are working to the most up-to-date advice by referring to the Monash Health Employee Coronavirus website. To make accessing the site quicker, you can create a shortcut on your smartphone by following these instructions.

All managers are requested to share these updates with their teams and discuss at stand-ups and handovers. Please print a copy and display it in communication books and on employee noticeboards.

As advice and information evolve, please consult the latest updates and visit the Department of Health and Human Services and Monash Health COVID-19 website for employees regularly for the latest.



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