Pharmacy and Medicines Management
Alison Whitelaw has successfully achieved a distinction in her post graduate diploma in psychiatric pharmacy after several years of hard study - many congratulations, and very well deserved.
The pharmacy team have been working with the information governance team to be able to increase the number of patients that are able to benefit from the Discharge Medicines Service (DMS), national data has shown that for every 10 patients that are referred into the service, 1 readmission is prevented. We are working to achieve our target of 50% of discharges referred into DMS which should deliver benefits for patients as well as the Derbyshire system.
Freedom to Speak Up
A successful 'speak up month' took place in October with multiple site visits and some fantastic promotional work by the FTSU Ambassadors. Staff continue to find the FTSU service a safe and effective way to raise concerns with 25 new cases being raised during October and November. Many of these are progressed by the individual themselves with support of the FTSU Guardian.
Nationally the oversight and support for FTSU guardian's is set to change, due to the pending abolition of the National Guardian's Office in March 2025 with some functions transitioning to NHSe.
Falls Prevention
As from 1st January 2026, patients on inpatient wards will be switching to decaffeinated drinks as part of our decaffeination project. Decaffeinated drinks help you sleep better, they are kinder on your heart, and gentle on your stomach. They also keep you hydrated, reduce going to the toilet, can help reduce falls and supports your wellbeing.
Sharps Safety
Sharps Safety Week 2025 took place between 24- 30 November 2025 with the Communication Team supporting to promote the week. Throughout the week, we shared lots of resources on our staff Facebook group, including informative videos and literature to support staff, alongside a message from our Executive Director of Quality, Nursing and AHP to promote the week.
Over the past few years, we’ve worked hard to understand how sharps injuries happen and to put plans in place to reduce them.
Our short video reinforces the importance of sharps safety and how to protect yourself and others. Here is the link to watch the sharps safety video: click here
MUST Audit on Inpatient Wards
The Malnutrition Universal Screening tool (MUST) is a nationally recognised assessment used to identify patients at risk of malnutrition. Accurate and timely screening is essential to ensure that patients receive appropriate nutritional support during their hospital stay.
A pilot MUST audit was initially completed on one of the inpatient wards and from this small audit, learning and training were identified for staff. It was then implemented across all the inpatient wards to evaluate compliance.
Scoping work took place this year to communicate, plan and commence the roll out of the MUST audit on the inpatient wards as a collaborative improvement project, working with the Dietetic Teams at Chesterfield Royal Hospital (CRH) and the University Hospitals of Derby and Burton (UHDB) and nominated registered nursing staff on the inpatient wards.
The Dietetic teams at CRH and UHDB worked together to devise the MUST audit questions, reviewed by ward managers and matrons. The questions have been added onto the new Genome app by the Quality Always Team alongside a Training guide on where to locate the required information for the audit from SystmOne.
The Quality Always Team provided training and additional support on Genome for the nominated registered nursing staff and dietitians with the audit taking place throughout October 2025.
A deep dive of the MUST audit results is currently underway, and a further audit is planned for February 2026 on all the Inpatient wards. Overall compliance was 79%. The MUST audit will support improvements in nutritional care and strengthen consistency in practice across all the inpatient wards, with Dietetic Teams identifying specific training/learning required for staff.
2-Day QI Training September success
Congratulations to everyone who completed the DCHS 2-Day Quality Improvement Training programme in September 2025. It was great to hear about the participants QI journey and know that they will continue to support and nurture our DCHS Quality Improvement culture.
Well done to:
Adaeze Aneke, Ali Garlick, Ali Pickup, Anna Watson, Caroline Dakin, Claire Leggett, Dhiren Kawol, Emilia Betteridge, Gemma McGarrigle, Hazel Lea, Helen Kay, Jo O'Donnell, Kerry Grace, Laura Briggs, Malik Korimbocus, Megan Bamford, Mel Moss, Sarah Dawson, Sarah Lee, Sofia Nuttall, Susan Flether, Susie Bayley, Tolulope Oginni, Tricia Bradshaw, Victoria Cooke and Yasmin Kang.
QI Community Meeting
For those of you who joined our QI Community meeting on 9th December, we hope you enjoyed hearing about the QI work from Jack Wynne, who presented the development and outcomes of the Community Podiatry Innovation Steering Group (ISG), describing collaborative projects to reduce waiting times, improve service efficiency, and enhance staff wellbeing.
If you were unable to attend, the recording is available here.
Going forward into 2026 these meetings will be held Bi-monthly for 1-hour. They will include a QI story and give attendees an opportunity to make connections more regularly.
Effective Documentation Reviews (EDR)
IIET have been working with several services to support the design of Effective Documentation Review (EDR) tools. Community Podiatry Services launched their audits in October 2025, 3 further services (Integrated Sexual Health Services, Snowdrop Ward and Community Nursing Services). More services are making progress and IIET will be supporting further services to start the design stage.
QPS Senior Team Interim arrangements:
In October 2025, Sarah Egley, our Assistant Director of Quality Improvement, Innovation and Assurance, left to take up a 6-month secondment position. To support delivery of some of Sarah’s portfolio, Anna Long and Rachel Wilkinson-Potter have stepped in to cover the role as part of the interim management plan.
