"Staff not introducing themselves"

Dear aquilakj34,

Thank you again for getting in touch with us. It is good to have feedback so we can recognise areas that require attention.

I am surprised that no one introduces themselves when taking over the care of a patient. The nurses are required to perform a bedside handover which involves introducing themselves.

We do have some white boards on the medical ward and they are used as required with the name of the nurse, the date and location. I will review our rooms and ensure that none are damaged and unable to be used.

We will discuss the handover and introduction as a ward and hopefully ensure this is something you do encounter on medical ward again.

Once again I do thank you for taking the time to write to us.

Kind Regards

Nicky Duncan A-CNM Medical Ward

Dear aquilakj34,

Thank you for highlighting the importance of staff introductions.

It is disappointing to receive your feedback as we expect all staff to acknowledge their patients, introduce themselves, explain their role and record their name on the inpatient’s whiteboard. We also have a "Hi, My Name is " badge for staff to wear to facilitate their identification.

I apologise for your experience and will ensure that your feedback is used to remind staff of the value of interpersonal communication.

I wish you and your family an enjoyable festive season.

Kind regards,

Theresa Marshall

Acting Executive Director

Dear aquilakj34,

Thank you for your feedback. I completely agree that staff not introducing themselves to patients is an unfortunate occurrence. I don’t feel that staff intentionally do not introduce themselves, I feel that they are so busy and their minds are so deep into the task at hand that they forget to let our patients know who they are.

I understand that this is not acceptable, and a small introduction would go a very long way to, as you point out, alleviating anxieties.

Last year we rolled out the “hello my name is …” program across all hospitals in the South Metropolitan Health Service catchment. All staff were provided with a “hello my name is …” badge to write their preferred first name on it. The purpose of this was to ensure patients can easily locate their clinician’s name, as well as a constant reminder to staff to remember to introduce themselves to patients. This was a program initiated in the UK by terminally ill geriatrician Dr Kate Granger to raise awareness amongst healthcare staff of the importance of introducing themselves to patients in their care. During one of Kate’s many hospital admissions, Kate made the stark observation that many staff looking after her did not introduce themselves before delivering her care. To Kate, this felt incredibly wrong that such a basic step in communication was missing. Kate and her husband Chris decided to start a campaign primarily using social media to encourage and remind healthcare staff about the importance of introductions in healthcare. Kate passed away in 2016, she was 34 years old. Following Kate’s death, her husband Chris and co-founder of the campaign kept the campaign alive through conference talks across the world.

Your Care Opinion post serves as a timely reminder to provide a refresher to our staff regarding the “hello my name is … “ program – we will look at this very early in the new year.

Thank you for taking the time to provide feedback, and for your very apt prompt.

Seasonal regards,

Neil Doverty

Group Executive Director

Fiona Stanley Fremantle Hospitals Group.

Dear aquilakj34

Thank you for sharing your feedback on the importance of staff etiquette at hospitals.

As part of our organisation’s core values of Accountability, Collaboration, Compassion, Equity, Excellence and Respect at Perth Children’s Hospital, staff are required to introduce themselves to patients and families accordingly.

We also have whiteboards that are available on all of our wards and staff are encouraged to wear name badges that are visible and can be easily identified by patients and families.

Being a children’s hospital, our focus is on family centred care which underpins everything we do, so I apologise for your experience and I would encourage you to contact the CAHS Consumer Engagement team on (08) 6456 0032 or at CAHSFeedback@health.wa.gov.au should you wish to discuss your concerns in detail.

Kind regards

Sue Baker

Nursing Co-Director – Medicine

Child and Adolescent Health Service