Inpatient Pain Team shortlisted for the HSJ Patient Safety Awards
The Trust is delighted to announce that its Inpatient Pain Team’s Mobile Block Unit has been shortlisted for Deteriorating Patients and Rapid Response Initiative of the Year at this year’s HSJ Patient Safety Awards 2023.
The Mobile Block Unit, provides rapid regional analgesia – numbing a particular part of the body for pain relief – for patients admitted with traumatic rib fractures and who are at risk of deterioration, wherever they are in the hospital and not just in theatres. This service is a first for an NHS Trust in the region.
Rib fracture admissions have increased from 22 in 2018 to 103 in 2022. These patients are increasingly elderly, frail and with worse injuries. Rib fractures, especially in older patients, are associated with a high risk of complications such as chest infections, ICU admission, longer stays in hospital and higher mortality. They usually result in poorer quality-of-life for at least 2 years after initial injury. Since establishing the Mobile Block Unit, ICU admissions from rib fractures have fallen from 22% to less than 1%, and deaths in 30 days from 9% to 5%.
Dr Nav Bahal, Lead Consultant for Inpatient Pain Services at Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust said: “I am very proud to lead our Acute Pain Team whose work on mobile regional anaesthesia service has been shortlisted for the HSJ Patient Safety Awards.
“It’s great to gain recognition for a team who have thought outside the box, working with stakeholders and patients to find a solution to significantly improve the experience of rib fracture patients at risk of rapid deterioration.”
The full list of nominees for the HSJ Awards 2023 can be found on https://awards.patientsafetycongress.co.uk/shortlist-2023.
The official awards ceremony to announce the overall winners in each category will take place at Manchester Central Convention Complex on 18 September 2023