The staff at Medway NHS Foundation Trust have had their hard work and achievements rewarded by successfully gaining ISAS re-accreditation.
Shannen Harris, imaging quality co-ordinator and imaging student clinical liaison radiographer, led the re-accreditation project and extolled the value of having accreditation for the team and trust.
“There is a massive benefit for the trust and department, not just because there are only 24 trusts around the country which are accredited, but it makes sure we’re conscious of our own practice as well and how we can improve to create the best pathway for the patient,” Shannen said.
The process of re-accreditation is ‘quite extensive’ remarked Shannen, but everyone in the department has bought into ISAS and the benefits to patient care it brings, as well as the practical side of the overlap between ISAS and some of the CQC standards.
Holding one-to-one sessions with staff to talk through the process and their concerns helped gain further buy-in, explained Shannen, which in turn made people ‘feel real value in what they’re doing’.
Shannen added that whilst the site visit part of the process can be daunting, it is important to remember the assessors are ‘not out to get you’ and not to take criticism too personally, seeing it as an opportunity to improve instead.
“They’re not doing it to catch you out, they want to see the department do well and once you’ve got the accreditation, they’d be sad to see you lose it,” she said.
“It’s important to remember that there will always be things which aren’t perfect because that’s the whole point of having a quality improvement programme.”