December 01, 2016 Opinion piece
Inclusion South Staffordshire and Shropshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust trains patients and those around them to administer Naloxone in the event of an overdose
GS1 UK sponsored the patient safety award for the second year running and I was lucky to be part of the judging panel that decided on this year’s winner. There were a lot of great entries but this submission really stood out – patient safety is paramount and ultimately it’s effective, it saves lives.
Inclusion South Staffordshire and Shropshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust’s project ‘Nalxone – increasing awareness, saving lives’ set out to improve the safety of their patients, specifically opiate using clients, by supplying Naloxone for use in the event of an overdose. When they developed their new protocol in line with the change in legislation in 2015, it was against a backdrop of drug related deaths being at their highest level since 2013 – there were 3,346 drug poisoning deaths in 2014. Inclusion were the first to develop this protocol and since July 2015, nearly 2,000 people have been trained to administer the kits. So far, at least 130 lives have been saved.
And whilst saving lives has to be the priority, there were many other benefits realised from the programme. They ensured all staff could provide training, encouraging a supportive and inclusive culture. Their programme also engages families, carers and professionals in the process and is about developing a culture where drug use can be openly talked about. This focus takes its impact beyond the right now into the future of care and the culture around drug use. It was great to meet some of the great people that work on the project, in particular Catherine Larkin and Howard King who are both so committed to making a difference.
We’re so proud to receive this year’s patient safety award. As a team, we’re very passionate about the results our project has achieved – our service users are safer, the community is more engaged and, most importantly, we’re saving lives. It’s great to have all our staff’s hard work recognised by this national award.”
Catherine Larkin, Head of Quality and Performance for Inclusion
The programme doesn’t just influence care and culture, it’s a great example of the kind of initiatives the NHS needs right now – saving lives and money. For every £1 spent on Naloxone, they’ve worked out that they save the health economy £14.30. It’s already saved the health authority over £408,000. It’s a practical programme that puts people first but meets the priorities of a healthcare system that needs to balance the books. I was proud to be on the judging panel this year and I am definitely proud to call the Inclusion programme our winner.