NHS Lanarkshire Psychiatry Induction Handbook

Authors: Dr Kenneth Ruddock, Dr Neera Gajree, Dr Catriona Neil

Updated by Dr Michael Cooper August 2022

Handbook Contents:

• Introduction
• Safety
• Timetable
• Teaching
• Educational supervisors
• Junior doctor mentor
• Hospital sites
• NHS Lanarkshire facilities
• IT access and student laptops
• RCPsych resources
• Other items:
  • Issues
  • Attendance
  • Feedback

Welcome to NHS Lanarkshire Psychiatry

Welcome to your psychiatry placement within NHS Lanarkshire.  We hope that you gain an interesting, insightful and enjoyable experience of psychiatry during your four week block.

This handbook aims to provide useful information about your placement. If you have any queries or problems during your block please do not hesitate to contact your supervisor or any of the staff below:

Dr Neera Gajree                               Undergraduate Lead / Consultant Psychiatrist (neera.gajree@lanarkshire.scot.nhs.uk)

Dr Michael Cooper                           Clinical Teaching Fellow (michael.cooper@lanarkshire.scot.nhs.uk)

Elaine Grimes and Elaine Grant    Undergraduate Administrators (Undergrad.Hairmyres@lanarkshire.scot.nhs.uk)

Safety


Psychiatric wards are generally safe places, however, there may occasionally be a small minority of patients who may pose a risk as a result of their mental illness.

To ensure your safety it is therefore important that:

• You introduce yourself to ward staff when you arrive in the ward
• You ask nursing or medical staff which patients are appropriate to take a history from
• You notify staff when you are going to interview patients
• You should ensure that you seat yourself closest to the door and avoid letting the patient block your exit from the room
• If you feel uncomfortable during an assessment, do not be afraid to terminate the interview and seek support from ward staff as necessary

Covid-related issues

University scrubs should be worn throughout the duration of your placement. Different units will have different PPE requirements – please speak to a member of staff when you arrive and familiarise yourself with PPE guidance. Ward staff will be able to direct you to changing facilities. You should not attend any aerosol-generating procedures during your clinical placement (NB: this excludes ECT).

Students are allowed to attend ECT and will be scheduled for one session during your placement. You should be fully vaccinated and wearing the same PPE as the rest of the ECT team. As this is an AGP if there is a specific reason why you should not attend e.g. immunosuppression, then please discuss this with the CTF and your clinical supervisor. There is a video which you can watch as an alternative.

Please maintain physical distancing and ensure regular hand hygiene during your placements. If you develop any symptoms or are in contact with a Covid-positive individual you must notify your supervisor and the university. We encourage students to do twice weekly lateral flow tests.

Timetable

You will receive an individual timetable for the duration of your 5 week placement which provides you with an overview of mental health services, including exposure to an acute inpatient unit, old age setting, CAMHS, forensics and the liaison nursing service. Your supervisor may schedule additional sessions in lieu of other timetabled activities. It is your responsibility to notify the relevant clinicians if you are unable to attend a planned session.

Teaching

You will have a number of different timetabled teaching sessions during your placement, both at the University and in Lanarkshire. Attendance at teaching sessions is mandatory. The majority of these sessions are currently taking place virtually, via Microsoft Teams or Zoom.

Consultant Supervisor

You have been allocated a supervisor for the duration of your placement. Please make contact with your supervisor as soon as possible after starting your placement. You should aim to meet with your supervisor on a weekly basis; this can be face-to-face or virtually via Microsoft Teams or Zoom.

Your consultant is aware that you have assessments, however, it is your responsibility to ensure that these are completed during your placement. Ensure you arrange a time for your consultant to sign you off before the last Wednesday of the placement.

Supervisors can be contacted by email or by telephone via their secretary. Supervisor contact details will be provided separately.

Junior Doctor Mentor

You have also been allocated a junior doctor mentor. You should arrange to meet with your mentor every 1-2 weeks during your placement. Your mentor can arrange clinical shadowing time or informal teaching sessions over the course of the block. Your mentor will be able to support you meeting your learning outcomes for your block.

Mentors can be contacted by email, with details included in your individual timetable.

Hospital Sites

A list of hospital sites is provided below, along with nearest railways stations. Details of community bases will be provided in your timetables.

NHS Lanarkshire Facilities

ID Cards:

You will be issued with an ID badge/swipe card at your induction. This should be worn and visible at all times during your placement. Badges should be returned to hospital security at the end of the block

Catering:

Canteen facilities are available at Wishaw, Hairmyres and Monklands Hospitals and are open throughout the day serving breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Parking:

Free parking is available at all acute hospital sites. Spaces can be limited during busy periods.

Library facilities:

There is a library at each of the three acute hospital sites where you can borrow books, access computers, use the internet and print.

• Hairmyres:
  The library is situated in the Medical Education Centre on Level 0

• Wishaw:

The Alistair MacKenzie library is situated within the Ronald Miller Education Centre on Level 0, across from the hospital canteen

• Monklands:

The library is situated on Level 0, shortly before the renal link corridor

IT Access

At induction you will be provided with a username and password for NHS Lanarkshire IT access as well as a student laptop. Your log-in details will allow you to access the ‘Clinical Portal’ patient record system, which includes blood results and patient correspondence.

Student laptops

You will be provided with a laptop for the duration of your clinical placement. You can use this to access patient records, join Teams meetings or other teaching sessions. You will be responsible for your laptop and it must be returned in the final week of your placement.

Confidentiality

You must abide by NHS Lanarkshire computer usage policy at all times. You must not print patient records from Clinical Portal and case reports should be fully anonymised.

MORSE

Most of the psychiatry services utilise the ‘MORSE’ system. This is an electronic record system which is used for both inpatient and outpatient care. We are unable to provide student access for MORSE, however, you can ask medical or nursing staff for assistance if you need to review patient notes.

Internet access:

Internet is available across all acute hospital sites. NHS ‘Guest’ Wifi can be accessed for personal use. Eduroam is available although there have been recurrent technical difficulties with its use and is not always reliable. NHS computers can be used to access the internet and University resources.

Online educational resources:

You are eligible to apply for ‘Student Associate Membership’ with the Royal College of Psychiatrists. This is free to join and gives you access to the College’s electronic educational resources as well as magazines and other benefits.

Membership can be accessed at:

https://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/become-a-psychiatrist/med-students/becoming-a-student-associate

Issues

If you encounter any problems during your placement, please contact your supervisor in the first instance. Block lead and CTF are also happy to be contacted regarding any issues that may occur during your placement. 

Absences

All absences (planned or unplanned) must be reported to:

• Your consultant and/or their secretary
• NHS Lanarkshire undergraduate administrator
  • Hairmyres@lanarkshire.scot.nhs.uk
• University of Glasgow administrator
  • Davie@glasgow.ac.uk
• Clinical Teaching Fellow if missing teaching session

Feedback

We appreciate all informal and formal feedback regarding your psychiatry placement in NHS Lanarkshire, with regards to the blocks’ organisation, clinical sessions and teaching.

At the end of the block please take time to complete the university feedback which allows us to improve the placement for future students.