A new role has been created at University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust (UHNM) to help improve the day-to-day experience of patients and visitors with disabilities and learning difficulties.
Lewis Bunn has been appointed as the Trust’s first Corporate Patient Safety Champion for Lived Experience and will work with wards and departments to improve the hospital experience from a patient’s point of view.
He has been visiting clinical areas across the Royal Stoke University Hospital to advise staff on how they can make subtle changes to improve overall experience.
Lewis fought off stiff competition to get the job, which has followed an internship from Project SEARCH, an initiative giving young people with disabilities and learning difficulties the opportunity to work at UHNM and gain vital experience to help with future employment prospects.
It was during his internship that he started to look at accessibility issues for those who are differently-abled and the availability of suitable office equipment, identifying things that were obvious to him but had been missed by staff.
Carol Lloyd-Bennett, Senior Nurse for Workforce and Education at UHNM, said: “We want to get the basics right, so Lewis’ job is now to be that voice of the patient with different needs to help influence our decisions in the future.
“He has already visited areas such as Imaging, our Ambulatory Emergency Care Unit and Pre-Admissions, with many more lined up over the coming weeks and months.”
One of the first departments to welcome Lewis was the Fracture Clinic at Royal Stoke, where he identified the need to improve access for wheelchair users at the front desk. A change has now been made and positive feedback received.
Lewis said: “All the staff I have met have been really up for making changes, and I’m hoping to receive the same reaction across UHNM. Everyone is willing to change what they do which is great for patients like me.
“I feel good and am hoping my job in the future isn’t needed, that UHNM is accessible for everybody.”
Carol added: “I’m exceptionally proud of Lewis, he has given us a unique and fresh perspective on a lot of issues. We’re incredibly lucky to have him, he doesn’t just see a problem, he looks for solutions to help everyone to make the experience of using and working in our services the best it can be.”
