TRFT welcomes NHS England’s newly appointed Chief Nursing Officer to Rotherham
The Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust recently welcomed Duncan Burton, the newly appointed Chief Nursing Officer for England, to Rotherham Hospital.
![The image shows Duncan Burton meeting student nurses on Fitzwilliam Ward](/sites/default/files/styles/767x564/public/2024-08/nhs_england_chief_nurse_visit_duncan-17.jpg?h=c6980913&itok=9gOPQm1j)
During his visit, Duncan met with Dr Richard Jenkins, Chief Executive, Helen Dobson, Chief Nurse, and nursing representatives from a number of wards and departments.
The Trust has achieved significant progress in infection prevention, staff retention, and quality improvement. By implementing innovative strategies and prioritising staff wellbeing, we’ve reduced infections, improved nurse retention, and are in progress of achieving Exemplar Accreditation across our wards.
Dr Jenkins, said: “We were delighted to welcome Duncan to Rotherham Hospital. It was a fantastic opportunity to showcase our progress and discuss how we can continue to improve healthcare for the people of Rotherham.”
Helen Dobson, added: “By sharing our experiences and challenges, we hope to contribute to the development of nursing across the country, while also gaining valuable insights to enhance services here in Rotherham.”
Duncan then met with colleagues from our Fitzwilliam ward to see first-hand how they manage infection prevention and see the patient safety control measures in place. There was also an opportunity to meet student nurses recently recruited to Fitzwilliam ward and discuss their experiences as they embark on their Registered Nurse careers.
From there, Duncan paid a visit to the Trust’s 0-19 team to highlight the biggest challenges faced by the team. This included Health Visitors, School Nurses and teams caring for Looked after Children. Together, they discussed the importance of early intervention and prevention, as well as the need for strong partnerships between health professionals, parents, and children.
Duncan said: “It was a pleasure to meet nurses and healthcare support workers from the Trust. This included the chance to speak with some internationally educated nursing colleagues, as well as student nurses, and it was wonderful to hear how excited they are to qualify and start working at the Trust next month.
“I also heard about the specialist support the trust’s 0-19 team provides to children, young people and families in the community and I met some of the school nurses, public health nurses and health visitors delivering this invaluable work.
“Thank you to all those I met for sharing your experiences with me and for all you do for your patients and communities.”
This visit provided an opportunity for the Trust to demonstrate achievements in enhancing its working environment for colleagues and healthcare delivery for patients across the borough.