Welcome to our Focus Weekly bulletin, this week focusing on successes and achievements across the Trust.
Remember, if you are looking for a specific section of the newsletter, click on the grey square in the bottom right of your screen.
What's happened this week...
- Message from Mark - 24 August 2026: read Mark's full message on Focus which includes a notice about the temporary closure of the Kingsway overflow car park and information on the 2026 Staff Survey.
- A new Digital Insights bulletin has been issued this week, covering recent SystmOne changes; Smartcards and the NHS Keep I.T. Confidential campaign. You can read more here.
- A new policy bulletin has been issued, featuring news of updates to DBS,
family leave and Respectful Resolutions policies, among others. Remember, it is the responsibility of all staff and managers to ensure policies are understood and implemented. Read more here.
- Sharing your news: please continue to submit your news on Focus. You can also post on the closed staff Facebook group - visit Facebook to join up.
Celebrations
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Congratulations to July's DEED of the Month winner
All DEED nominations from July 2026 have been considered for a DEED of the Month award. Congratulations to Ezinne Ignatius, Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA) at Ward 35 of the Radbourne Unit.
Ezinne was nominated by Dr Janet Allison, the Sensory Lead at Ward 35, who said: “Ezinne is a great OTA who has maintained high levels of enthusiasm and commitment in enabling the men on Ward 35 to engage in activities to help their recovery. In the recent exercise pilot, aiming to offer 30 minutes of
physical exercise daily across the acute wards, she facilitated sessions, including table tennis, football, handball, walking, pool, dance and keep fit, and got many people involved. She is now leading the development of the exercise passport, co-produced with patients to promote exercise. Thank you Ezinne!”
Ezinne said she was thrilled to have been nominated and even more thrilled to win!
“The bit of my job that I love most is the exercise because I am trying to keep fit myself,” she said. “I understand the impact that exercise has on people – if I have a week where I don’t get to the gym once or twice, then it’s a bad week for me.”
Ezinne says she tries to implement movement for patients in their daily lives, whether it be a walk, a game of table tennis or pool, or even moving to a different part of the hospital to play board games.
“I am very happy and proud to have won the DEED of the month,” she said.
Well done, Ezinne.
If you’ve experienced outstanding care from a member of staff at Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust or worked with someone deserving of recognition, you can nominate them through the DEED scheme:
https://www.derbyshirehealthcareft.nhs.uk/deed
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NHS England accolade for Knowledge and Library Services team
Congratulations to our Knowledge and Library Services team who successfully met all 16 essential indicators in a recent Quality and Improvement Outcomes Framework (QIOF) assessment by NHS England.
The assessment identified a number of areas of good practice including the library’s welcoming environment that supports study, collaboration and wellbeing. The development of tailored digital guides for different professional groups and increased access to evidence through digital tools such as LibKey Nomad was also recognised. Please see Focus for more details.
This achievement reflects the Trust’s commitment to evidence-based practice and highlights the important role that knowledge and evidence play in improving patient care, supporting learning, informing service development and strengthening research activity. Congratulations to everyone who was involved.
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The future's bright - the future's green!
The Trust has just updated its fleet of vans to be fully electric, saving money and the planet at the same time.
The nine vans have distinctive branding to show their eco-credentials, and EV charging points have been installed at
Kingsway, the Radbourne Unit in Derby, Dale Bank View in Swadlincote, London Road in Derby and the Derwent Unit in Chesterfield.
Head of Estates, Jordan Yates, said: “We have chosen to go fully electric because it is a more sustainable way of travelling, saving the cost of fuel, and works towards our Net 0 target and the NHS Green Plan.”
He said the charging points would be useful when colleagues travelled from site to site, meaning they could be charged while work was being carried out.
And they are not just for use by the Trust fleet, all colleagues with electric vehicles are welcome to charge their cars at the points, with the cost being significantly lower than most public chargers.
Jordan said: “We will be looking to ensure all our fleet vehicles are electric over the coming years, as we do still have a few diesel ones out on the road.”
Paul Blakeman, Trust Sustainability Lead, added: “The NHS Green Plan is about health as well as the environment, because using electric vehicles means our patients and staff are breathing cleaner air around the site.”
Executive Director of Finance James Sabin said getting the vans on the road had been a team effort, and said: “We would like to thank Joe Morgan in the Communications Team for designing the branding and Andy, who is now going through the process of getting the best possible price for our old fleet at auction.”
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Trust colleague Jo invited to national suicide prevention event at House of Commons
Trust colleague Jo Leitner was recently invited by national charity The Churchill Fellowship to the launch of a new publication on suicide prevention, in recognition of Jo’s work in this area.
Jo, a Business Development Manager who was previously the Trust’s Suicide Prevention Lead, was asked to attend the event at the House of Commons for the unveiling of A Whole Society Blueprint for Suicide Prevention.
Jo has played a key role in developing the Trust’s current Suicide Prevention
Strategy and is opening the Erewash CVS conference on 16 September with a talk on suicide being everyone's business.
The Churchill Fellowship is a UK charity that awards grants to everyday citizens, funding them to travel or study online to explore global best practices. Churchill Fellows bring this international research back to the UK to pioneer positive change in their professions and communities. Applications for scholarships reopen on 1 September – learn more about becoming a Churchill Fellow and view their FAQs.
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Record number of Trust apprentices shortlisted for regional award
Seven Trust colleagues have been named as finalists in the 2026 Apprenticeship Awards.
The apprentices, who are training and working in health and care roles across Derbyshire, have been recognised for making a positive difference in their teams while gaining the skills and experience needed to build careers in the NHS.
The Trust finalists have been recognised in three award categories:
Higher Apprentice
- Modupeola Falase, Student Nursing Apprentice
- Nathaniel David, Student Nursing Apprentice
- Phoebe Louise Fullerton, Student Nursing Associate Apprentice
Degree Apprentice
- Ben Chapman, Physiotherapy Apprentice
Health and Public Service Apprentice
- Kerry-Anne Doyle, Registered Nurse Degree Apprentice (Mental Health)
- Laura Bevington, Registered Nurse Degree Apprentice (Mental Health)
- Niamh Kerry, Dietitian Apprentice
Tracey Nock, Wider Workforce Manager at Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and Derbyshire Community Health Services, said: “This is fantastic recognition for our colleagues and for the contribution apprentices make across the Trust."
“We are incredibly proud of Modupeola, Nathaniel, Phoebe, Ben, Kerry-Anne, Laura and Niamh. Being shortlisted is a significant achievement and reflects their eagerness to want to learn and develop throughout their apprenticeship journeys. I look forward to finding out the outcome on awards night.”
The winners will be announced at a ceremony on Thursday 1 October 2026 at Crowne Plaza, Nottingham.
You can read more about the nominations on the Trust website.
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Carers Staff Network to launch in September
Following feedback from colleagues, a new Carers Staff Network will be launched this autumn.
The Carers Staff Network will support the Trust's existing Staff Networks, which include the LGBTQ+ Network, Disability and Wellness Network (DAWN), BME Network, Armed Forces Network, Women’s Network, Multi-Faith Network and the Christian Network.
The Carers Staff Network will meet for the first time on 9 September at 12.30pm on Microsoft Teams. It will be co-chaired by Becki Priest (Chief AHP/Deputy Director of Patient, Carer and Lived Experience) and Jenny Shields (Nurse on Willow Ward at the Derwent Unit). Jenny previously shared her experience as a carer at the May 2026 meeting of the Trust’s Board of Directors. Tumi Banda, Director of Nursing, Allied Health Professionals, Quality and Patient Experience, will be the executive sponsor of the network.
You can join the first Carers Staff Network meeting via Microsoft Teams. Please remember, agreement should be given for colleagues to attend Network meetings in their working day.
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Marina marks 48-year career making a difference
For most people, your 18th birthday is a time to celebrate, let your hair down and have fun with your mates. But not Marina Rhodes.
With a passion for making a difference, on her 18th birthday in 1978 she walked through the doors of Scarsdale Hospital, to join the NHS as a Nursing Auxiliary.
Nearly 50 years later, Marina has retired from a career that has spanned roles including Nursing Auxiliary, Domestic Worker and latterly, Activity Coordinator on Snowdrop Ward, working with older adults with dementia.
She said: "My proudest achievement is maintaining my passion for the job and being able to keep a good sense of humour!
"My happiest work memories include the camaraderie between staff and patients, putting on plays and shows, fund raising, galas, sports days, trips out of the hospital including seaside, pub lunches and shopping."
She said her favourite activities were dancing and music, and that being able to give her patients and their relatives some kind of normality was always rewarding.
Her colleagues said they will miss her unflappable approach, experience, and her smile, as well as the ability to bring out the best in her patients.
Happy retirement Marina!
If you or a colleague is celebrating a work milestone, send some details to jane.mcfarlane8@nhs.net to be featured in a future edition of Focus Weekly.
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Congratulations to the following supervisors and assessors
The following supervisors and assessors have been nominated by recent nursing students, as providing excellent placement experiences in DHCFT.
- Caroline Taylor Trowbridge, Ryan Freeman and Rachel Newton (CAMHS ID)
- Fortunate Muskwe (Derby City WAA Team)
- Richard Torskyj (North Dales OP Team)
- Tony Longbone (Cubley Court)
- Sarah Johnson (South Dales WAA Team)
- Kay Hurn, Trevor Mossop, Mir Prosser (East Midlands Gambling Harms Service/Adult Eating Disorder Team)
- Milly Collick, Anna Barnes, Charlette Edafe (Dove Ward)
- Lisa Payne, Ekiwe Chimedza, Jo Walker (Amber Valley WAA Team)
- Olivia Cutts (MHLT Chesterfield)
Thank you for giving your time to support our students, and providing them with such good learning experiences.
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Welcome to the Trust
Welcome to all colleagues who have started working at the Trust recently.
We hope you have settled in and are enjoying your new role...
- Arthita Das
- Jessica Davison
- Tana-Leigh Gannon
- Rut Guana
- Georgina Hambleton
- Charlotte Kelsall
- Emily McCree
- Georgia Nikoleini
- Megan Norton
- Chidinma Okoro
- Okeroghenevusi Ozubbu
- Elizabeth Peter
- Ayoola Ruffai
- Tanzim Saiyad
- Millie Smith
- Anthony Umoh
- Kelsey Wall
- Andrew Wall
- Hassaan Yawar
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Farewell and good luck
To all our colleagues who are moving on to other roles - thank you for all your hard work for the Trust. We wish you all the best in your future plans.
- Shamaila Arshid
- Zeba Aslam
- Evangeline Chikwe
- Louise Collins
- Penny Cox
- Grace Criddle
- Emily Crombie
- Ifeoluwa Dada
- Chipo Dire
- Harriet Doyle
- Bethany Ford
- Amanda Forster
- Beverley Harper-Dennis
- David Higginbottom
- Shirley Houston
- Paul McCormick
- Angela Mills
- Chloe Moore
- Shimaa Naser Al Din
- Kristina Nicholson
- Sonia Peach
- Katrina Peacock
- Riya Raju
- Farah Rashid
- Marina Rhodes
- Fiona Rushbrook
- Jordon Smith
- Jan Wilde
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Got good news?
If you have something to celebrate, please share it! Submit a news item on Focus or post a message on the staff Facebook group.
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Focus Weekly is a weekly e-newsletter for all Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust staff created by the communications and engagement team. Read back issues of the bulletin in our Focus Weekly archive on Focus.
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