Engaging staff 'The Leeds Way'

Giving the keynote presentation on the first day of this year's Healthcare Estates conference, Julian Hartley, chief executive of Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, discussed some of his key experiences and learnings since he began his NHS career as a management trainee in north-east England. Subsequently describing a momentous first year in post as CEO at the Leeds Trust, he stressed the importance of 'engaging staff' in the quest to improve patient services, and highlighted the vital role that estates and facilities personnel play, both in maintaining a clean, safe, and high quality care environment, and supporting their Board and management colleagues in dealing with the media, regulators, and other external organisations, following 'crisis' events. He also explained the five key tenets which underpin 'The Leeds Way'--a recently implemented approach to optimizing patient care, managing staff, and indeed improving every aspect of the way that a large acute NHS Trust operates.