Who are we?
We are the directorate of acute medicine of the elderly (MOE) and stroke medicine.
- People aged 65 and over account for 17 % of the population and use 65% of acute hospital beds.
- People aged 65 and over comprise more than 50% of surgical patients, more for major surgery.
- People aged 65 and over use nearly half the NHS and over half of social services’ budgets.
- Stroke strikes every five minutes and 100,000 people have strokes each year. There are 1.3 million stroke survivors in the UK
Acute MOE
We who provide acute care to patients over the age of 65 years of age throughout our four wards. We deal with a wide range of clinical, preventative, remedial, and social aspects of illness in older people. We deal with acutely unwell patients and end of life care, which is something we excel at in our wards. Acute MOE at the Royal Infirmary consists of 4 wards:
- Ward 101 – which has 22 beds
- Ward 201 – which has 22 beds
- Ward 202 – which has 36 beds
- Ward 203 – which has 26 beds
Stroke Medicine
We are the regional centre for thrombectomy and thrombolysis services to patients that often provide life changing results, many of whom fully recover. We are a 36 bedded ward dealing with patients who have had an acute stroke. We also have our very own dedicated Level 1 area where we look after the most acutely unwell stroke patients and often take patients straight from the ED Department or following a life changing procedure. Nursesworking in acute stroke services have a wide-ranging role that includes assessment, identification, and monitoring, as well as rehabilitation, psychological support, and end of life care.
What do we offer newly qualified nurses?
- You will receive a 2-week supernumerary status
- During this time, you will spend time with our OT/PT/SALT/DC hub/DC Lounge teams, get to shadow our Frailty/Stroke outreach Teams when they review patients in AMU and ED departments
- You will be met with our Education Coordinator who will organise a NQN orientation day for you
- Our Education Coordinator will devise an 18-month NQN programme tailored to fit you learning and any support you may need
- Our Education Coordinator will work with you, support you on the wards and be there for you not only in your first few months but when it’s time to work on night shifts
- We have regular in-house training sessions which you will be encouraged to go on
- We are also keen for our NQN’s to be involved in QI projects and help us improve the wards and the care for the patients.
What career progression is available?
- Many of the frailty practitioners and the stroke outreach team started their careers in the wards and have progressed to be experts in their fields
- Once you have started you are on a career pathway developing your skills throughcourses, extended roles and eventually going on the Clinical Decision-Making course
- There will be opportunities to help teach NQN’s, Band 2/3/4’s with new skills.
We encourage career progression and help prepare you for what lies ahead.
