Trust Contact Details
St Richard’s Hospital, Spitalfield Lane, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 6SE
Trust switchboard:
01243 788122
Trust contacts: https://cmec.info/contact/
Trust website: www.uhsussex.nhs.uk
Foundation Training Programme Directors
Miss Melanie Tipple – F1 Lead
F2 Lead – vacant
Director of Medical Education
Mr David Beattie
Medical Education Manager
Mrs Bebba Smithers
Mrs Sam Vaughan
Foundation Manager
Miss Christina Aluko
Facilities
Postgraduate Centre
The Chichester Medical Education Centre (CMEC) is a purpose built centre located within the hospital grounds and is supported by an experienced and friendly team of postgraduate staff. All rooms are equipped with the latest audio-visual equipment including computer and internet access. All foundation teaching takes place within the centre on a weekly basis. CMEC has an extensive range of seminar and lecture rooms, including fully equipped simulation facilities. All senior Medical Education staff can be contacted through CMEC. The centre is frequented by medical staff both from within the hospital and from the community.
Accommodation
Limited accommodation is available on a first come, first served basis. Rent for accommodation starts at £459 per month for a single room (rents are reviewed annually in April).
Social Activities
Social activities are organised via the Doctors’ Mess by the Mess President. Events include barbeques, the Annual Doctors Ball and many other social events throughout the year.
Doctors’ Mess
St Richard’s has a very active Doctors’ Mess which is the social hub of the hospital. The Mess has its own building on site with sofas, SKY TV, pool table, fully equipped kitchen.
A monthly subscription fee gives the doctors in training access to food and newspapers which are delivered to the Mess on a weekly basis. The Mess also facilitates a number of charity events throughout the year.
Library Facilities
St Richard’s hospital has a well-stocked library with a selection of e-resources and a fast efficient document delivery service. The library staff are friendly and approachable and on hand to undertake literature searches, upon request. The staff are available to provide training on searches for evidence based information. The library is available until 10pm every day, via swipe access.
IT Facilities
A 9-station IT training room is available for use by foundation doctors and medical students on the first floor of CMEC. The IT suite is available until 10pm every day, via swipe access. There are additional IT stations situated on the ground floor of CMEC, available to all staff.
Parking Arrangements
Parking arrangements are made via the parking office at the hospital. Subject to availability doctors are able to purchase annual hospital parking permits (payable monthly from your salary). All other hospital parking is pay and display.
Local Area
Transport Links
St Richard’s hospital is located within close proximity of Chichester train station which has direct routes to London, Portsmouth, Southampton and Brighton. There are frequent trains to most south coast destinations, including Arundel and its historic castle! There are also frequent bus services to and from the hospital. The Trust has a Green Travel Plan, which enables staff to travel between sites using a free minibus service. Further details can be found on staffnet which can be accessed upon commencement of employment.
Local Amenities/Attractions
St Richard’s hospital is within walking distance of the city centre where you will find a variety of independent and big chain stores. Chichester Festival Theatre is located a few hundred metres from the hospital and shows a variety of productions all year round. Goodwood and Fontwell racecourses are within easy reach and for those interested in motorsport the Goodwood Festival of Speed is a must. Just outside the city centre you will find leisure facilities such as a gym, a cinema and a bowling complex. Chichester has many restaurants, pubs and local cafes for you to enjoy. Chichester Harbour is a short distance from the city and is the perfect place to enjoy a picnic and a bit of sailing!
Foundation Specific
Induction/Shadowing Arrangements
Incoming F1s attend a five day induction programme which incorporates 2 full days of shadowing prior to the commencement of their F1 year. All F2s attend a full day induction programme on their first day with the Trust. This includes a departmental induction within their initial specialty. Please use the below link for access to the induction videos and handbooks that are on our website: https://pgme.info/resources/induction-videos
Tasters
Both F1s and F2s are encouraged to take Taster Days in specialties that are of interest to them and not covered within their two year foundation programme. These are arranged on an individual basis.
Simulation
St Richard’s has an extensive simulation department located on the first floor of CMEC, with state of the art, high fidelity mannequins. Designed and equipped to provide a simulated clinical learning environment in order to deliver high quality education and training for healthcare professionals. It also has a Clinical skills suite which provides all foundation doctors with the opportunity to practice clinical skills including venepuncture, cannulation, catheterisation, suturing and many more opportunities via well-equipped learning pods. This superb facility ensures that the clinical training opportunities at St Richard’s Hospital continue to develop and flourish. All foundation doctors attend dedicated simulation sessions during their time at St Richard’s. F1s and F2s have a full day simulation session. This is a mandatory requirement. All simulation sessions are certificated.
Please contact us via: Email: uhsussex.cmec.clinicalskills@nhs.net
Foundation Doctor Forums
Foundation Doctor Reps are required to attend quarterly Local Faculty Group (LFG) meetings to feedback on the views of their peers to the Foundation Faculty. Foundation Doctor Forums are run across both sites. All doctors in training are welcome to attend these to voice their views and opinions on the hospital. These are run as informal, confidential events for doctors, giving them the opportunity to feedback honestly and openly. Senior consultants may only attend with prior consent from the attending doctors in training. Foundation reps also attend the LAB(Local Academic Board) meetings.
Educational and Clinical Supervision
Foundation doctors are allocated an Educational Supervisor who will support them throughout their year with us. Any foundation doctor on a linked two year programme will have the same Educational Supervisor throughout their whole time with us, if possible. It is the Educational Supervisor’s responsibility to support the doctor and their educational development during this time and provide feedback on their progress to the Medical Education Team. Foundation doctors are allocated a Clinical Supervisor for each placement they undertake who is responsible for their clinical skills development, provide day-to-day support, and feedback on their clinical progress to the Medical Education Team.
Teaching Programme
All core mandatory teaching is bleep free and foundation doctors must attend a minimum of 30hrs during the year. Foundation doctors should also have a minimum of 30hrs non-core teaching throughout their rotations. All teaching is to be logged onto their portfolio. Weekly teaching is delivered live. All sessions are recorded and uploaded to our EPGME learning platform to give all the opportunity to access all teaching sessions. In addition to this, departmental teaching is also frequently delivered and will allow foundation doctors the opportunity to present cases. In addition to this, departmental teaching is also frequently delivered and will allow foundation doctors the opportunity to present cases.
Any Additional Information
Foundation doctors are supported not only by the Foundation Team but also by two Senior Nurse Education Fellows (one at Chichester and one at Worthing). They hold ‘Doctors in Mind’ sessions once a month, where doctors in training can bring their concerns and good practice to the table. The Senior Nurse Education Fellows also visit wards on a regular basis to support the Health and Wellbeing of the foundation doctors. Western Sussex were the first Trust to have this service, as the wellbeing of our doctors in training is a priority.
Trust Information
Accolades/Achievements of the Trust
On 1st July 2013 Western Sussex Hospitals Foundation NHS Trust became a Foundation Trust, only the second trust (since April 2012) to be approved under Monitor’s new powers to promote and protect the interests of patients. Western Sussex Hospitals Foundation NHS Trust was named as a CHKS 40 Top Hospital every year since the Trust was formed in 2009. On the 19th April 2016 Western Sussex was inspected and rated outstanding by the CQC, and we are very proud to have maintained our outstanding status at our 2019 CQC inspection. Western Sussex was one of only three acute trusts in the country to be awarded the CQC’s highest rating. Inspectors rated the overall standards of care patients receive as Outstanding. Now University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust’s Clinical Skills Laboratory facilities rival some of the best training environments in the NHS.
Any Additional Information
About University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust
On 1st April 2021 Western Sussex NHS Trust merged with Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust to form the new University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust making a combined trust of 7 hospitals across Sussex.
Western Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust was established on 1 April, 2009, as the result of the merger between Royal West Sussex, Worthing and Southlands Hospitals NHS Trusts.
On 1 July 2013 it gained Foundation Trust status, becoming the first acute Trust in Sussex to achieve this milestone.
In April 2016, Western Sussex Hospitals received an “Outstanding” CQC report and was one of only five acute hospital trusts in the country to have received the health watchdog’s highest possible rating. The trust is also renowned for its leading approach to continuous improvement and staff empowerment, enabled by a long term strategic transformation programme called Patient First.
Our Postgraduate Medical Education Department operates from three major sites: St Richard’s Hospital in Chichester, Worthing Hospital, and Southlands Hospital in Shoreham. Both St Richard’s and Worthing hospitals provide a full range of acute hospital care including accident and emergency services, acute medical care, maternity & children’s services and a range of surgical specialties. Southlands Hospital provides outpatient and diagnostic services, and day case procedures. It is home to our new £7.5m Western Sussex Eye Care.
Our services are predominantly commissioned by the NHS Coastal West Sussex Clinical Commissioning Group, with whom we are committed to providing high quality integrated care across the local health economy.
We are also committed to working closely with our provider of community hospitals, Sussex Community NHS Trust, and the local provider of mental health services, Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust. The Trust does not provide tertiary services and looks towards Brighton, Portsmouth and Southampton for these services.
About St Richard’s Hospital
St Richard’s Hospital in Chichester has approximately 430 beds and provides a full range of general acute services including maternity, outpatients, A&E and intensive care.
It also has a purpose-built NHS Treatment Centre on site which offers safe, fast, pre-booked day and short stay surgery and diagnostic procedures. The area served by the hospital is around 400sq miles. This area consists of the coastal areas of Littlehampton, Bognor, Selsey and Chichester Harbour, together with the city of Chichester and the South Downs market towns of Midhurst, Billingshurst, Pulborough, Arundel and Petworth. The hospital also serves a significant number of patients from East Hampshire.
About Southlands Hospital
Southlands Hospital in Shoreham-by-Sea is being developed as an important centre for hospital services that do not require an overnight stay.
The hospital is home to a new, state-of-the-art eye care centre and specialises in outpatient services, diagnostics, day surgery and other types of what is called ‘ambulatory care’.
