- Wording revised to say 6 doses obtainable from vial in response to a change in the Information for Healthcare Professionals on Pfizer BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine document
AstraZeneca vaccine session:
- Change to state multidose vial should be clearly labelled with the date and time of expiry rather than from when it was first punctured
Some minor wording changes in Core Knowledge, Pfizer BioNTech and AstraZeneca sessions in response to user feedback or nationally published guidance.
8 January 2021
- Advice about obtaining an additional dose from COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca vials added to AstraZeneca session
- More information about recommended interval between first and second dose added to both AstraZeneca and Pfizer BioNTech sessions
- More information added to section about information to provide to recipients following vaccination in both AstraZeneca and Pfizer BioNTech sessions.
20 January 2021
Core Knowledge session:
- Section on Long COVID added,
- Section on laboratory and pathology staff and social care staff eligibility for vaccination updated to be in line with Green Book COVID-19 chapter
- Change to wording around immunosuppression to reflect change to Green Book COVID-19 chapter about this
Pfizer BioNTech vaccine session:
- Waste disposal section updated in response to expert feedback
- Addition of ordering via Foundry system by PCN designated sites in response to request to add this from Specialist Pharmacy Service (SPS)
- Change to wording of description of appearance of Pfizer BioNTech vaccine prior to dilution following change about this in the Pfizer Reg174 HCP Information document
- Addition of link and reference to the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine healthcare professional’s training and information materials (cvdvaccine.co.uk/)
AstraZeneca vaccine session:
- Waste disposal section updated in response to expert feedback
- Minor wording changes to “how does the vaccine work” in response to user feedback for clarity
- Addition of ordering via Foundry system by PCN designated sites in response to request to add this from Specialist Pharmacy Service (SPS)
- Addition of link and reference to the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine healthcare professional’s training and information materials (cvdvaccine.co.uk/)
31 December 2020
- New knowledge and assessment sessions on the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine added
- Core Knowledge and Pfizer BioNTech vaccine sessions updated to include: revised advice from JCVI on pregnancy and breastfeeding, updated statement from JCVI about scheduling of vaccine doses (between 4 and 12 weeks),
- Pfizer BioNTech session updated to include: advice on obtaining a 6th dose from a vial, and allergy precautions as stated in updated Green Book COVID-19 chapter and updated Information for Healthcare Professionals on Pfizer BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine document
December 2020
- Core Knowledge session updated with advice about not giving COVID-19 vaccine to pregnant or breastfeeding women after the COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine BNT162b2 (Pfizer BioNTech) was authorised for use
- New MHRA guidance added on not giving COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine BNT162b2 to those with a history of anaphylaxis to a vaccine, medicine or food or a previous dose of the vaccine and addition of 15 minute minimum observation period following vaccination
- Some amendments to the COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine BNT162b2 session storage and reconstitution sections following republication of updated Information for Healthcare Professionals on Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine document
Rapid COVID-19 training and education resources for critical care
To support staff being redeployed into critical care during the pandemic, the London Transformation and Learning Collaborative (LTLC) has worked in partnership with Health Education England elearning for healthcare (HEE elfh) to develop a range of resources to support staff.
This includes:
- 360-degree virtual ICU bed space
- Toolkit for rapid cross-skilling
- Just-in-time training for deployed staff
- Skills passports for registered support clinicians and non-registered support staff (currently London only)
- Short films on moral injury, preparing for deployment and more
Follow the links above to access each resource and visit the LTLC page on the elfh website for further support.
The website includes key resources to help individuals, educators and systems prepare for and work during surges in capacity. In recognition of the time pressure staff are under, these are designed to be short bite-sized learning that can be read or watched in advance, on the move or on the ward. The resources are for all staff, regardless of profession, and can be undertaken as self-directed learning or delivered by educators or trainers.
The LTLC was established in 2020, aimed at increasing the capacity of the critical care workforce in London to help prepare for a second surge in COVID-19 cases in the capital. If you need to get in touch, email ltlc@hee.nhs.uk.
Image Interpretation renamed Clinical Imaging
Health Education England’s elearning for healthcare programme, Image Interpretation, that is developed in partnership with the College and Society of Radiographers has been renamed Clinical Imaging to reflect the scope and nature of the resource more accurately.
Dorothy Keane, Clinical Lead for Clinical Imaging, said: “When I became clinical lead for the programme we could not have envisaged how successful the programme would be and how demand for sessions would grow exponentially to encompass all modalities and topics such as research in radiography, dementia, dignity, personalising care, orthopaedics and interventional procedures. The programme now has almost 500 sessions covering radiography, ultrasound, CT, MRI, fluoroscopy and nuclear medicine.
“With such growth we have outgrown our original scale and intentions and feel renaming the programme as Clinical Imaging is important to accurately reflect our broader scope and aims.”
Since the launch of the programme there have been almost 218,000 session launches; demonstrating just how much of a well-used resource it is. The Clinical Imaging team will continue to provide free resources for colleagues working in clinical imaging as well as other healthcare professionals and will develop new elearning sessions to reflect changes in imaging and the wider NHS.
For more information about the Clinical Imaging programme, including details on how to access the sessions please visit the elfh website.
HEE e-LfH support desk helps vaccinators get online
HEE TEL’s elearning for healthcare (elfh) team has been supporting the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccinations. All vaccinators must complete elearning sessions that are hosted on the elfh Hub as part of their training.
Many vaccinators are volunteers or colleagues who have recently retired or are no longer working in the health and care sector. The diverse range of circumstances and previous levels of experience of using elfh has resulted in a significant increase in activity for elfh’s support desk team. The team is assisting potential vaccinators with gaining access to the elearning content, resetting passwords, retrieving lost usernames, personalising user profiles with content specific to vaccinators and answering questions about all aspects of the process. This has required the support desk team to work additional hours to respond to the volume of users needing help.
The team has responded to 20,135 support incidents since the start of 2021, which is almost 745 queries every day. To support the volume of work, the team has extended its weekend hours and is providing additional Live Chat coverage to further help colleagues needing to access the elfh Hub as part of the national vaccination programme.
HEE TEL works closely with Yorkshire Ambulance Service (YAS) and the YAS team has been providing additional capacity during this incredibly busy time.
Users have been directed to the elfh Hub from many different routes – some of which are less familiar with elfh processes, including NHS Professionals and St John Ambulance. elfh’s support team has been working closely with these organisations to advise on guidance being shared with users to streamline the process and make it as efficient as possible.
For more information about the COVID-19 vaccination programme visit the elfh website.
New programme to support preterm children’s development now available
A new elearning programme designed to support the development and learning of children born preterm is now available on Health Education England’s elearning for healthcare Hub.
Children born preterm (before 37 weeks of gestation) are at increased risk of a range of cognitive, social, emotional and learning difficulties, compared with children born at term. These difficulties may persist throughout childhood and adolescence and can have a negative impact on children’s attainment at school.
The Preterm Birth elearning resource is designed to improve education professionals’ knowledge of the long term consequences of preterm birth on children’s development and to improve their competence in supporting preterm children’s learning.
The resource, funded by Action Medical Research, will also be of interest to health and social care professionals involved in the care of children and young people born preterm.
The programme, which takes approximately 1 hour to complete, comprises the latest evidence-based information to help learners develop their understanding of:
- what preterm birth is
- how preterm birth can affect children’s cognitive, motor and social-emotional development
- how preterm birth can affect children’s attainment at school
- how professionals can support children born preterm.
For more information and to access the elearning programme, visit the Preterm Birth elearning resource via the elearning for healthcare Hub.
New resources added to MindEd’s Coronavirus Staff Resilience Hub
Health Education England elearning for healthcare has added 2 new elearning resources to the MindEd Coronavirus Staff Resilience Hub.
The Hub, which was created last April in response to the pandemic, features tips and advice for frontline staff to help them better support each other across all services through these difficult times. Existing resources cover topics such as helping each other, end of life, stress and fear.
Phase 2 of the Hub now includes the following 2 new resources aimed at staff supporting children and young people in these challenging times:
- Stress and Trauma – this session explores the psychology of stress and trauma and what to do about it in children and young people. It offers advice to all professionals involved with caring for children and young people, including teachers and education staff.
- Loss and Bereavement – this session provides learners with advice and tips to help a child or young person who has lost a loved one during the pandemic or has faced loss in other forms, such as a loss of relationships through lack of play activities and feeling isolated from friends.
The new and existing resources can be found by visiting the Coronavirus Staff Resilience Hub.
MindEd is a free educational resource for mental health support. The variety of free resources aims to provide adults, across professions and organisations and including parents and carers, with the knowledge to support wellbeing, the understanding to identify young and older people at risk of a mental health condition and the confidence to act on their concern and, if needed, signpost to services that can help.
For more information about MindEd visit: https://www.minded.org.uk/.
New e-learning session added to Freedom to Speak Up in the Health Sector in England
Health Education England elearning for healthcare (HEE elfh), in partnership with the National Guardian Office, has added a second session to the Freedom to Speak Up in the Health Sector in England elearning programme.
The online training programme, which launched its first session in October 2020, is aimed at anyone who works in healthcare regardless of their contract terms.
The programme helps learners understand the vital role they can play and the support available to encourage a healthy speaking up culture which protects patient safety and enhances colleague experience.
The latest session, Listen Up, which is aimed at managers at all levels, focuses on listening and the barriers to speaking up. It comprises the following topics:
- Fostering a speak up, listen up culture
- Supporting speaking up and listening well
- Perceptions of yourself and others and understanding conflicts of interest
Welcoming feedback as a gift.
It complements the first session, Speak Up, which gives an overview of speaking up and why it matters for all colleagues.
The third session, Follow Up, is aimed at all senior leaders including executive board members (and equivalents), non-executive directors, and governors to help them understand their role in setting the tone for a good speaking up culture and how speaking up can promote organisational learning and improvement which will be available soon.
These modules will replace the current Freedom to Speak Up training.
For more information on the programme, including details on how to access, please visit the Freedom to Speak Up programme page.
COVID-19 e-learning module available for paramedics
Health Education England elearning for healthcare (HEE elfh) and the College of Paramedics developed an elearning module which provides educational support for paramedics and emergency responders.
Supporting Paramedic Practice During COVID-19 is available within the paramedics elearning programme and includes interactive learning experiences that are accessible on mobile devices.
Supporting paramedic practice during COVID-19
Written by experienced paramedic elearning authors for the College of Paramedics, the module includes 5 sessions of varied lengths which learners can select individually, or complete as a whole module.
The sessions include:
- the assessment and management of COVID-19 patients for paramedics
- paramedic wellbeing during a pandemic
- mechanical ventilators used in prehospital care
- paramedic use of PPE
- COVID-19 additional guidance for paramedics
By completing the module, you will achieve a greater understanding of virus transmission, assessment and management of COVID-19 patients and contribute to your Continuing Professional Development (CPD).
Learners have found the COVID-19 module to be “a very good source of information”, “all very relevant and interesting” and commented that the elearning is “very clear and easy to understand” and they “will recommend it to colleagues”.
Other modules in the paramedics programme include:
- clinical decision making for paramedics
- mental health for paramedics
- pain management for paramedics
Your feedback and accessing the module
As knowledge of the effects and management of the COVID-19 virus continues to evolve, we welcome your feedback.
You will be invited to rate and leave a comment at the end of each session. Leaving free-text comments helps us to develop learning resources which are relevant to you and your colleagues.
Visit the paramedics programme page for more information about the elearning modules.
New Speech, Language and Communication e-learning resources now available
Health Education England elearning for healthcare (HEE elfh) has worked in partnership with Public Health England (PHE) and the Department for Education, to develop 2 free elearning resources to support the development of children’s speech, language and communication skills for health visiting teams and early years practitioners working with children aged 0-5 years and their families.
Best Start in Speech, Language and Communication programme
The ability to communicate is a skill that starts early in life and continues across the life course. While we each develop at a different pace, there are key milestones in speech, language and communication (SLC) development. When these are not reached, they indicate that additional support may need to be offered to a young child and their parents or carers. Through early identification of development needs and working in partnership with parents to support their child’s speech, language and communication skills, health visiting teams, speech and language therapists and early years practitioners can make a difference for children and help them to achieve their full potential.
Working through the 3 modules in the Best Start in Speech, Language and Communication training programme will give health visiting teams and early years practitioners an introduction into SLC development, the importance of the home learning environment, SLC risk factors, early indicators of speech, language and communication needs (SLCN), a behaviour change model, assessment tools, and resources.
How to access the elearning
The Best Start in Speech, Language and Communication elearning programme is available to the health and care workforce and early years practitioners working with children and families. Access the elearning resources via the elearning for healthcare Best Start in Speech, Language and Communication programme page and within the SLC Interactive Pathway.
All our Health’s Speech, Language and Communication elearning session
The Speech, Language and Communication session is a bite-sized resource within HEE elfh’s All Our Health elearning programme which provides health and care professionals with an overview of data and key evidence plus signposting to trusted resources to help promote children’s speech, language and communication development. A knowledge check is also available to support learning.
The session is aimed at health and care professionals working with children and families. It is one of 24 resources within All Our Health which aim to improve colleagues’ knowledge, confidence and skills in preventing illness, protecting health and promoting wellbeing. Other topics covered within the programme include childhood obesity, dementia, mental health and immunisation.
For more information about All Our Health and to access the Speech, Language and Communication session, visit the All Our Health programme page.