The Queen Alexandra Hospital (Portsmouth) Purple Book Initiative – a service driven by Portsmouth University Hospitals NHS Trust, The Hospital Company (InfraRed Capital Partners), Pario and Equans FM – wins the IJGlobal ESG Public Sector Award for a service that one judge described as “needed, impactful and scalable”.

The Queen Alexandra Hospital, Portsmouth (QAH) Purple Book was widely lauded by the independent panel of judges, with one – however – pondering why it wasn’t already available!

The purple book is a guide to facilities management and patient services developed to help medical and FM staff in a hospital understand all the services available to support them and patients. The guide has raised the morale of patients and staff across the hospital where it was introduced and has generated interest from other hospitals.

Praise came thick and fast with one judge saying the Purple Book was an “excellent, valuable initiative” that “demonstrates genuine empathy and innovation”.

One judge said: “This is a fantastic example of an individual driving positive changes tat are truly scalable and will have a positive outcome for a large number of patients and their families.”

Another adds it is an “excellent and compelling example of public sector proactivity to improve standards of care” and one more saying it was a “great example of taking the initiative and having real positive impact through something very practical and simple”.

One further judge said: “The Purple Book project is a fantastic example of the importance and value of governance in driving impactful ESG. The innovative use of ESG funding to deliver a simple, but effective, governance tool to public health sector workers is a showcase for implementing ESG in practice and in collaborative problem-solving.”

The Purple Book

The notion of creating the Purple Book evolved from a “real life event” as a positive and innovative response to observations raised by a 12-year-old receiving palliative care in the children’s ward.

The patient identified improvements to impact positively other young patients and their families’ experiences when receiving care. The suggestions received national media attention when she lost her battle with cancer, as they were copied to the local MP Penny Mordaunt.

A key observation raised was that her mother relied upon friends and family members to bring food into the hospital as she accompanied her daughter throughout her hospital stay.

Meals are available for chaperones on request under the existing facilities management service. However, due to the high turnover of nursing staff and the regular use of temporary staff, not all Trust staff were aware of this service. Often new or temporary staff were unsure of services available or how to access them.

No comprehensive FM services staff guide existed – although the Trust intranet included details of services, but information was fragmented and difficult to find.

To address this, ProjectCo used ESG funding to design and produce a signposting guide for Trust staff to publicise the services offered under the FM contract and provide details of how to access them.

The InfraRed Capital Partners asset management director supported the proposal and the Purple Book, a guide to Facilities Management and Patient Services was developed for the QAH PFI project.

The submission included a number of impactful comments, this one from The Hospital Company: “The Purple Book has become successful beyond all aspirations making a real difference in the patient and visitor experience and to staff productivity and morale.”

The NHS Trust said: “Your guide has been jointly developed by the Trust, The Hospital Company (THC), and Equans to tell staff everything they need to know about FM services and patient support services at QAH.

“It is designed to give an ‘easy to access’ overview of all the services offered that contribute to the smooth running of the hospital and supporting clinical and non-clinical teams. The folders can be used by staff to assist patients and contribute to a positive patient experience.

“The information provided gives an understanding to new starters and existing clinical staff as to what they can ask for and how to access services effectively and quickly. It encourages closer team working and relationships between clinical staff and FM staff (cleaners, housekeepers, team leaders et al) to respond to the needs of our patients without unnecessary delay.”

Equans said: “The Purple Book enables ward staff the ability to inform both the public and patients with clear and precise information regarding the services Equans provide at QAH.

“This ensures services are accessible to everyone, removing historic myths and assumptions around what is and what’s not provided and a much-improved end-user experience.”