Caroline's Blog

First of all I went to a local Thai restaurant where Craig Bellamy was also eating. Someone then took me to Sunday's Man City v Liverpool game and we've just had confirmation that some of the Man City players will be visiting our new Oldham radiotherapy centre, just before it opens for patients.

An uninspiring 0-0 draw is never going to get a football-novice like me excited, but it was good to bump into comedian John Bishop before the game.  He was our guest of honour at the Christie staff awards ceremony in December and hilarious. He obviously wasn't having much of a laugh watching his beloved Liverpool, but enjoyed a bit of cheeky banter when he saw me.

Celebrity support is always important to us. They help raise our profile and bring a real boost to our patients and special events. 

And talking of special events, the countdown is really close for our new Oldham centre. Just a few weeks to go. Our special preview visits start from 8th March, with our first patient on 16th March.

A fantastic and momentous start to Spring.

I've always loved the start of Spring after the dark gloomy Winter months. No excuse to not really up my marathon training now though. Maybe I'll pass some City players on the way!

I always say that every person here plays a very special part, no matter what they do.

We’re like a huge complex jigsaw. And we can only give an excellent service to our patients if all the pieces are there.

That’s why our annual staff awards also focuses on the unsung heroes and people who work behind the scenes, as well as the front-line stars.

And our hospital drivers are unsung heroes. A group of friendly, helpful, thoughtful people who go out of their way to ensure our poorly patients who need their services are well looked after.  Both professional and kind.  Christie chauffeurs with an important kind of class.  When I talk to them they give me advice about life in general and feedback about what our patients really think of our services – they get it first-hand, quite often building and developing relationships with the patients they bring from far and wide.  Their comments and their views are always fascinating and very useful for me to look at improving our services even more.

We can always learn something from people in very different roles.

I attended an event last night arranged by Monitor, the independent regulator for NHS foundation trusts, where Archie Norman, Chairman of ITV led the discussion. Archie has been best known for his role in making Asda so successful.  Another class act and a great contributor to an interesting and enjoyable evening.  It was fascinating to hear his views about leadership and to see how similar they were to mine.   ITV really is now in good hands.

There are many different types of leaders, and styles of leadership - but I definitely found a business compatriot last night and a person I really liked.

No week is ever the same.  That’s one of the reasons I love this job. 

And this week is another mixed bag of meetings and events. 

I started Monday morning at the staff induction where every month I welcome new starters and talk to them about our organisation, plans and values. I want them to feel as excited and proud to work here as I do.

This was followed by the Chairman’s Lunch where we hosted very special guests.  It’s a regular event to update major supporters on our developments.  Our supporters are vital to our success and we value them greatly.

I’m then off to London tomorrow for a few days of back-to-back meetings with leaders in healthcare and national cancer groups.  It’s important for me to ensure I’m contributing to national cancer discussions and plans as well as promoting and positioning the Christie on a national level.

Variety is the spice of life !

We all have great ideas and plans.  No matter what they entail.  But the best plans often come from coming together as a strong group.  And a good plan can often only progress if everyone is on board and believes its going to really work.

We held an important strategic event on Wednesday where our clinicians discussed the future challenges and potential opportunities and plans for our cancer centre – in order to develop our new five year strategy over the next six months.

It was an exciting event with presentations, group debates and panel discussions. And great to see such energy and enthusiasm. All fuelled by a passion to provide the best possible services for our patients. 

Everyone here is proud of the Christie and the work we do.  We know that we need to address some key issues, but we are on track to become a world-class cancer centre.

We’re all in this together, to quote a well used line, and with the skill, experience, determination and commitment that I saw in the room that night – I know that we can.

A great team needs a great leader. And a great leader can make a great team.

An excellent leader can bond, motivate and inspire their colleagues; enhance the quality and performance of the team; and secure support and commitment in challenging times.

That's why we invest time and effort in our leaders and emerging leaders. Ensuring they maximise on their potential and the potential of those who work for them.

Our 10-month Christie leadership course finished on Friday. This was a bespoke, in-house programme for managers to help them successfully deliver strategic objectives and operational plans.  It included shadowing and job swap opportunities, work based projects as well as web based learning, and 360 degree assessment and feedback.

On the last day the 21 managers on the programme gave presentations to our executive team about what they had learned and how they are going to use this to make improvements in their areas.

I felt very proud of each and every one of them. Our staff are the jewel in our crown and they have shone brightly throughout this course

Old friends who know you well are worth their weight in gold. 

It can be lonely at the top - but having a good friend to chat things through with, who knows your history and how you tick, can clear the mind and boost the spirit.

I saw a very good friend this weekend.  Peter Homa who spotted me in the early 90s when he was chief executive at Leicester Royal Infirmary where I worked and became my advocate into general management.

I had been suffering from a nasty bug last week along with many others, and although I still came to work it had obviously debilitated me because on the Saturday night I was totally shattered.  And my lovely friend Peter, seeing how exhausted I was, sent me to bed at 9.30pm.  He stayed up late with my husband and his wife, but saw that I need some precious rest.  How kind is that!

I’m feeling especially emotional about old friends at the moment because my school friend, who I’ve mentioned before in this blog, died of cancer on Boxing Day - leaving a little three year old girl without her mummy.

She was treated here, so at least I had lots of opportunities to see her in her last few months. I’m thinking of her daughter all the time and it makes me even more determined that we find more cures for this cruel and agonising disease.

So it was a weekend talking and thinking about the past, present and future.

We also saw the sunshine and heard the birds singing early on Sunday morning, which hopefully means we’re coming out of the bad weather. 

Spring always re-energises people – just like a great weekend with old friends.

It’s always difficult at Christmas when someone isn’t well.  It’s important not to be so wrapped up in the Christmas festivities and fun that we forget those who are struggling this time of year. Working here is a constant reminder of that, but this year it’s especially near to my heart as a member of my close family isn’t well.  It makes you realise what’s important. Those we love.

I finish today for a week’s Christmas break and will cherish and enjoy every minute with family and friends.

I wish each and everyone of you a wonderful Christmas. And my thoughts are especially with those of you who are ill or, like me, have loved ones who aren’t well.

Here’s to a happy New Year.  I hope 2010 brings you success, joy and hope.

It was a crazy Christmas week. All working mums will understand. Incredibly busy at work before the Christmas break and then trying to squeeze in time to buy presents, attend festive lunches and end-of-year events, send cards and go to all the school nativity plays and concerts.

My daughter Bella woke me up at 4.30am saying she was a bauble in the Christmas show and needed a red tutu.  Where do you get a red tutu from ?  And then I found my son’s note about his Christmas carol concert, which parents could attend, in his school bag.  It had been there for a month (when my diary wasn’t so jam packed).

I also now have three turkeys. Worrying that I wouldn’t get round to buying one, my mum, husband and a friend have all ordered turkeys to be collected on Christmas Eve.  It’s feast or famine in the Shaw household.

I do love Christmas though. The spirit of goodwill and focus on family and friends is wonderful.  It’s also a great opportunity to thank people for their hard work over the year. I met with our contractors last Tuesday to thank them for their work on our building developments. This has been an incredible year for the Christie in terms of capital developments and they have being doing a professional, high-quality job, on time and in budget.

And on Friday we held our annual staff awards. An important event where we recognise and thank staff and volunteers for long service and applaud individuals and teams for special achievements.  Some of them are high-profile doctors and others unsung heroes who go above-and-beyond the call of duty every day behind the scenes.  As always, it was a really uplifting and emotional event. My tears this time however were tears of laughter as our guest of honour was John Bishop – a brilliant, witty comedian who brought the house down with a comedy gig at the end. John is currently touring the country with his much acclaimed ‘Elvis has left the building’ show – and we were delighted he took time out of his busy schedule to kindly attend our awards ceremony.

By the way, last night I was delighted to win the ‘Crain’s Manchester Business’ businesswoman of the year award 2009 – especially because I was nominated alongside so many other esteemed and inspiring businesswomen who are all fantastic in their careers.

It was really lovely to be recognised by the private sector and I would just like to give a massive thank you to all who support me at work, out of work and at home, for making this possible.

We held a special event for a very special man yesterday. A man who is bravely fundraising to help others in honour of his beloved late wife.

Don Taylor has toured the entire country in his caravan - travelling nearly 4,000 miles and stopping at 140 caravan parks - to raise money for our charity.

His wife Aileen sadly died of ovarian cancer last year, and Don wants to help fund vital research for future patients.

They were married for nearly 54 years and enjoyed countless caravan holidays throughout this time.  So when Don decided he wanted to raise money for us in honour of his wife, it was obvious to him that his ‘caravan of love’ was the best way to do this. A moving and loving tribute from an exceptional man.

It was a real pleasure to host an event in order to honour and thank Don for his generous fundraising efforts. His approach to life is an inspiration to us all.

A larger than life character with a huge heart.

His wife would have been so proud.