LKS North Blog https://lksnorth.nhs.uk/blog/ Articulate, blogging built on Umbraco 19086 https://lksnorth.nhs.uk/blog/posts/hello-from-amanda-balaam-new-starter/ Northern Lights Hello from Amanda Balaam - New Starter <p>Hello, my name is Amanda Balaam, and I’ve recently started as Evidence and Library Service Manager at Mersey Care. I am not new to the NHS, having been at the Northern Care Alliance as an Assistant Librarian for almost 5 years. Prior to this, my experience is almost 25 years in school libraries, most recently in Suffolk for 20 years, although I am a Northerner born (Yorkshire) and bred (Lancashire)!</p> <p>I graduated from Liverpool John Moores University, and a few years later was able to complete my Chartership and revalidated this during Covid. It seemed an ideal opportunity to revalidate having completed just over a year in a completely new sector, although the teaching skills I had acquired in schools were totally transferrable to 1-2-1 and group training sessions and inductions.  I’m looking forward to the next step in my career and, having met my new team, have been made really welcome.</p> <p>Outside of work, I am heavily involved in umpiring badminton – in fact some of you may have seen various tweets in the summer 2022 (courtesy of Northern Care Alliance) of my involvement at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham which was an amazing opportunity and experience! I am also currently the Honorary Secretary for the Badminton Umpires Association of England. When time allows, I also enjoy family history research, although I have hit numerous brick walls at the moment!</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><img style="width: 463px; height: 347px;" src="https://lksnorth.nhs.uk/media/2919/northern-lights.jpg?width=463&amp;height=347&amp;mode=max" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/ed69a1a6d04b432ca80e9a4571ea2b46" /><img style="width: 0px; height:0px;" src="https://lksnorth.nhs.uk/media/2919/northern-lights.jpg?width=0&amp;height=0" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/ed69a1a6d04b432ca80e9a4571ea2b46" /></p> Wed, 29 Nov 2023 12:18:02 Z 2023-11-29T12:18:02Z 8588 https://lksnorth.nhs.uk/blog/posts/perspectives-of-a-new-library-manager/ Northern Lights Perspectives of a New Library Manager <p><strong>Bit of Background</strong></p> <p>I’m Dan. I currently work as the Library Manager at The Christie NHS Foundation Trust. I’ve been asked to write a short piece on my experience as a new manager within the network. I’m really pleased to be contributing to this special edition Northern Lights.</p> <p>My first appointment within the NHS was at Manchester Mental Health and Social Care Trust (MMHSCT) in 2014. Back then my job title was <em>Health Information and Resources Library Supervisor</em>. This snappy job title actually provoked a fiery debate on a LIHNN mailing list when it was advertised! Who would have thought librarians could be so opinionated? </p> <p>Having been based in public libraries for 5 years, I was feeling a little apprehensive about taking on a new role within healthcare. Fortunately David and the Health Care Libraries Unit (HCLU) were on hand and gave me an overview of NHS structures at the time. I wish that I still had the structural diagram that David gave me on my third week at MMHSCT. I had it on the wall of my office for years and it proved to be an essential map to the healthcare systems, although it was probably out of date within a few weeks.</p> <p>In 2017 Manchester Mental Health and Social Care Trust merged with Greater Manchester West (GMW) and a new Trust was created: Greater Manchester Mental Health (GMMH). I was extremely lucky to have the opportunity to lead a brand new team which incorporated the staff and library sites from<em> both</em> of the old organisations.</p> <p>In December 2019, I was appointed as the Library Manager at The Christie. In my first week, a leaking roof threatened to destroy our print journal collection. In my third week builders managed to break through a wall exposing part of the library to the Manchester weather. In month 3, pandemic! I got to work at the hospital for all of 3 months before we all had to adjust to working at home. Despite everything, The Christie is a fantastic place to work and the team are genuinely brilliant.</p> <p>Throughout my 6 years in the NHS I’ve had experienced a fair bit of change and I’ll briefly reflect on some of what I’ve learned as a manager and what I hope the future might hold for librarianship and librarians.</p> <p><strong>Physical interactions are still vital to the mobilisation of evidence and knowledge.</strong></p> <p>If a global pandemic has taught us anything, it is that we can ensure that evidence and knowledge is available at the point of need, no matter where a librarian is based.   </p> <p>Yet one thing which I have missed recently is the opportunity to engage with people in corridors, on the wards and across the hospital. These interactions generate tons of opportunities to deliver evidence services, promote access to resources and make connections across the organisation.</p> <p>This reminded me that librarians thrive in these opportunistic moments and that many great projects have their origins in a conversation which started while waiting for a kettle to boil. David once said that the best librarians are the ones who can’t walk through the corridors of a hospital, because they keep being stopped and asked questions. Even in our new connected world, I think this is still very relevant.</p> <p><strong>Attracting New Library Professionals to the sector</strong></p> <p>Throughout my time as a manager in the NHS, I have always been amazed by the technical skills, enthusiasm, ambition and confidence of new library professionals. Many are coming in to healthcare with incredible skill sets and a passion for innovation.</p> <p>I’ve been incredibly lucky to work with many new professionals over the last few years and they have all gone on to do great things. However, if I have learned one thing during my time in the NHS Libraries , it is that we need to attract graduates to the profession.</p> <p>Fortunately I think we do a pretty good job in the North. The health libraries module which is now on the curriculum for MA students at MMU is delivered in partnership with HEE. We also have a good track record of giving new professionals lots of opportunities within the regional networks and there seems to be loads going on with apprenticeships right now. This needs to continue. In my opinion we can’t afford to lose our future librarians to other sectors.</p> <p><strong>Networks and collaboration have been </strong></p> <p>Finally, we’re incredibly lucky to have such established networks in the North for the purposes of collaboration. Two schemes which we are currently involved in at The Christie (<em>Greater Manchester eBook Consortium</em> and the <em>GM Early Adopters</em>) would not have been possible without our networks.</p> <p>We need to maintain these networks and keep our partnerships going. For anyone who has ever worked in other library sectors, I’m sure you will agree that they can feel insular and cut off from other professionals. Our networks are powerful tools in the procurement of resources, advocacy and the development of modern library and knowledge services.</p> <p style="text-align: right;"><strong>Dan Livesey</strong><br /><strong>Library Operations Manager</strong><br /><strong>The Christie NHS Foundation Trust</strong></p> Mon, 18 Jan 2021 12:50:27 Z 2021-01-18T12:50:27Z 8572 https://lksnorth.nhs.uk/blog/posts/a-new-manager-at-bradford-district-care-nhs-ft/ Northern Lights A new manager at Bradford District Care NHS FT <p><strong>You are the same, the role is different. Times too</strong></p> <p><br />Stepping up to management is always a challenge, but especially during COVID-19. I was appointed Library Manager at Bradford District Care NHS FT in June 2020. This is my personal experience transitioning from librarian to manager.</p> <p><br />There are two elements that helped me navigate this new role.</p> <p><br /><strong>Anchor to your values</strong></p> <p><br />This means that before mimicking the moves of seasoned manager, I spent time recognising which values ground me on earth (apart from gravity!). This is an important and challenging task because no one can tell you what your own values are. <br />Luckily I quickly recognised that my values were aligned to my trust and new management, which made the entire transition easier. If you’re curious to know my values, these are: listening, be curious, collaborate and never be afraid to fail.</p> <p><br /><strong>Saying goodbye, acceptance, new beginnings</strong></p> <p><br />One aspect of my role I recently reflected on is the fact that transition into a manager role does not only involve myself. The fact was that with my arrival, on the top of the first lockdown, the previous established balance in the team was disrupted.</p> <p><br />As a keen gardener I am well aware of the principle of interconnectedness (in plain words, nothing in nature exists in isolation). For this reason, as soon as I started my role I shifted my attention to the environment around me.</p> <p><br />Despite my enthusiasm for starting a new working chapter and embarking on new projects straight away, I was determined to take time and understand what my team was feeling. Because of the lockdown I started setting up regular team meetings and 1:1s to introduce myself to the team and learn about roles and activities. It’s so tempting to immediately impose new processes and ideas, but instead I wanted to observe and learn about the unique person behind each role.</p> <p><br />My decision to invest time getting to know my team was based on a past experience where I took for granted that everyone would get on with the internal promotion. At that time I had been solely focused on getting on with the new job and proving to my managers that they made the right decision. What I failed to do was to recognise that not all of the team were on the same page. <br />Maybe it’s because I moved into a mental health trust and psychological processes are our cup of tea but in this role, I better understand the stages that form the change model.</p> <p>Are you familiar with the Kubler Ross Model? </p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 375px;" src="https://lksnorth.nhs.uk/media/2397/kubler-ross-model-002.jpg?width=500&amp;height=375" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/8180a4d7538d4f9d96cbdcf43ce41180" /></p> <p> </p> <p><br />Imagine you spent the last 10 years happily with your manager, you built a strong relationship, and you know you’re well regarded. In few months the Covid-19 pandemic kicks in, working from home disrupts your private and working life, maybe you’re going through some personal challenges and cherry on top a new manager comes in. As a team member you’ll have to build a new relationship with the manager again. Chances are that the new manager will not be able to replicate exactly the past relationship you had with the previous manager. This is where a little bit of empathy is needed.</p> <p><br />After a while I openly addressed the Change Model at a team meeting. I asked the team to look at the model and identify where they felt they were. I assured them that it didn’t matter where they were, and that I was there to help them move towards a new beginning. What’s best is that the model frees people from feeling guilty about certain emotions toward change. The new beginning stage is just few steps away.</p> <p><br />Just one note: while the model can be utilised to support understanding of some reactions to change, it is not a certified blueprint. So keep using your critical thinking!</p> <p><br /><strong>What’s next?</strong></p> <p><br />With this issue we celebrate David’s retirement and achievements but it’s also important to start thinking how the group will move forward after his departure.</p> <p><br />I am personally nurturing two powerful elements that belong to David’s legacy:</p> <p><br />• collaborations make us stronger <br />• the transformative power of tiny changes.</p> <p><br />Finally I want to thank the editorial team for having asked me to write this short piece.</p> <p style="text-align: right;"><strong>Federica Bianchini</strong><br /><strong>Library &amp; Information Resources Manager</strong><br /><strong>Bradford District Care NHS FT</strong></p> Fri, 15 Jan 2021 14:21:22 Z 2021-01-15T14:21:22Z
https://lksnorth.nhs.uk/blog/tags/new%20manager/rss
lksnorth.nhs.uk
CC-MAIN-2024-18
15190
application/http; msgtype=response
sha1:TU66FTIYGJRX6UXR4N4N54TXEGK7PJIL
<urn:uuid:923d556f-ce1d-4909-83c6-40e990b45a94>
2024-04-12T16:44:28Z
20.90.134.30
application/rss+xml
sha1:M7IXSG3ON6L7TOJ4VK3TGIKDIUFYJSGY
<urn:uuid:369ba03b-a7a5-493a-a6ac-bf4a22616ff2>
https://lksnorth.nhs.uk/blog/tags/new%20manager/rss
response
<urn:uuid:b0dce0a9-8eff-4474-839a-32e653f99ea4>
isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2024-18
publisher: Common Crawl
description: Wide crawl of the web for April 2024
operator: Common Crawl Admin (info@commoncrawl.org)
hostname: ip-10-67-67-47
software: Apache Nutch 1.19 (modified, https://github.com/commoncrawl/nutch/)
robots: checked via crawler-commons 1.5-SNAPSHOT (https://github.com/crawler-commons/crawler-commons)
format: WARC File Format 1.1
conformsTo: https://iipc.github.io/warc-specifications/specifications/warc-format/warc-1.1/