BNA Helping Nurses since 1948

Since 1948 BNA has helped nurses & HCAs find temporary work with the #NHS and a range of other care providers. #FamilyFriendly local work, to meet family and other commitments.

BNA supports the founding principles of the NHS. We have a strong belief that a universally good standard of care should be available to all in the UK. To support this, it is essential that nurses and HCAs are available in sufficient numbers, and with the required skills, in all healthcare settings. The Association supports this by being available 24-7 to meet the shortfall in nursing staff.

Our consultants will take a call, at any hour of the day or night, to listen to each healthcare provider and understand the staffing needs. We then identify specific workers from our database, based on qualifications and experience. Where the client requires someone with previous experience of the healthcare setting, we will strive to supply a worker who has worked there in the past,

The Association supplies an efficient best-value service to all our clients: hospitals, GP, community healthcare staff and for other settings.

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Meeting Standards for Nursing & Care Agencies: New CQC Report

A24 Group nursing and care agencies, which includes The British Nursing Association, are registered with the UK's Care Quality Commission. They are regularly inspected to ensure they meet the National Minimum Standards for nursing and domiciliary care agencies.

These external checks complement our own program of internal reviews and audits that help ensure all our nursing agencies are operating to the very highest levels of care. To find out more about the CQC's inspection of A24 Group, you can see the latest report here on the provision of care to people in their own homes - or visit the Care Quality Commission website.

The new report inspected service provision in the following key areas:

1. Care and welfare of people who use services
People should get safe and appropriate care that meets their needs and supports their rights.
2. Cooperating with other providers
People should get safe and coordinated care when they move between different services.
3. Requirements relating to workers
People should be cared for by staff who are properly qualified and able to do their job.
4. Staffing
There should be enough members of staff to keep people safe and meet their health and welfare needs.
5. Assessing and monitoring the quality of service provision
The service should have quality checking systems to manage risks and assure the health, welfare and safety of people who receive care.
6. Records
People’s personal records, including medical records, should be accurate and kept safe and confidential.

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Guidance for staff intending to travel to, or returning from, Ebola affected countries

The on-going outbreak of Ebola in West Africa, primarily affecting Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone has been declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern by the World Health Organization. This is the largest outbreak of this disease to ever happen. 

Ebola is a severe and life threatening viral disease caused by the Ebola virus. The onset of illness is sudden, with fever, headache, joint and muscle pain, sore throat and intense weakness. This is then followed by diarrhea, vomiting, rash, impaired kidney and liver function and stomach pain. Some patients may develop a rash, red eyes, hiccups, internal and external bleeding.

Ebola hemorrhagic fever is fatal in between 50 to 90% of all clinically ill cases. Ebola is spread through direct contact with blood and body fluids from infected people. The incubation period ranges from 2 to 21 days. Anyone who has close contact with a person infected with the virus, or someone who handles samples from patients are at risk. This includes hospital staff, family members and laboratory workers, all of whom are at risk if they do not use appropriate protective equipment / barrier nursing techniques. These precautions include wearing protective gowns, gloves, and masks, in addition to wearing eye protection (e.g. eye goggles) or a face shield.

The government advises against all but essential travel to Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea except for those involved in the direct response to the Ebola outbreak. It remains unlikely but not impossible that travellers infected in one of the affected countries could arrive in the UK while incubating the disease and develop symptoms after their return. Although the likelihood of imported cases is very low, travellers returning to the UK from the affected areas, particularly those who have been involved in health care overseas, need to remain vigilant.

For staff who are planning to visit Ebola affected countries:

The agency requests that staff follow FCO advice and do not place themselves at risk of infection. The agency recognises that some staff may have family in one of the affected countries but it does not consider essential travel to include, for example, visiting family at Christmas. If staff choose not to follow the FCO advice and travel to one of the affected countries, this may then result in work restrictions and / or exclusion upon return as noted in the scenarios below.

All staff who travel to one of the Ebola affected countries (Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone) irrespective of the reason for travel (personal or work related) must contact the agency prior to leaving the UK and on return to the UK, prior to their return to work.

Existing staff who have visited Ebola affected countries - this will mainly apply to those who have visited affected countries for the purpose of charity and/or healthcare work.

If no healthcare work was undertaken whilst in one of the Ebola affected countries, and staff had no direct contact with a known or suspected Ebola, including attending a funeral, staff should:

  • Inform the agency prior to departure
  • Monitor their health / temperature for 21 days from leaving the affected country
  • If the staff member becomes unwell with symptoms such as fever, chills, muscle aches, headache, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, sore throat or rash within 21 days of coming back from Guinea, Liberia or Sierra Leone, they should stay at home and immediately telephone 111 or 999 and explain that they have recently visited West Africa. These services will initiate the appropriate care pathway
  • They must keep in touch with the agency prior to return to work
  • Staff member will be able to return to work after 21 days

If healthcare work was undertaken abroad or the staff member had direct contact with an Ebola case e.g. routine medical / nursing care but wore appropriate protective clothing with no known breaches in the personal protective equipment (PPE), the staff member should:

  • Inform the agency prior to departure
  • Check temperature twice daily for 21 days after return and report any raised temperature or other suspicious symptoms to the monitoring team at Public Health England (PHE)
  • Must provide Occupational Health with documentary evidence from their Voluntary Aid agency / affiliated health care institution who organised the overseas placement outlining the extent of their exposure and specific detail regarding the PPE used
  • Contact the agency prior to return to work
  • Staff member will be able to return to work after 21 days and monitoring completed

If healthcare work was undertaken abroad or the staff member had direct contact with an Ebola case and may have had unprotected exposure of skin or mucous membranes to potentially infectious blood or body fluids, including on clothing or bedding, for example:

  • Unprotected handling of clinical/lab specimens
  • Mucosal exposure to splashes
  • Needlestick injury
  • Kissing and / or sexual contact

The staff member should:

  • Inform the agency prior to departure
  • Check temperature twice daily for 21 days after return and REPORT DAILY to the
  • Monitoring Team at Public Health England (PHE) even if the temperature is normal and the staff member is not experiencing any suspicious symptoms
  • Staff member will be able to return to work after 21 days and monitoring is completed

For more information about the Ebola virus disease, see:
Government UK
NHS Choices: Ebola and Overview
Ebola virus disease: clinical management and guidance
Ebola virus disease: information for humanitarian aid workers

 

 

Speeding up the payment of your eTimesheets

Dear A24 Group Member

Unfortunately we’ve been experiencing a number of issues regarding electronic timesheet payments for bookings carried out at NHS Trusts that use eTimesheets.

Some NHS Trusts have elected to use this system as it allows them to closely control their agency usage and spend.
Ward managers have been instructed to only “Authorise” bookings where they can clearly see the agency worker completed the assignment that they were booked for. 

In most cases delays in payment are on the Trust’s side and result when ward managers do not have sufficient information to confirm your attendance and “Authorise” your timesheet for payment.

Payroll and your bookings consultant will always work with you and the relevant ward manager/s to resolve these issues speedily BUT in most cases the delays can be avoided if you follow the guidance below.

Feedback from these Trusts highlights that there are four main issues that delay their authorisation of your shifts:

  • The Agency Worker did not sign the “Agency Book” on the ward to state their start time when they began their shift *** Please Note: Some wards also require you to sign out also
  • The Agency Worker is asked to change wards, due to a changing need at the Trust, and they do not sign the “Agency Book” on the original ward to state where they were moved to
  • The Agency Worker is asked to change wards and they do not sign the “Agency Book” on the new ward to state the start time and the ward they were moved from
  • The Agency Worker works a shift that has not been added to the online booking portal on the wards

Tips:

  • Once you arrive for your shift, it is your responsibility to sign the “agency book”. Always ask a member of staff to initial next to your name (this is normally done by the ward manager, ward sister or ward clerk to acknowledge that you have arrived for your shift).
  • Politely insist that they sign the book at the time because as you know wards can be busy places and they may forget causing delays in your pay.
  • Always note where you were asked to move to and from in the “agency book” books on both wards. This leaves a paper trail to help us get you paid quickly after the shift. This normally results in new booking reference numbers being generated of the Trust’s booking system as each ward is treated as a separate shift when it comes to payments.
  • When you have concluded your shift and ready to leave the ward politely ask the ward sister if they could “Authorise” your timesheet.
  • In the event that you arrive on a ward and they say the shift you were booked for has been cancelled (this is rare but can happen for a number of reasons) and they then offer to keep you on to work or move you to a different ward to work then it is important they create a new booking for you on the system that can be later “Authorised”
  • Please let your consultant know in this instance.

Note:

To allow us enough time to process payments for the Friday after the booking was carried out, for client s using the eTimesheets our payroll cut off for “Authorised” eTimesheets is Monday at 3pm. In the event the trust authorises your timesheet after this time the timesheet will be processed in the following week’s payroll run.

To ensure streamlining of payment we also urge candidates to inform us if they have been moved from one ward to another at the client. This way we can update our systems to reflect the correct booking for each candidate and timesheet.

By following the above guidance you will help us get you paid as quickly as possible.  However, if you do experience issues with payments for bookings carried out at eTimesheet clients. Please call your consultant to see if the ward has “authorised” your shift.

Best Regards
A24 Group Payroll Team

Staffshift Mobile

Here at British Nursing Association we understand how busy our Candidates schedules can be and now have an app for all the hard-working Candidates which can be updated easily. The major feature of this app is ‘Easy to use’.

It allows our candidates to indicate their availability for shifts for up to 7 days in advance which are split into the standard Early, Late and Night availabilities within the calendar. Our candidates are able to see when they are booked and easily see what additional shifts they may be available for.

Scheduling can take a lot of your time and energy. Fortunately, there’s a better way, download Staffshift Mobile now!

As a Healthcare Professional, you have many responsibilities, let our Staffshift Mobile application allow you to manage your diary more proactively.

When we are co-ordinating shift requirements with our clients it requires the utmost efficiency and timely feedback to our Clients. With our Candidates having a simple mobile application to ensure their availability is always current ensures that we will have the benefit of being able to fill shifts quickly.

  • Shift Planning of your availability for work which will enable The British Nursing Association to see your availability and call you for shifts according to your indicated preferences. The calendar will allow you to update for up to 7 days in advance.
  • Accessible, Staffshift Mobile is at your fingertips, log in and update your availability on the go which is an immediate update to The British Nursing Association.
  • Fast, friendly, helpful support from our offices, we are available 365/24/7.
  • Accommodate a variety of Staff, if you are a Nurse or a Caregiver this simple app will work for you.
  • System requirements, you will need iOS 7 or later and for Android you will need Android 4 or above in order for Staffshift Mobile to be supported by your mobile device.
  • Cost of the Staffshift Mobile application is FREE!

For Android you can Download the app now from your Google Play Store
For iOS you can Download the app now from your App Store

We are automatically sending invites for registration to Staffshift for British Nursing Association candidates in the next week, once you have registered your details you will be able to download Staffshift Mobile, log in with your Staffshift log in details and immediately begin to update your availability for work.

If you would like the invitation to join Staffshift sooner, you can inform your consultant and they will arrange for the invitation to be sent to you within 24 hours.

If you are not currently working with The British Nursing Association , this is another advantage for you to join our Agency now, with one registration you will be eligible for work with the 5 Agencies under the A24 Group.

Register now to take advantage of great work opportunities.
 

Bank Holiday Deadlines - Easter and May 2015 Back

Dear Agency Worker

Please take note of the following to ensure prompt payment during the upcoming 2015 bank holiday periods. Please make sure that your timesheets arrive at the Head Office by post, hand delivered (92-96 Lind Road, Sutton, SM1 4PL), or email wages@a24group.com as follows:

Please also note the following regarding the deadline for week ending 29/03/15:
 
1. Timesheet submission - end of Tax Year 2014/2015, weekending 29/03/15 (shifts including Sunday 29 March 2015).
 
*Weekending 29/03/15 is the last week of the Tax Year 2014/2015 so please get your timesheets into us well before 09.30am Monday 30 March 2015 deadline. For example: If you are working for the whole of the week previous, please send in your timesheets as you complete shifts rather than try to send them all on the Monday morning following that week's work. Due to the tight timescales Payroll will be processing timesheets as soon as they come in to ensure we can pay you promptly on Thursday 02 April 2015 for the work you have completed the previous week. This should also simplify matters for you before we go into the new Tax Year (2015/2016, weekending 05/04/15).
 
2.  Payroll - Telephone calls - hours over the Bank holidays
 
In order to ensure we can pay you promptly over this period we need to notify you that we will not be taking Payroll calls on Monday 30 March and Tuesday 31 March 2015, but lines will re-open at 9am on Wednesday 01 April 2015.
 
Thank you and Regards
A24 Group Payroll Team

BANK HOLIDAY DEADLINES- CHRISTMAS 2015/ NEW YEAR 2016

FAO: All A24 Group Agency Workers

01 December 2015
Dear Agency Worker Re: Bank Holiday Deadlines – CHRISTMAS 2015 / NEW YEAR 2016
Please take note of the following to ensure prompt payment during the upcoming 2015/2016 bank holiday periods. Please make sure that your timesheets arrive at the Head Office by post (92-96 Lind Road, Sutton, SM1 4PL) or email (wages@a24group.com) as follows:


Please also note the following regarding the above deadlines:

1.*Shifts worked up to Weekending 03/01/2016 Please try to get as many of your timesheets in to us as soon as possible and well before the deadline for this week – i.e.- please send in timesheets as soon as you have worked a shift for this weekending and please do not hold onto them, even if this results in submitting several timesheets for this particular week. Due to the tight timescales and Bank Holiday backlogs payroll will be processing timesheets as soon as they come in to ensure we can pay you promptly (on Friday 08 January 2016) for the work completed in the previous week.
2. Payroll queries – Phone line opening hours In order to ensure we can pay you promptly over this period we need to notify you that we will be operating reduced hours with regards to our payroll phone lines for payroll queries, as follows:

DATE                                                                                               PHONE LINE OPENING HOURS

THURSDAY 24 DECEMBER                                                                                         09:00 - 12:00 FRIDAY 25 DECEMBER to MONDAY 28 DECEMBER 2015                                                CLOSED   TUESDAY 29 DECEMBER 2015                                                                                  09:00 - 12:00   WEDNESDAY 30 DECEMBER                                                                                            CLOSED THURSDAY 31 DECEMBER                                                                                         09:00 - 12:00   FRIDAY 01 JANUARY 2016                                                                                                 CLOSED   MONDAY 4 JANUARY 2016 ONWARDS                                                LINES OPEN AS NORMAL


Please note: Our payroll telephone lines are not usually open on Wednesdays. 
Thank you for all of your hard work this year. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Best Regards, A24 Group Payroll Team
 

BNA wins Platinum Award!

BNA British Nursing Association wins Platinum Award In LPP London Procurement Programme For Nursing Agency Services

Nursing agency BNA British Nursing Association has been awarded platinum status following a full audit by the NHS London Procurement Programme, the national procurement partner for UK public services. The audit demonstrates the nursing agency's commitment to supporting the NHS by ensuring the availability of high quality agency nurses, cost-effectively, with secure compliance systems in place.

The audit focused on the recruitment by BNA British Nursing Association of temporary nursing staff for NHS Trusts through the London Procurement Programme (LPP) framework. The agency was awarded the LPP Framework for Nursing: it supplies nursing staff for hospital, primary care and domestic home settings.

The agency has extensive experience in working with the NHS and has developed amongst the most advanced compliance systems in the sector to maximise safety in the recruitment, management and selection of nurses and HCA healthcare assistants for shifts, with a 24-7 service to meet all temporary staffing needs. The agency's compliance team has 124 staff dedicated exclusively to credentials checks.

Key features of the agency's systems include the bespoke Enterprise ICT compliance system - with over 100,000 hours of development time over 6 years. Nurse registration requires mandatory face-to-face interviews; comprehensive credentials checks; CRB; completion of a 23-page career form; provision of four referees; and presentation of professional certifications.

On-going training for nursing staff at the agency includes 13 mandatory courses annually, with 60 training events for 900 candidates monthly. Compliance protection features daily system-generated 'expiry reports' of training dates; automated e-mail expiry reminders to candidates; and automatic system exclusion of staff from booking in Enterprise if certification expires.

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