“PULSE” – STAFF MAGAZINE NHS NATIONAL SERVICES SCOTLAND PULSE, the Magazine for NSS people supporting Scotland’s health, is published bi-monthly. Every edition of Pulse includes a message from the chief Executive and includes a variety of Corporate Initiatives as well as highlighting key strategic Business Units (SBU’s), local issues, developments and achievements. Pulse is available both on-line and in paper format at all NSS locations. Yvonne Kendall, Internal Communications Manager Tel:

PULSE – NSS STAFF MAGAZINE Pulse is the staff magazine for NHS National Services Scotland (NSS). Accountable to the Scottish Government, NSS works at the very heart of the Health Service, providing national strategic support services and expert advice to NHS Scotland. We also play an active and crucial role in the delivery of effective healthcare to patients and the public. Made up of a number of different services, our staff magazine is distributed to the organisation’s 3,500 staff in 21 sites across Scotland in hard copy, and is also available on our intranet. Our audience is extremely varied, including nurses, laboratory technicians, researchers, procurement specialists, senior managers, lorry drivers, domestic staff, office staff and other specialist professionals. Since 1998, Pulse has played a vital role in helping staff understand how their role fits into the organisational strategy, using a variety of case studies written as feature articles. It also gives staff a chance to speak about their experiences, and show the ‘human side’ of the organisation and the people who work here. Most importantly, it allows us to celebrate our achievements during a time of increasing change, helping to keep focus on our purpose – to support Scotland’s health.

PULSE - OBJECTIVES Pulse’s key objective is to engage staff in alignment with NSS’ staff governance standards: Well informed, Safe and improved working environment, Involved in decisions that affect them, Appropriately trained and Treated fairly and consistently. It does this by highlighting best practice, process improvements and excellent service in an accessible and credible way. To make sure content reflects the needs and priorities of staff, there is an editorial team of volunteers representing all services and locations. A readership survey happens every two years as well as regular encouragement to submit feedback directly to the editor. The magazine is published in both print and online with an accessible – text only – version for staff with visual impairments. We work closely with our organisation’s Equality and Diversity lead as well as staff to ensure that all versions continue to deliver the magazine in the way that can reach everyone.

PULSE – PROGRESS REPORT In the last two years we have worked to engage readers in a new way in light of the progress made towards Health and Social Care Integration. NSS is undertaking a Quality and Efficiency Service Transformation (QuEST) Programme, which has both structural and cultural implications. In response, the magazine adopted a thematic approach to its own structure and culture. The first year focused around embedding our organisational Values, which was no small feat, as they take on an increasingly important role during a time of significant change. Each issue of Pulse was structured around two of the Values with personal stories from directors as well as showcasing examples of staff putting them into practice. It’s about showing, not telling. During 2014 we have taken a similar approach in embedding our ‘QuEST aims’ – the behaviours we need to adopt in order to make a successful transition to a more customer-focused organisation. The aims are ‘responsiveness, strong foundations, agility, external focus, empowerment, flexibility, low bureaucracy, innovation.’ Over the year we have highlighted the progress we have made in each of these areas, and are currently producing a special December ‘celebration of achievements’ issue.

PULSE – CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT We continue to run staff features like ‘What makes a…’ highlighting ‘unseen’ staff in our organisation alongside our other items. Reflecting our ambition to be a more outward facing organisation, we use devices like a regular health feature which promotes national health campaigns in the context of how NSS staff contribute to these wider objectives. We have also run a feature ‘Outside in’ where we publish feedback from our customers. The restructuring of the magazine has had a noticeable effect on our readers’ value of the magazine. In the 2013 Readership Survey 75% respondents said the magazine was relevant to their work. This was an increase of almost 20% from the Also 86% of respondents said the magazine keeps them ‘well informed’ up 16% from 2011 and 91% said the magazine is ‘easy to understand’ an increase of 3%. With such a large and varied audience this is no mean feat. And a big part of that is owed to the volunteers who help keep the magazine on track. The editorial news team helps oversee the production of the magazine, making sure content reflects the needs, priorities and achievements of the entire organisation. They help gather news stories on the lighter side of work, applauding professional successes as well as adding the ‘human element’ to articles.

PULSE – THE WAY AHEAD With Connect Communication we’ve continued to refine the look of Pulse and next year plan to focus on the impact we have on our ‘customers and stakeholders’. We work to combine design elements of a magazine with the capacity to carry the volume of information required in a newspaper. As a hybrid of both, it retains popularity with contributors and readers alike. In the 2013 Readership survey 90% of respondents agreed the design is appealing and 95% find the images and illustrations appealing. Pulse is a magazine that truly belongs to its audience. Grounded in staff contribution, Pulse maintains a balance of the professional and personal. Next year, we plan on taking it to the next level and really showing our staff just how valued their contributions are to the overall health and wellbeing of Scotland.

TESTIMONIALS “The heartbeat of a person is measured by taking their pulse; the heart beat of NSS can be measured through Pulse. Its articles, features and news communicated in attractive and dynamic form keeps the organisation informed, challenged and alive to the issues it faces and the people who make up NSS.” David Knowles, Director, Practitioner and Counter Fraud Services Senior Responsible Officer, NSS QuEST Programme “I have worked in many organisations prior to joining NSS as Director of HR and Workforce Development, and, in my opinion, Pulse is one of the best staff magazines I have ever read. It’s informative, engaging and easy to read without being condescending. What I find particularly satisfying is the number and quality of contributions from staff that go into the actual production of the magazine. It is very much a staff magazine produced for and by the employees of NSS, not just an instrument for senior management to dictate messages. We consistently get good scores in the staff survey with almost 90% of staff reporting that they are well informed, and Pulse plays a significant contribution to this score. I think this makes it a powerful and useful communication tool.” Jacqui Jones Director of HR and Workforce Development

TESTIMONIALS (2) “Having a staff magazine which people look forward to receiving is undoubtedly a great benefit to any organisation. Here in NSS Pulse is just such a magazine. It’s easy on the eye, stimulating to the mind and above all very readable. It features not only national and organisational articles of interest but highlights the many initiatives and improvements which are being delivered by the staff, teams and departments across NSS. It acknowledges achievements, shares learning and raises awareness of current issues as well as capturing the life blood of NSS - its staff’s life events, their contribution to society through charitable works, academic and career progressions. All in all it is a really good read and therefore its content is often the topic of discussion at coffee breaks as well as in more formal meetings. The value of such a communication is unquantifiable but without doubt great value for ensuring staff engagement and motivation in challenging times.” Irene Barkby, Director of Nursing, Strategy and Governance “I have worked in NSS for over three years and Pulse has provided me with excellent information and up to date news about what is happening in NSS. Pulse is easy to read and is a great combination of text and pictures inviting me to engage with the content and learn more. The magazine balances what staff need to know, what staff are contributing to the health services and a personal touch with stories about what staff do in their own time. Pulse is a valuable tool for consistent communication across all levels of NSS and is accessible to all staff which is invaluable” Louise MacLennan, Public Participation and Engagement Lead