Dr. Kate Granger is the founder of the “Hello my name is…” campaign, which aims to promote respectful treatment of patients by reminding hospital staff to introduce themselves to the people they serve. Granger is also a terminally ill cancer patient who has been undergoing chemotherapy. The campaign grew from her desire to improve the hospital experience for other patients, based on what she perceived as a lack of compassionate connection between clinicians and patients.


The “Hello my name is…” campaign began while Granger was a cancer patient herself. In 2011 while training to become a geriatrician, she was diagnosed with an aggressive and rare type of sarcoma; she was just 29 years old at the time. While in the hospital, she became frustrated when caregivers did not tell her their names — including the physician who informed her that her cancer had spread. He did not introduce himself, nor did he look her in the eye when he delivered the news. 


Granger took to Twitter, using the hashtag #hellomynameis. According to the campaign’s website, #hellomynameis has made more than 75 million impressions. The campaign is now being supported by more than 90 NHS organisations, and has received public support from David Cameron, Bob Geldof and Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who called the campaign inspiring.


“We know that doctors and nurses within the NHS are doing more than ever to provide safe and compassionate care and this movement is harnessing their energy,” said Hunt.


The campaign’s “big bang” launch began in February, with several organisations being connected through the adoption of a radical programme developed by Hannah and Gordon Forbes at Optimise Limited in Edinburgh. Listening into Action (LiA) was planned to initiate a fundamental shift in how things work across the NHS by reducing bureaucracy and empowering staff.


The first organisation to sign up was the Mid Yorkshire Hospitals, where Granger now works. Prompted by the Mid Yorkshire Hospitals’ action, more than 80 organisations joined the campaign in two weeks. “We thought it would be good to invite other Trusts in the network to launch on the same day, and it spread like wildfire from there,” said Hannah Forbes. The size and speed of the movement makes it perhaps the NHS’s biggest and fasted growing movement centred around improving the patient care experience.


In a recent press release, Granger said, “I'm incredibly excited about bringing #hellomynameis to Mid Yorkshire Hospitals and even more excited about the collaborative launch of the campaign across the Listening into Action (LiA) network and beyond. I think the main messages from the campaign about high quality communication and always treating our patients as people with respect and dignity fit perfectly within the Trust's core values. I really hope my legacy will be exactly that, putting compassionate practice right at the heart of healthcare delivery every single day.”


Granger is also the author of two books, The Other Side and The Bright Side. All proceeds from her book sales are donated to the Yorkshire Cancer Centre Appeal in Leeds.


For more information about Dr. Kate Granger’s campaign, visit http://hellomynameis.org.uk/home or follow the  movement on Twitter at #hellomynameis.


Sources: BBC, hellomynameis.org.uk

Image Credit: BBC




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Zoom On, cancer care, compassionate care, #hellomynameis, Kate Granger Dr. Kate Granger is the founder of the “Hello my name is…” campaign, which aims to promote respectful treatment of patients by reminding hospital st...