Liz Lees-Deutsch

[Associate Professor for Nursing at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust (UHCW) and Coventry University (CU)].  Liz is employed in a joint appointment as a senior clinical academic nurse and one of a team of five Professors and Associates based within the Centre for Care Excellence, spanning the University and Hospital in Coventry, West Midlands. The Centre was developed in 2020 and paved the way to attract joint funding from Coventry University and UHCW for evidence-based care.

Liz studied her PhD at the University of Manchester funded through the National Institute for Healthcare Research, Clinical Doctoral Research Fellowship [Portfolio study NO: 10101]. Her focus was on Safe Patient Discharge from Hospital and Risk Assessment. She was supervised by Professors Janelle Yorke and Ann Caress. She also undertook post-doctoral studies, funded by a Health Education England Fellowship at Birmingham University, Supervised by Professor Annie Topping.

During 2022, in response to the aftermath of the pandemic and its subsequent impact on nursing workforce, Liz led a team from Coventry University to conduct a National Evaluation of the Professional Nurse Advocate Programme funded by NHS England. This work is currently being disseminated [during 2023] to include the production of a National Report (ISBN awaited) and subsequent Publications, Conferences and Seminars. This work has led to the Royal College of Nursing adopting new education standards for its nurses across England. The Nursing Midwifery Council are currently considering their role in supporting nurses to remain in practice post pandemic following the recommendations of the Report.  Liz recently worked with Welsh Health Boards to assist their implementation of the programme across Wales. Work continues.

Liz is best known for her work on patient discharge and she has developed an international reputation for her research, associated policy developments, toolkits and competences. She is interested in the whole spectrum of patient discharge, such as the discharge lounge and patient experience. She has delivered patient keynote discharge lectures throughout the UK and keynotes in Ireland, Vancouver, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Singapore and Australia.

Her current focus is on Selecting Patients for Effective Early Discharge through criteria led discharge pathways (SPEED^TM) and the assessment of adults for discharge, from acute care. Her latest research is underpinned by the Medical Research Council Framework (2021) where several key pieces of research have enabled an ongoing funded NIHR programme namely; Systematic Review of Criteria Led Discharge (CLD); Exploration of the Process to Underpin CLD; Feasibility Testing of Protocols and an Implementation study. She is working in close collaboration with NHS England (Midlands) and together they are concentrating on the exploration of prevalence and characteristics of patients suitable for criteria led discharge. During 2022, 22 Hospitals participated in data collection across West Midlands Hospitals to develop the largest body of data, indicating the ‘opportunities’ for developing CLD. This work continues to expand in 2023. She has established a multi-disciplinary clinical oversight steering group to guide the outputs, Involve patients through PPI and impact of her work. In her current clinical role, she works with the Integrated Discharge Team at UHCW discharging fast track patients and leading early research developments and novel interventions related to patient discharge.

She is an enthusiastic catalyst for research knowledge mobilisation across a multidisciplinary workforce, by developing communities of practice (COP).  These enable clinicians with little exposure to research, to gain skills to embed lasting research capabilities in practice. To date, Liz has established communities of practice in several clinical settings: - to understand best interventions for effective patient discharge; dietetics for diabetes reduction, Delirium Interventions, and workforce changes for new models of virtual care. Liz regards herself as a pragmatist, an innovator, creating traction in applied research, by finding time to innovate where ‘no time’ appears not to exist.

Over her total 32-year nursing career, Liz has spent 22 years as a Consultant Nurse in acute medicine, published 130 professional and academic papers and is the sole editor of 2 multi-professional patient discharge textbooks. She works closely and collaboratively with her students from undergraduate to post-doctoral developing their skills to independently conduct research and publish. In 2016, she received a Lifetime Fellowship from the Society for Acute Medicine for her outstanding achievements to multi-professional staff development, in acute care. She regularly presents her research nationally and internationally.  Her philosophy is to empower others.

Liz lives in Herefordshire and when she is not writing, she is at her happiest gardening, home baking and innovative dressmaking.   She has a large family and growing army of grandchildren!