Balhousie’s Advanced Specialist Care unit celebrates rebranding with top Care Inspectorate rating
Balhousie Care Group has rebranded its Advanced Specialist Care (ASC) unit, a residential facility for adults with learning disabilities, creating a new brand with input from the people living at the facility. The Perthshire-based specialist unit is now called ‘Accepting. Supporting. Citizenship’, keeping the initials the same but with a stronger focus on the personalised care received. Linking closely with Balhousie Care Group’s drive to deliver person-centred care across all its care homes and its Participation Charter, which offers residents and service users a bigger say in the care they receive, the ASC unit has worked closely with the people living in their care to rename the unit to reflect its people, their beliefs and the service being provided. This exciting rebranding has coincided with two of the units at ASC, Dalguise and Orchard Court, being awarded two top Grade 6 ratings after a visit from the Care Inspectorate. The ASC units have been awarded an ‘excellent’ rating of Grade 6 for both ‘Care and Support’ and ‘Management and Leadership’ after introducing person-centred enhancements to their pre-admission processes and creating additional support staff positions to increase the range of indoor and outdoor activities available to service users. The Care Inspectorate’s visit captured how “relaxed and happy” service users are with families commenting that they have “no concerns” and find the staff “highly vigilant” and “responsive”. One service user said they feel “safe” and another spoke about helping to “build the swing seats”. ASC is unique in that it is the only residential facility of its kind in Scotland providing a secure, private home for people with behavioural needs in a community orientated, non-clinical environment. Having transformed the facility into a person-centred environment, giving service-users a key voice in the decision making and running of the unit, including the rebranding, Heather Smith, Operations Manager at Balhousie’s ASC unit, is delighted to see ASC’s progress acknowledged by the Care Inspectorate. She said: “We are beyond thrilled with our fantastic Grade 6s from the Care Inspectorate after their recent visit. ASC is the only residential facility of its kind in Scotland and pride ourselves on being able to provide a secure home for people with behavioural needs in a community orientated and non-clinical environment. High accolades like this only come about through exceptional team work and everyone at ASC has played a role in this achievement. Our rebranding reflects our strong focus on ‘Care and Support’ which has been acknowledged by the Care Inspectorate. High accolades like this only come about through exceptional team work and everyone at ASC has played a role in this achievement.” Heather added: “It has been a wonderful process working closely with our service users and staff to consider what makes our ASC unit special and capture our environment in our branding. The people living here are the beating heart of the unit and it is important to us that they have a say in the big decisions and changing our brand is one of them.” Louise Barnett, Director of Operations at Balhousie Care Group, commented: “The work Heather and the team at ASC have carried out to achieve two Grade 6 ratings is truly outstanding. As one of Balhousie’s more challenging facilities, its transformation into a person-centred environment where service users are happy, stimulated and feel safe and ‘at home’ is remarkable. The ASC team has demonstrated consistently excellent standards of care which has had a hugely positive impact on the lives of the people living there and their families. The rebranding is another example of how exceptional the ASC team is at empowering their service users and giving them a say in key decisions about the facility.” To find out more about the ASC unit at Balhousie Care Group please visit www.balhousiecare.co.uk
Thor light robot hammers superbugs
With the country’s hospitals and care homes struggling in the grip of a superbug crisis, a recent study has revealed that a UK-developed UV light robot, the THOR UVC ®, which could spell the end of this catastrophe, saving money and lives. Superbugs have evolved during a ‘post-antibiotic apocalypse in which bacteria, fungi, viruses and parasites have mutated to become untreatable. Cleaning to the extent required to eradicate them has become almost impossible; traditional cleaning techniques kill just 50% of the bugs responsible for the Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAI) which cause 30,000 deaths and cost the NHS alone a staggering £1 billion each year. UK company, Finsen Technologies (http://www.finsentech.com), have developed and manufacture THOR UVC ® – a robot that uses UV light to kill 100% of known superbugs in just minutes. Finsen Technologies products focus on quickly and efficiently killing bugs in medical environments. The THOR UVC ® robot is superior to its rivals as it senses its surroundings, maps the room, and even reports back when the work is complete. A study of the robot’s efficacy concludes that, irrespective of cleaning time, THOR UVC ® killed more than 99% of the MSSA bacteria exposed to it. A US study release in March 2018 entitled, ‘The effect of ultraviolet-C technology on viral infection incidence in a paediatric long-term care facility’ showed that Ultraviolet-C (UV-C) technology implementation was associated with a 44% reduction in viral. The results suggest that UV-C technology is a potentially important component of eliminating the environment as a source of viral infections. The product is portable so it can be used wherever infections may be found. Previous UV-C light technology has used lower levels of light than THOR UVC ® resulting in a longer, less efficient, process. The high level of UV-C light produced by second-generation THOR UVC ® is critical in killing the new strains of superbug. Its reach is higher than its predecessors, obliterating bugs from floor to ceiling, while ensuring even those hiding in shadowed areas don’t get missed. The robot disinfects a 360-degree area – irrespective of obstacles – and senses clutter and shadows, ensuring effective doses in all areas. A newer release from Finsen Technologies is the Nanoclave Cabinet, a high powered UVC cupboard that decontaminates highly used patient objects such as medical electronic and monitoring devices in as little as 60 seconds. The unique patent-protected Nanoclave was recently recognised in a Telegraph feature entitled 70 Ideas to Save the NHS. Medical devices used on patients can pose a potential risk for passing on nasty bugs and microorganisms to the next patient or staff member On June 1st Finsen technologies won the New Exporter of the Year category at the Cambridgeshire Chamber of Commerce Global Awards ceremony. The award recognises the success Finsen Technologies has had in exporting to a total of fifteen markets, including the USA, Australia, Austria and Italy, as well as having recently secured a valuable contract at a significant MOH Public Hospital in Sharjah. In July following a national tender award a major public Hospital in Hungary Szabolcs-Szatmár Bereg Megyei Kórház, Nyíregyháza had its first delivery and installation of THOR UVC ® For more information about THOR UVC ® please visit www.finsentech.com
The benefits of strategic workforce planning within the care sector
by Michael Ellis, Healthier Recruitment It’s no secret that access to talent is the biggest issue facing the heath sector today, a recent survey of 149 trust managers by NHS providers found that staff shortages are the ‘single biggest risk’ facing the National Health Service. This is unsurprising when you consider that, according to official figures, there are currently in excess of 100,000 vacancies across England’s 234 acute, ambulance and mental health trusts, including 35,000 nursing posts. This dearth of talent can be attributed to a number of factors. It was reported in February 2018 that the number of students wanting to study NHS nursing has fallen sharply since bursaries were scrapped and UCAS reported that in 2017, applications fell by 13 per cent. Meanwhile, at the other end of the spectrum, professionals are quitting the heath sector in droves: earlier this year, NHS Digital reported that more than 10 per cent of the nursing workforce left NHS employment in each of the past three years. Historically, this shortfall would have been plugged by talent from overseas. However, since the EU referendum, the number of nurses from the EEA arriving to work in the UK has dropped significantly, while those quitting Britain has simultaneously increased. Late last year, the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) reported that the number of EU nurses fell by 90 per cent after the vote and this situation shows no sign of easing. The most recent NMC data shows that in 2018 there are 3,000 fewer nurses from the European Economic Area working in the NHS than a year ago. However, while the challenges of sourcing nurses has been well documented in the national media, the problems associated with recruiting and, crucially, retaining Health Care Assistants (HCAs) is also adding to the woes of internal hiring managers. While identifying HCA candidates is rarely an issue, the role has historically been one afflicted by high turnover rates, which leaves HR teams perpetually bogged-down with managing volume recruitment, to the detriment of long-term financial planning strategies. What is becoming increasingly clear is that organisations need to adopt a far more sustainable, collaborative and strategic approach to sourcing both temporary and permanent talent, at every level, in order to effectively manage long-term talent strategy. NHS Trusts and private and third sector healthcare brands must take lessons from big business if they are to attract and pipeline talent to aid efficiencies while improving continuity of care. Broadly speaking, strategic workforce planning strategy starts with an assessment of internal capability and serves as a mechanism to identify critical roles and future demand. Plans can then be put in place to ensure that existing talent is deployed in the most effective way within an organisation and that skills are pipelined for the coming months and years. Factors such as number of beds, staff to patient ratio and the time of year should, of course, all be taken into account when pre-empting future demand. However, HR strategists should also perform a comprehensive audit to determine how their workforce is likely to shift in the near future, through retirement, for example, if they are to determine which skills they need to source long-term. Taking a bird’s eye view of the workforce in this way also has the added advantage of clearly revealing how efficiencies can be made, such as identifying where a full-time role can be created from smaller posts which are currently being filled by temps. It’s also worth noting that, for all roles, not least HCAs, strategic workforce planning should always take into account proactive measures to improve staff retention. NHS Employers has recently published a guide for improving attrition levels where tips include: developing organisational values and creating a positive workplace, supporting flexible working and concentrating on ‘values based recruitment’. Of course, supporting staff with professional development and promoting wellbeing in the workplace will go some way in helping to alleviate turnover. However, if hiring managers are to make a real dent in this area, retention strategies must begin at the recruitment stage. The key is to determine a candidate’s reasons for entering the profession and long-time career prospects before they are offered the role, through implementing stricter selection criteria to improve quality of hire. While it may be tempting to fill empty posts quickly, the long-term benefits of getting the right people on board are evident. And that doesn’t necessarily mean the person with the most experience. We recently placed a former mechanic into a HCA role who, because of personal experience, wanted to change careers and give something back – the client agreed that his passion and commitment made him the perfect fit for the organisation going forward. While staffing challenges across the healthcare sector look set to continue for the foreseeable future, organisations can still build future-fit workforces by taking a step back and taking a more considered approach to hiring. Instead of firefighting, decision makers must take firmer control of their workforce strategy to create productive workplaces to the benefit of both patients and their wider teams. For more information about Healthier Recruitment, click here
Shirlfest is a king-size birthday celebration
A resident at Heathcotes’ Whitley services in West Yorkshire enjoyed an unforgettable 50th birthday party when the care provider held a music festival, Shirlfest, named in her honour. Service user Shirley is a lifelong Elvis fan with a love of music and iconic events like Glastonbury. With the big-50 milestone approaching, Shirley discussed her ideal celebration with Heathcotes staff and Shirlfest was born. The festival took place at Whitley, Heathcotes’ specialist residential accommodation for adults with autism, dual diagnoses and associated complex needs. Shirlfest welcomed 80 staff and service users from across the Yorkshire region, including Sheffield, Leeds, Morley, Wakefield and Bridlington. Shirley greeted each guest at the gate with a Shirlfest-branded VIP wristband providing access to a fun-packed day which included glitter face tattoos, hair braiding, a mocktail tiki bar, coconut shy, barbecue food, funfair games and live music, including an hour-long performance from the King himself. Services Manager, Hollie Henderson, explained how Shirlfest came together: “Shirlfest involved three months of planning and Shirley was at the centre of it all the way – she really got involved in the organisation and decision making. The wristbands were Shirley’s idea and she wanted to hand them out personally to every visitor. The only unknown element for Shirley was the appearance of the Elvis impersonator – we wanted to keep that a surprise! Everyone had a fantastic time and for Shirley it was a dream come true. We always encourage service users to choose and help to organise their birthday celebrations and this year we have done everything from tea parties to trips to Sea Life.” Gemma Hollingsworth, Heathcotes Head of Services, said: “Occasions like this are a very important part of the person-centred care that we provide at Heathcotes. Engaging the people we support and getting them involved in activities and events are invaluable for promoting social inclusion and independence across all of our services. We often receive hospital referrals involving individuals that have not been encouraged to make their own choices and have become deskilled and institutionalised as a result. Events like Shirlfest provide opportunities for our service users to develop and build upon their skills, allowing them to transition from an institutionalised mindset to a greater sense of empowerment and agency in the way they live their life and the decisions that affect it.” For more information about Shirlfest please visit http://www.heathcotes.net/
YPO invests in social care offering by appointing former Local Authority Commissioner and Public Health Lead
YPO, the UK’s largest publicly owned buying organisation, has boosted its Social Care team with the appointment of Andy Perrins and Lesley Harper as Category Managers. Andy Perrins brings a wealth of operational experience to YPO having previously worked with a range of local authorities and social care providers. Most recently, he has supported the transition of Public Health from the NHS and subsequent procurement of many of the services, working closely with commissioners and providers to design innovative services that deliver. Andy said: “I’m really keen to work with the market and commissioners to understand their needs and bring fresh and exciting ideas to life which will ultimately reduce the burden on providers, commissioners and procurement teams. I am passionate about raising awareness of YPO in the sector and highlighting our ability to offer a wide range of purchasing options which will reduce resource and time intensive tasks internally”. Lesley Harper brings years of social care commissioning experience, from a decade of working with a young people’s substance misuse service to working in a commissioning role at Wakefield Council. Lesley said: “I love that YPO is 100% public sector owned, meaning that we put money back into the valuable services such as schools and care services offered by local authorities. It is refreshing to work commercially for an organisation which offers social value and I feel like I’m doing my bit to help. It’s also eye-opening to work on a national scale and support the health and social care agenda across the country; not just in my local area”. In their roles as Social Care Category Managers, Andy and Lesley are responsible for ensuring that health and social care commissioners have a range of products and services available to them to help them achieve their goals. The Social Care Category Managers help commissioners to achieve value for money as well as outcomes for service users by working with providers nationally to identify new and exciting products and services, making these available to commissioners to reduce the burden on their own procurement teams. Simon Hill, Managing Director at YPO, said: “We are thrilled to have discovered Andy and Lesley through our recent recruitment process. They both bring a wealth of experience to the Social Care team and are passionate about developing and providing support and services which the social care sector desperately needs in a time where funding of vital services is increasingly in the media. New and existing customers can expect to see our Social Care category to continue to grow over the coming months”. For more information about Social Care please visit www.ypo.co.uk
Pupils rehearse school play for Bolton care home residents
PRIMARY school pupils treated elderly residents to an early viewing of their play after rehearsing at their care home in Bolton, Lever Edge Care Home. Year 4 children from St William of York RC Primary School visited Lever Edge Care Home, both in Great Lever, for the performance. The rehearsal of the play, called English Rose, took place ahead of the first showing at the school on the same evening. The children sang a collection of songs to delighted residents, who provided feedback and encouragement. Karen McMahon, home manager at Lever Edge Care Home, on Lever Edge Lane, said: “The school has visited the home to engage with our residents before. They had the idea of performing their rehearsal for our residents to entertain them but also as a final practice before their first show. The residents thoroughly enjoyed the performance and it gave the children an opportunity to speak to them to get their feedback.” Isobel Potter, year 4 teacher at St William of York RC Primary School, said: “We really wanted to visit the home and show the performance to the residents. On such a hot day, the home provided the children with an ice lolly each, which was even better for them. It was a great opportunity to showcase the performance and to entertain residents, which they all thoroughly enjoyed.” For more information about Lever Edge Care Home please click here
Hampshire care experts hold summit to facilitate better digital care
The Hampshire Care Association (HCA), the body representing care providers in the county, organised a care experts’ summit to discuss how technology can be used to provide better outcomes for service users. Held at The Winchester Hotel, the private roundtable, Using Digital Care to Provide Better Outcomes for Service Users, was chaired by Mark Allen, Head of Strategic Commissioning at Hampshire County Council and was attended by key care sector figures who over the morning shared best practice advice on using digital care effectively and the challenges of adopting technology in the care sector, based on their extensive subject knowledge. Throughout the event a number of important points were raised such as the role of technology given an aging population, the challenges in implementing technology across care homes including cost, healthtech more widely, and the impact that technology could have on making administration more accurate and streamlined. The points raised, under the Chatham House Rule, will form the basis of a follow up note on the use technology in care, which will be circulated to all members of the HCA. Attendees included: Mark Allen, Head of Strategic Commissioning at Hampshire County Council and event chair; Samir Patel, Chairman of HCA; Councillor Warwick Payne, Cabinet Member for Housing and Adult Care, Southampton City Council; Jayne Connery, Director of Care Campaign for the Vulnerable – Care Campaign Advocacy Service; Keith Strahan, Principal Implementation and Business Change Manager at the NHS Digital Social Care Programme; Jonathan Papworth, Director of Person Centred Software; Andrew Geach, Proprietor of Shedfield Lodge Care Home and Robin Hall, Administration Manager of Home of Comfort Nursing Home. Samir Patel, Chairman of HCA, commented: “Thank you to everyone who attended what was a highly illuminating event. It was very interesting to hear everyone’s experiences of using digital care to improve the lives of some of society’s most vulnerable people. In a difficult funding climate, it is more important than ever that we embrace new methods of delivering the best care. We will circulate the findings to all members and look forward to seeing technology used more widely across Hampshire in care settings as a result.” Mark Allen, Head of Strategic Commissioning at Hampshire County Council and event Chair, said: “As the use of technology becomes more and more ubiquitous in our everyday lives it is increasingly important that both commissioners and providers of services for our most vulnerable citizens understand what role this technology has and can have in this sector. Adopting the use of Technology Enabled Care and other consumer technologies presents real challenges but also very significant opportunities. This roundtable event highlighted all of these aspects and demonstrated that there is a clear willingness and desire within Hampshire to understand and embrace new forms of service delivery to improve individuals’ lives and the working environment of our dedicated staff.” Jonathan Papworth, Co-Founder and Director of Person Centred Software, said: “It is always interesting to hear different sides of any debate, and HCA had put together a good representation of the different aspect of technology being used to improve social care, highlighting the obstacles as well as the opportunities. A number of studies have confirmed that appropriate use of technology will reduce falls; reduce UTI’s; reduce the onset of dementia; improve mobility; and give more contact time between carers and those being cared for and the CQC have recently modified their Key Lines of Enquiry (KLOE’s) to include questions about how technology is being used, and this shows that the positive benefits available using modern technology are instrumental in being rated for outstanding care.” Andrew Geach – Proprietor of Shedfield Lodge Residential Care Home, said: “The event was very interesting giving different angles of the use of technology and not using technology in the care setting. Much was learnt during the event and I hope that from this we can spread the knowledge to care homes so that we can all move forward with the times and provide a better outcome with care and make the lives of the carer easier, giving them more time with the Service Users.” Keith Strahan, NHS Digital, commented: “It was a pleasure to attend and present about the digital opportunities that exist to support care and improve secure information sharing. It was a privilege to hear about some of the great work that that already exists in Hampshire and how it can be developed and built on”. For more information about the HCA please visit www.hampshirecare.org
Your Health Group partner with Dechoker to help nurses and carers to support their residents
Derbyshire based Your Health Group which encompasses Your Health Limited and ENA HomeCare Services, a Domiciliary Care agency, have become the latest high-profile provider to choose the Dechoker Airway Clearance Device. Care teams in all ten care homes across the country which provide services including day care and residences for adults with an array of physical impairments and mental health conditions, are already undergoing a rolling programme of training. This is being delivered by Your Health’s own support team who have received additional instruction from Dechoker. Speaking of the decision, Your Health Group Managing Director Vicki Weller said; “This is going to give our care homes teams both additional confidence and peace of mind that they can provide the level of care we strive for. We believe the presence of Dechoker devices in all of the homes will reassure staff members, residents, their families and friends that we have their best interest at heart.” Dechoker also confirmed that in the event any of their devices is used in a choking emergency they will replace it for free. Your Health’s Cedar Court Dementia Care Home commented; “We were particularly impressed that the company will provide a complimentary replacement for any unit that’s used during an emergency. That’s a huge relief to settings like ours – particularly in terms of cost.” Looking to the future, Dechoker is working towards Best Practice for the care sector and aims to reduce the 70 choking related care home deaths every year. For more information about the Dechoker Airway Clearance Device please click here
Teesside care home throws party for NHS 70th anniversary
A NURSING veteran was among those celebrating the 70th anniversary of the NHS at a special event in Stockton-on-Tees. 87-year-old Sheila Bradley was joined by members of Teesside’s health services for the celebration at The Beeches Care Home, on Green Lane. Sheila was an NHS mental health nurse for over 30 years, having trained at Newcastle University and worked at North Tees Hospital. Now living at The Beeches, she presented goodie bags as a thank you gift to members of the North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust district nursing team, community matrons, GPs and dentists. The bags contained wine, chocolates, face masks, notepads and pens as well as a personal thank you card to each of the attendees. The home also had a buffet, a homemade celebratory cake and luxury milkshakes from mobile sweet shop Sugar n Spice. Sheila is just one of several residents at the care home who have held careers in the NHS, alongside former nurses Mary Peek and Irene Sanchez and former domestic workers Alwyn Behan, Edith Jordison, Violet Pinnegar and Doreen Flynn. Sheila said: “I really enjoyed celebrating the 70th anniversary of the NHS with everyone. One of my favourite memories as a nurse was when I used to visit the children with Down’s syndrome, as they were always so loving and used to like to give cuddles.” Helen Wood, home manager at The Beeches Care Home, said: “We wanted to say a little thank you and show our appreciation for all our local health service workers do for The Beeches and the care they provide to our residents.” Philippa Lillie, North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust district nurse, said: “I would just like to say a huge thank you to Helen and all the staff for welcoming us and supporting us each and every time we visit your home.” for more information about the NHS Foundation Trust please click here.
