Changing mindsets and delivering safe care in Cornwall together. #devocornwall

March 20, 2017 By Steve Turner Leave a Comment

We want the best health care system in the world, & the most efficient and effective system …

We have an opportunity to do things differently in Cornwall

How do we achieve this?

The challenges in Cornwall

There’s a huge amount going on with health and social care in Cornwall. Including the Sustainability and Transformation Plan [STP]; exposure of abuse and neglect in care homes; concerns over hospital closures, delayed discharges taking up hospital beds, and devolution of services on the way.

Although I have worked in health and care for over 30 years, I struggle to keep up with the issues and understand how services are organised. This isn’t helped by the current polarisation of views.

On the one hand we have a big dose of NHS and Council ‘spin’, excessive bureaucracy and even bullying. On the other hand we have public concern, often expressed around specific issues, and sometimes based on unfounded rumours.

Neither of these positions are helpful, and neither represent the vast majority of people (public, staff and patients) who just want good services delivered by kind people who are open, accountable and transparent.

#devocornwall

We have a great opportunity now with the devolution of health and care services. This will be realised if we all build bridges, and transcend the usual hierarchical boundaries. We all need to listen and learn. Everyone, to coin an overused phrase, needs to step out of their comfort zones.

Why we need to think differently?

Several community hospitals are under threat of closure, leading to anger and dominating the headlines. Less attention is given to identifying and measuring the benefits, and any disadvantages of community hospitals. For example, can they be staffed adequately, bearing in mind this means Doctors, Nurses, Physiotherapists, Radiographers, Dieticians, Speech and Language Therapists, Social Workers etc.? Is home care a viable option for patients and carers? Are there any creative options such as bringing back the old style ‘convalescence’? Is rural isolation and lack of public transport the major issue?

It’s becoming increasingly difficult to book a timely GP consultation. This has led to several inaccurate scare stories in the press about ‘cuts’ to face to face GP contacts. This needs deep thought as there are times when easy access to a GP on the ‘phone, or on-line, may actually be a better option. Access to health information from Community Pharmacies or in NHS run clinics in shopping centres, or better health information and advice available locally, may be more effective approach. Leaving GPs free to spend more time with those who need their help and expertise most.

It’s now widely accepted that the NHS and Social Care is underfunded. Despite this there is still a great deal of duplication and waste in the system. How many times have you been asked to repeat information to Health Professionals which others already have? Do some services overlap, and are there gaps? Do different organisations link seamlessly with other organisations? Are all services accessible to all? Many people have important stories to tell on these areas of inefficiency.

Now’s the time to talk about this, find out what’s planned, and take action together. ‘Patient engagement’ key component of the STP and #devcornwall.

Patients and public need to take the lead on this. It’s not the NHS or Cornwall Council’s plan it’s ours.

Personal views of Steve Turner. MD Care Right Now CIC, a Cornish Company

Version 2

Date: 30/03/2017

This article is adapted from a letter which fist appeared in the St Austell Voice

Managers are key to sustainable solutions in health and care

January 6, 2017 By Steve Turner Leave a Comment

‘Government keep blaming them for waste and over-manning. This can be true but the public has been sold this as the only, or biggest, reason for NHS and Care failings despite the Government allocating more and more money.

But few people, including managers, get up in the morning rubbing their hands with the gleeful thought of ruining peoples’ lives at work that day. It is the system that drives the failures and they are politically driven from a view invariably not from patients and staff.

In fact, managers are part of the sustainable solution if they do the right thing rather than ‘doing systems’ right.

‘The new managerial targets are not the metrics that the Government, NHS or CQC set but the managers themselves.

Rob Hayles, Meeting of Minds Collaboration

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Date uploaded : 6/1/2017 Revised: 11/1/2017

Health and Social Care Innovation – Good news from Cornwall (UK)

July 6, 2016 By Steve Turner Leave a Comment

Health and Social Care Innovation

Good news from Cornwall (UK)

Health and Care Innovators

First three:

About Hootvox:

Based in Cornwall Hootvox is a software company that healthcare and social care providers as well as CCGs use to engage with patients, residents and customers. Described as a quantum leap forward for the friends and family test Hootvox improves communication and delivers significantly more insight in a bias free way than any other feedback methods being used throughout social care and healthcare today.

Hootvox is being used by Quality Improvement teams to understand and improve the patient experience. Providing robust measurement across a range of bespoke criteria Hootvox is proving to be very versatile, and as a digital solution Hootvox is significantly more cost effective than the more traditional labour intensive feedback methods that have been used historically.

Hootvox Believes:

If you don’t make it easy for patients to give you feedback they won’t.
Patients don’t seek out TripAdvisor websites to leave their feedback, or post paper surveys.
To engage better with people you must use their preferred method of communication, these days that’s email and text.

Feedback must be:

Collected by a third party in an un-pressured way that doesn’t promote bias.
Transparent, un-ﬁltered & honest.
Used to improve services for everyone.
Openly listened to, replied to and acted upon.
Every patient must have an equal chance and opportunity to leave their feedback.

When you mostly gather feedback from patients who’ve had average experiences (not only the extremes), you’re receiving feedback which is more representative of the care you provide.

Website: http://hootvox.com/

Active Plus is a Community Interest Company established in 2011. We use the skills, experience and expertise of injured military veterans to deliver unique programmes that build confidence, motivation and self-belief, unlocking the potential of participants, all of whom are from vulnerable or potentially vulnerable groups.

We deliver courses and activities for people who are unemployed, older people who are lonely or isolated, people with health conditions, including mental ill-health, and young people at risk of leaving school without qualifications or work. We also deliver team-building and communication activities for other organisations and businesses. We have grown geographically from our base in Cornwall to deliver across Devon, Somerset, Dorset and Wiltshire.

Our military veterans begin their journey with us as volunteers. Some have physical injuries, many have PTSD and are themselves vulnerable. Some have been unemployed for long periods, others just making the transition from forces to civilian life. All are fantastic role models who share not only their skills and expertise with course participants, but also their own personal journeys.

They empathise, inspire, challenge and gain respect in a way that is a powerful force for change – both for participants and for the veterans themselves.

Our ethos is about people helping themselves through helping others. This is reflected not only in the mutual benefits for both course participants and course tutors but also in the emphasis we place on building skills, confidence, connections and employability through volunteering and developing projects that benefit the wider community. It’s a win-win-win situation!

Web site: http://activeplus.org.uk/

Carers Break is a Community Interest Company which is a form of Social Enterprise.

Social Enterprises are businesses that trade to tackle social problems, improve communities, people’s life chances, or the environment. They make their money from selling goods and services in the open market, but they reinvest their profits back into the business or the local community. And so when they profit, society profits

In our case the services that we provide benefit the community in which we serve. However, we also aim to ‘Add Value’ by using some of our surpluses to benefit our clients in several ways. We are currently working with several organisations to provide services that will directly improve the Health and wellbeing of the Carer and the ‘Cared for’. We will always aim, where possible, to use Social Enterprise based suppliers and commission services from organisations and Companies that can clearly demonstrate Social Value.

Vision Statement

We will provide the most Relevant, Effective and Holistic care in the most personalised and innovative way.
We will present the NHS with a cost effective, professional solution for patients who wish to be cared for at home.
We will conduct meaningful research into the key factors that erode the Health and Wellbeing of Carers and find sustainable solutions that reverse this effect.

Mission Statement

The Companies activities will provide benefits to vulnerable people, by reason of ill health, disability or other disadvantages by providing care and support packages that enable social inclusiveness, reduce isolation and improve emotional and physical health and wellbeing of the individual.

Care Quality Commission

As a Care provider we are regulated by the Care Quality Commission. Our registration number is 1-913805502

Web site: http://www.carersbreak.org.uk/

We’re preparing to bring the World Health Innovation Summit to Cornwall.

Interested in being part of this? Want to be in the next three?

Email info@carerightnow.co.uk

Version: 1

4/7/2016

5 Reasons You Should Employ a Whistleblower – Guest Blog from Tim Martin CEO, SpeakInConfidence

May 6, 2016 By Steve Turner Leave a Comment

5 Reasons You Should Employ a Whistleblower

Over the past few years my role as CEO of SpeakInConfidence has brought me into contact with quite a few whistleblowers; It’s also brought me into contact with lots of the cases and stories of whistleblowers.

On starting down the path of becoming a whistleblower people will know it is likely to be the end of their career in the organisation they are in. Sadly it is all too often the end their chosen career in the sector they are in.

Imagine the conversation with your boss when you let them know about your decision:

Boss “How did the references on Jane Bloggs, your preferred candidate for head of Finance turn-out”

“Oh we are not bothering with those – she was fantastic in interviews, just what we need and references will only be pro forma as she left her last job following a successful whistleblowing case”.

So here are 5 reasons should seriously consider being clear that “Yes applications from whistleblowers are welcome”.

You have to be pretty committed to be a whistleblower – the journey can be a hard one – and you are probably hiring someone with a high degree of commitment rather than being a passive by stander.
Trust: If I am going to trust someone I have never met before, I think I would put whistleblowing high on the list of qualifications. Given that in the UK whistleblowers don’t gain financially, and risk a huge amount, chances are you are hiring someone who is exceptionally committed to doing the right thing.
Don’t you want to know you have people on your team who will have the courage to tell you if they think things are not headed in the right direction? How many mistakes can be avoided if you avoid group think? Is it really in your interests or those of your organisation to surround yourself with yes people?
Imagine the signal to your staff – “We don’t shun people who raise concerns – we hire them”. What does that say to the rest of your staff? Want to create an open honest culture – what better signal can you give.
It’s the right thing to do. Think you are an equal opportunities employer? Think you are a courageous manager? Well start acting like one. By all means fail to select someone because they cannot do the job, but not because they had the courage to speak up elsewhere.

Given the assumptions people sometimes make, unless it’s blindingly obvious from past conduct of your organisation, maybe it’s even time to make it explicitly clear “Whistleblowers welcome here”.

Tim Martin is CEO of SpeakInConfidence, the Anonymous Dialogue Platform.

Send anonymous feedback to your organisation at
www.makemyworkbetter.com

A note on our guest blogs:

We welcome submissions of guest blogs for all who share our values.

Please send them to info@carerightnow.co.uk

Added: 6/5/2016

A home at last!

April 25, 2016 By Steve Turner Leave a Comment

‘When I set up Care Right Now CIC it was born out of a desire to break away from the constraints of current systems, do something which is free from all unnecessary bureaucracy, engages everyone, and builds on strengths.

I often felt like I was a misfit – as one of my former patients said ‘a square peg in a round hole’-.

Now I’ve found the World Health Innovation Summit I feel like I’ve come home and I want to share this feeling of joy and possibilities with everyone. In a practical way, delivering safer services which are more cost effective and reach everyone.

This is forum for healthcare unlike anything else I’ve ever experienced. It really involves patients and the public, across the world and shows the benefits of seeing healthcare as a social movement.’