Greetings from Argyll and Bute. We wanted to let you know about an exciting project that took place in Oban this summer.
One of the care at home providers, Carer’s Direct, took part in a pilot for a placement for physiotherapy students from Glasgow Caledonia University. The placement was referred to as a split placement – the students time was split between the physiotherapy department in Oban, Lorne and the Isles District General Hospital, the Community Healthcare Team and Carers Direct. This was an ideal project for us to work on together, as it built on improved partner relationships which had developed in Argyll and Bute over the last few years. These relationships were forged against the backdrop of RCOP (Reshaping Care for Older People) and a workforce development project facilitated by IRISS (Institute of Research and Innovation in Social Services) and supported through the role of the Local Integration Leads.
The aim of the placement was to promote awareness of the move to more people being cared for at home and the implications for healthcare professionals (specifically physiotherapists) of supporting people in their own home.
The project was supported by a steering group with representatives from each of the agencies involved – Carer’s Direct, NHS Highland, NES, Care Inspectorate, Scottish Care, Glasgow Caledonian University so that learning from the pilot could be written up and disseminated.
Thanks to a lot of goodwill and hard work from all of the agencies involved in supporting the students during the placement it was a real success. We also have to mention here that the sun shone on Oban for the duration of the placement! We are hoping that having worked and seen Argyll in it’s best light this might help with recruitment and retention! Some of the students evaluation has been filmed and will be widely available soon – look out for the link on the Scottish Care website. There will also be a link to the written evaluation and this includes lessons learned as well as the notable successes.
Of particular interest to care at home providers, development officers and local integration leads will be the students comments about how little time care at home staff are allocated to complete complex care tasks. For the students this was at odds with promoting independence. Care staff reported back that it was very helpful to have access to the physiotherapy students and to learn from how they worked with people to promote well-being and independence. The care at home manager observed that care staff have gained transferrable skills and insight from working with the students. We also recognised that the project helped cement relationships across the sectors within the partnership, promoted a better rapport and understanding of each other’s perspective and fostered a stronger team approach to delivering care.
Glasgow Caledonian University are keen to extend split placements for students to other providers and other areas of Scotland as a result of the outcomes from the pilot. So if you know of any providers who might be interested in hosting a placement please spread the word.
Anne Austin & Susan M. Spicer,
Argyll and Bute Local Integration Lead, Scottish Care (job-share)
Anne’s email: [email protected] or, mobile: 07460898897
Susan’s email: [email protected] or, mobile:07771610728
