Supervisors in adult care: tell us about your experiences at work

The SSSC has recently contacted registered supervisors in care at home services, housing support services and care home services for adults to announce a proposed change in the additional supervisory qualification that supervisors need for SSSC registration.

To ensure the SSSC get this right they need to hear directly from supervisors about their experiences and wish to understand the managerial and supervisory aspects of their role so they can work with others to offer the most effective support.

To start this process they would like supervisors to take part in one of six half day workshops in March, or one of a small number of telephone discussions.

Although this invitation is only for supervisors in the adult services listed above, there will be a wider online survey in March in relation to both the supervisory and management requirements in adult services.  (They are not considering any changes to the practice requirements for supervisors or managers in adult services at this time).  Anybody with an interest in supervisory or management qualification requirements will be invited to participate in this.

If you are a supervisor and would be interested in coming to an inquiry group or taking part in a short telephone discussion to share your views, please complete your details in this short form and the SSSC will get back in touch.

Click here to complete your details

Please note that the Glasgow workshop is now full.  Details of the other venues are as follows:

8 March, 10am – 1pm, Dundee (The Steeple) (SPACES)

14 March, 10am – 1pm, Edinburgh (Edinburgh Training Centre) (ALMOST FULL)

15 March, 11.30am – 2.30pm, Inverness (Eden’s Court) (SPACES)

16 March, 10am – 1 pm, Kirkcaldy (New Volunteer House) (SPACES)

17 March, 10am – 1pm, Stirling (Stirling Highland Hotel) (SPACES)

For more information, or if you cannot access the link, please contact Jacqueline McDonagh, Learning and Development, on 01382 207316, or [email protected]

For further details about this consultation process please contact Robert Kelman:

Robert Kelman

Learning and Development Adviser

Tel: 01382 346469

Email: [email protected]

Scottish Care to host Declaration Fest session

Scottish Care is to host a special session on the rights of older people at the forthcoming Declaration Fest.

The festival will take place over two days on Thursday 2nd and Friday 3rd March at Summerhall in Edinburgh as part of an on-going commitment to the right to health and social care in Scotland.

The hour-long session, titled ‘Age is a work of art’, starts at 5pm on Friday 3rd March and will explore through film and discussion all that is beautiful about our ageing society and what we need to do together to ensure that older people are treated with respect, dignity and without discrimination.

Human rights, in their very essence, are universal. However, we all know that certain groups can find it more difficult to claim their rights. In response to this, the United Nations created additional treaties which seek to protect the rights of women, children, disabled people and racial and ethnic minorities. These fundamental agreements strive to keep our society fair, just and equal.

There is no additional treaty for older people. Ageing seems to be viewed as a threat; a health care challenge that cannot be met.  We need to move away from this, to view older people as valuable individuals: as employees, volunteers, carers, parents, grandparents but most importantly- as rights’ holders. Rights’ holders with aspirations, experience, knowledge and potential. As Stanislaw Jerzy Lee said, “Youth is a gift of nature but age is a work of art.”

At Scottish Care we work directly with older people to empower them to claim their rights. We also work with our members who are providing care services to support them to take a human rights based approach which respects, protects and fulfils these rights in practice.

Time is running out to enter the Scottish Social Services Awards #SSSA17

Deadline: 6pm, Tue Feb 28

Enter now

If you know a person, team or organisation who deserves a  Scottish Social Services Award, make sure you get your nomination in on time.

It’s really easy to apply and SSSA are actively encouraging short and simple entries.

With ten new categories such as ‘silo buster’, ‘the untold story’ and ‘head above the parapet’ the awards have been designed to recognise innovation and excellent practice across the sector.

Shortlisted entrants will be invited to join The Minister for Childcare and Early Years, Mark McDonald and Sally Magnusson at a special afternoon tea ceremony at Crieff Hydro on 13 June 2017.  

Launched by the Social Work Services Strategic Forum, a partnership set up to create and deliver a vision for high quality and effective social services, the Scottish Social Services Awards will celebrate individuals, teams and organisations making a positive difference to peoples’ lives.

Time is counting down to the deadline to enter.  Make sure you get your entry in before 6pm on Tuesday 28 February 2017 to be in with a chance of being part of these inaugural awards.

Follow @SSSAwards on Twitter and Scottish Social Services Awards on Facebook to keep up to date with all of the latest news and details of the shortlisted entries.

 

The caring side of data: latest blog from our CEO

The caring side of data

I have become a victim of data or at least I have succumbed to the world of fitness data. Last year I was given a Fitbit and started using it in the autumn. I wasn’t aware of the massive advertising campaigns behind the Fitbit which is basically a cloud-based fitness-tracking device. But according to the advertisements this small device – with a little help from myself in the form of walking and sleeping more (though not together) – will enable significant life-quality changes. I will leave for others to decide the truthfullness of that statement viz-a-viz my waistline. But what I have been astonished by is the sheer amount of data that I am sent every week from this small device which sits on my left wrist everything from my average heart rate, my calories burning, my steps walked etc.

There has been an obvious shift in the data available to us about our own health in the last few years. I remember the early devices which enabled you to track your blood pressure or heart rate but what we now have is an empowerment of the individual, what some specialists have called the ‘democratisation of self-care.’ My device can now be used to adjust, alter and direct my behaviour – I have control and choice in its applicability and use. There is therefore huge potential in the realm of preventative health and self-care.

 The accumulation of statistical data indicates a shift of legitimacy and power from the medical expert to the individual.

 Many of you will be familiar with the concept of Big Data – defined as:

 extremely large data sets that may be analysed computationally to reveal patterns, trends, and associations, especially relating to human behaviour and interactions.

 But it is not the size so much as its applicability to determine trends, behaviours and patterns for whole populations that has become significant for social scientists and planners. This has especially become the case in the world of health. In some senses the data information I get and which is produced by my Fitbit gives me ‘Small Data’ –

 data in a volume and format that makes it accessible, informative and actionable. … Small data connects people with timely, meaningful insights, organized and packaged – often visually – to be accessible, understandable, and actionable for everyday tasks.

So what is the place of such Data, Big or Small, in social care?

One of the issues facing those of us who work in social care is that we need to take a greater degree of ownership of the data and the debate about data – we cannot leave this to technicians and data analysts alone but must increasingly work in partnership to enable a shared determination of what data can do to enable better outcomes for individuals who use and seek to access services. Data has a tremendous potential to advance care and improve health but it is one which has to be managed and to some extent controlled.

So much of our world is being increasingly defined by an analysis of numbers, statistics and data. Are we making the right decisions from that data? Is the picture of our health and wellbeing which is painted, a true one? Just as we get suggested reading from an Amazon account or Tesco might determine what it offers us in our shopping trolley from what we have bought before – are we sufficiently aware of the streamlining of choice as a result of someone else’s analysis of our data? That may be an issue for my shopping but it becomes a critical one if data becomes a key determinant of health and social care choice.

There is therefore an important ethical debate to continually be held about the use of both Big and Small data which necessitates an awareness of the ethics behind not just the use of technology which has been much articulated but the ethics of the use of health and social care data both individually, at community levels and wider society.

Other fields are much further ahead in exploring the use of Big Data in transforming the way we do things, especially education. There is clear potential but we have to guard against a whole-scale adoption of approaches that will serve to unhelpfully alter our care landscape.

Next month sees the first ever conference to be held in Scotland which will explore some of the ethical and social science questions behind the use of data in Scottish society.  This Edinburgh Data Summit is part of DataFest17 and will hear from international thinkers. But its debates and the messages which come from the conference will doubtless shape our response to data. Those of us involved in policy development, in preventative care, in empowering choice and control over health and care; those of us working or caring in care homes and in communities need to be alive to and aware of these debates.

 

Donald Macaskill (Dr)

 

 

 

 

 

Leadership for Health and Social Care Integration – Free Workshops

Readiness for Collaboration

How can I work better with my health and social care colleagues?

Integrating services across health and social care needs us all to collaborate effectively, but this can be a messy business! Our enthusiasm for progressing change is often accompanied by frustration about the difficulties of doing this.

Why is it so hard to collaborate effectively? Service transformation is about more than structure and process reorganisation. Differences in culture, approaches, roles, expectations, agendas, politics (and the rest) all make up the messiness of collaboration.

No one person or organisation has the answer, but we know that effective teams have the same things in common: trust and respect built up from developing relationships and connections. Where everyone feels safe and valued, and everyone’s voice is heard, they are much more open, ready and resilient in the face of change.

Leadership for Integration is offering free workshops on resilience and readiness for collaboration.  These are open to anyone who works in health and social care integration to improve outcomes for people who use their services.

The workshops will support you to:

–          recognise the factors that can affect your collaborative relationships

–          improve the conversations you have with your colleagues

–          use your sources of resilience to survive and thrive!

There are 40 places in each workshop, allocated on a first-come-first-served basis. Click on your preferred location and date below to reserve your free place now.

Location Date Time Venue
 

Edinburgh

 

Monday 6 March

 

09:30 – 12:30

 

 

RICS – 3rd floor, 125 Princes Street, Edinburgh, EH2 4AD

 

Glasgow Wednesday 15 March 09:30 – 12:30  

The Grand Central Hotel, 99 Gordon Street, Glasgow, G1 3SF

 

Inverness Tuesday 21 March 09:30 – 12:30  

Eden Court Theatre and Cinema, Bishop’s Road, Inverness, IV3 5SA

Aberdeen  

Wednesday 22 March

09:30 – 12:30  

Rox Hotel 17-23, Market Street, Aberdeen, AB11 5PY

Ayr Thursday 30 March 09:30 – 12:30  

Mercure Ayr, Dalblair Road, Ayr, KA7 1UG

 

Advanced Nurse Practitioner (ANP) Events

NHS Education for Scotland, in collaboration with the Transforming Nursing Roles (TNR) Advanced Practice group, is hosting 3 regional events that will:

  • Inform delegates of the national approach to advanced practice and the Scottish Government’s commitment that 500 additional ANPs will be trained by 2021.
  • Provide guidance on the Service/education needs analysis that Scottish Government will request all Boards to undertake.
  • Share and seek agreement on a set of national clinical competencies for the ANP role in the following areas of practice. These have been identified as national priorities by the TNR groups.
    • Paediatrics and neonates
    • Acute
    • Community and Primary care
    • Mental health

We welcome nominations from all advanced practitioners, practitioners/ANPs from the specified 4 clinical areas and service managers and clinical leads who will be involved in undertaking the service/education needs analysis.

Please send nominations to [email protected] by Monday 20th February.

March 20th 10 – 3pm

Glasgow, Queen Elizabeth University Hospital

March 24th 10 – 3pm

Aberdeen, Suttie Centre

March 30th 10 – 3pm

Edinburgh, Scottish Health Services Centre

Feedback and Complaints and Duty of Candour

Working in partnership, the Scottish Government, NHS Education for Scotland, Scottish Social Services Council, Scottish Public Services Ombudsman, the Care Inspectorate and Healthcare Improvement Scotland are delivering 4 conferences across the country for all relevant health and social care staff including independent contractors and care providers.

The focus of the events is to provide staff with the skills, knowledge and confidence to implement the new model Complaints Handling Procedures for the NHS and Social Work which will be introduced in April 2017, as well as understand the social care complaints process.  The events will also enable staff to prepare themselves and their teams for the introduction of the new Duty of Candour, which will come into force on 1 April 2018.

These free events will run from 9.30am – 4.30pm and will be held in:

Golden Jubilee Conference Hotel, Clydebank           2 March 2017

Perth Concert Hall                                                              9 March 2017

Edinburgh International Conference Centre            16 March 2017

Stirling Court Hotel                                                            23 March 2017

The events will provide the opportunity to learn from the experiences of colleagues across health and social care.  There will be a range of presentations, including a keynote address from the Scottish Government and also a conversation with a carer around their experience.  In addition, there will be a series of interactive workshops which will provide you with the information and tools you need to meet the requirements of the new model Complaints Handling Procedures and also help to understand your roles and responsibilities under the Duty of Candour which applies to all health and social care staff in Scotland. NHS Education for Scotland will monitor applications so that, where possible, there is a mixture of staff across all the workshops.  You will be able to attend 4 workshops from the following options:

Power of Apology

Are you unsure of when to apologise?  Is sorry really the hardest word to say?  This session will explore the barriers to giving an apology and saying sorry as well as providing some tools which will support staff in the frontline.  It will also outline what an apology is, as well as good practice in providing one.

Dorothy Armstrong, DA Professional

NHS and Social Work model Complaints Handling Procedures

SPSO will take you through an overview of the new model complaints handling procedures that will come into force as of 1 April 2017. The key areas covered in this workshop will be:

  • The definition of a complaint
  • Recognising feedback, comments and concerns
  • Details of the two-stage process
  • Governance arrangements

This will be an interactive session and will involve working in groups for further discussion.

John Stevenson and Alison Bradley, Scottish Public Services Ombudsman

Duty of Candour – Roles and Responsibilities

The session will enable participants to hear more about the Duty of Candour and the implications on roles and responsibilities for staff and organisations.  It will cover the main aspects of the Duty and allow participants to consider their readiness for the implementation of the Duty and also share experiences of openness and learning with other participants.

Craig White and Michelle Campbell, Scottish Government

Jane Davies, NHS Education for Scotland & Laura Wylie, Scottish Social Services Council

Adverse Events in Health and Social Care

Healthcare Improvement Scotland published a National Framework for learning from adverse events through reporting, review and the sharing of learning in September 2013 and refreshed the Framework in April 2015. It includes a national definition of an adverse event, guidance on reporting, accountability, responsibilities and learning, and principles for an open, just and positive safety culture. The principles of this framework applies to all health and care settings.

The adverse event national programme of work supports a consistent national approach to identification, review, reporting and learning from adverse events based upon national and international good practice and promotes the sharing of learning points following adverse event reviews. It also supports a consistent approach to Being Open and communicating well with people following an adverse event which directly links with the new duty of candour provisions in the Health (Tobacco, Nicotine etc. and Care) (Scotland) Act 2016.

In this awareness raising session, Healthcare Improvement Scotland and NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde will share their experiences of implementing the national approach to adverse events and how effective management of adverse events includes being candid, open and communicating well with the people affected.

 Julie McQueen, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde

Nanisa Feilden, Healthcare Improvement Scotland

Social Care Complaints and Duty of Candour

The Care Inspectorate occupies a unique position in the UK of being the only regulator that also takes and investigates complaints regarding registered care services. We are responsible for the scrutiny and improvement of care and social work across Scotland. We regulate some 14,000 care services for children and adults and carry out joint inspections of care services with other scrutiny partners.

This workshop will give the attendee an overview of how the care inspectorate deals with complaints from the perspective of:

  1. using risk assessment to inform the action it takes
  2. supporting improvement in service delivery
  3. the impact of the Duty of Candour.

We all share a common purpose as partners in health and social care – and that is to ensure the best possible outcomes for people using care services. Promoting improvement is very much at the heart of what we do.

Marie Paterson, Service & Complaints Manager, The Care Inspectorate

Meetings with Families and Difficult Conversations

Meeting with patients, families and carers provides a unique opportunity as an organisation to:

  • Listen, understand and sometimes learn from their experience
  • An opportunity to apologise
  • Staff to explain face to face the detail of care that was and is provided
  • Alleviate fear and provide closure
  • Avoid complaints or escalation

This workshop will present the experiences of NHS Forth Valley and enable participants to understand the practicalities and skills required to establish a pool of skilled and trained staff to meet with families and have difficult conversations regarding harm caused or provision of care that falls below expected standards.

Karen Maclure, NHS Forth Valley

If you are interested in attending, please email the completed application form to

[email protected]

APPLICATION FORM

NAME:

……………………………………………………………………………………………………

ORGANISATION:

………………………………………………………………………………………………..

JOB TITLE:

……………………………………………………………………………………………………

EMAIL ADDRESS:

………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Please indicate preferred venue:

Golden Jubilee Conference Hotel, Clydebank   2 March 2017   ☐

Perth Concert Hall                                               9 March 2017   ☐

Edinburgh International Conference Centre     16 March 2017   ☐

Stirling Court Hotel                                             23 March 2017   ☐

You will have the opportunity to attend 4 workshops during the day.  Please prioritise your preferences 1-6: 

Power of Apology                                                                                                    ☐

Human Factors Approach                                                                                      ☐

Model Complaints Handling Procedure                                                               ☐

Duty of Candour Roles and Responsibilities                                                      ☐

Monitoring and Reporting for Duty of Candour                                                  ☐

Meeting with Families/Difficult Conversations                                                    ☐

Please advise of any dietary or accessibility requirements you may have:

……………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………..

……………………………………………………………………………………………………

Applications must be submitted no later than 22 February 2017 and places will be allocated after that date.

 

Survey open now till 17th March – Care at Home and Housing Support Survey

Scottish Care has decided to undertake a survey own the current status and challenges facing the Care at Home and Housing Support sector in Scotland.

This is a major piece of work which will form the basis with other research for a Report on Care at Home and Housing Support services in Scotland. This report will be published at the Scottish Care Care at Home /Housing Support Conference on the 12th May.

 

It is being gathered at individual service level rather than corporately – this will help in analysing trends across Scotland.

 

The survey explores issues such as workforce challenges, including recruitment and retention; financial and operational sustainability and wider stakeholder relationships

The survey can be accessed at https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/D8XQTND

Please complete the survey by the 17th March 

 

Scottish Care launches Care Home Survey

Scottish Care has decided to undertake a survey of the nature and extent of the current status and challenges facing the Care Home sector in Scotland.

We are aware that we are undertaking this research in the midst of ongoing discussions and negotiations around form. However the information and data which we are asking for will be invaluable in evidencing the status of the sector and the issues of concern and priority.

This is a major piece of work which will form the basis with other research for a Report on Care Home services in Scotland. This report will be published as soon as practicable.

The survey explores issues such as workforce challenges, including recruitment and retention; financial and operational sustainability and wider stakeholder relationships

The survey can be accessed at https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/DPQJST2

The survey closes on the survey by the 10th March

Advanced Nurse Practitioner events

NHS Education for Scotland, in collaboration with the Transforming Nursing Roles (TNR) Advanced Practice group, is hosting 3 regional events that will:

  • Inform delegates of the national approach to advanced practice and the Scottish Government’s commitment that 500 additional ANPs will be trained by 2021.
  • Provide guidance on the Service/education needs analysis that Scottish Government will request all Boards to undertake.
  • Share and seek agreement on a set of national clinical competencies for the ANP role in the following areas of practice. These have been identified as national priorities by the TNR group.  
    • Paediatrics and neonates
    • Acute
    • Community and Primary care
    • Mental health

Nominations are welcomed from all advanced practitioners, practitioners/ANPs from the specified 4 clinical areas and service managers and clinical leads who will be involved in undertaking the service/education needs analysis.

Please send nominations to [email protected] by  Monday 20th February.

March 20th    10 – 3pm               Glasgow,  Queen Elizabeth University Hospital
March 24th     10 – 3pm Aberdeen, Suttie Centre
March 30th    10 – 3pm Edinburgh , Scottish Health Services Centre