Additional guidance on residents’ outings away from the care home has been published by the Scottish Government today (17 May 2021).
Following the publication of Open with Care in February 2021, this document provides further guidance around care home residents leaving the care home for meaningful contact or activities.
This guidance is available on: https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-adult-care-homes-visiting-guidance/
Today, Monday May 17, 2021, we are delighted to launch ‘Coileanadh’ – the output of phase two of our ‘Collective Care Future’ programme. We are delighted to launch the findings of this programme, articulated in a future change landscape created in collaboration with Andthen, a design strategy studio. The visual landscape embodies the contributions of a diverse range of expertise and experiences from providers, staff, people supported, families and wider partners in care and support in Scotland. The findings include eight concepts and three priority areas of focus relating to the overarching philosophy and culture, the policy and partnership enablers, and the way in which change can be enacted in social care practice.
We invite you to explore the future change landscape, concepts and the actions for change identified and join us for the webinar launch on Thursday May 20th 2pm where we will share the findings and outline how we plan to continue the conversation around a National Care Framework.
‘Building our collective care future’ is a collaborative programme which commenced in June 2020 with the intention of capturing the experiences of social care during COVID-19 to build on this learning towards developing a positive vision for the future social care.
The insights and expertise shared from our engagements have been translated to inform actions that can allow decision-making and change to materialise, which will be invaluable to key stakeholders at local and national levels. The 39 actions roadmap the ways in which practice-based change can be achieved, implemented and sustained, resulting in a more equal, rights-based and wellbeing focussed society.
We believe the actions identified are both complementary and distinct to the recommendations of the Independent Review of Adult Social Care. ‘Coileanadh’ explores the synergies and areas of opportunity that can help to overcome the implementation gap and articulate the key requirements of a National Care Service, what we refer to as a National Care Framework. In doing so, we aim to offer a more holistic perspective on the creation of a National Care Framework and the resulting implications for how work in this context could be taken forward. The relationship and interdependence of social care and health highlights the need for a broader view that encompasses different ways to how we approach care and support across the life course and we hope that this work is the start of a national conversation on the future of adult social care in Scotland.
If you would like to share any feedback on the findings or ways in which you can contribute to the actions identified, please contact: [email protected]
Sincere thanks to all our participants, Scottish Care members and colleagues who contributed their expertise and experiences across the ‘Care Futures’ programme.
Details to register to attend the ‘Coileanadh’ webinar:
Thursday 20th May, 2:00PM
Registration link: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Z-_vQlF1S86q7fyWB-HDVg
Webinar ID: 844 4924 6803
Launch materials
Full document: https://scottishcare.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Coileanadh-SocialCare-FutureLandscape.pdf
This year’s Care at Home and Housing Support Conference will be virtual.
The conference titled the ‘Homecare Festival’ will take place from Tuesday 15 June – Thursday 17 June 2021.
This event will look at the themes of ‘Home First’, ‘Workforce First’ and ‘Wellbeing First’ and is an important opportunity in recognising the crucial role of care at home and housing support services in supporting our older and vulnerable citizens.
There will be a series of online sessions over this three-day period, bringing together a range of speakers to highlight challenges faced by the care at home and housing support sector and to discuss the future of homecare.
Tickets are priced at £45 + VAT, this gives delegates access to all 3 days of the event. Attendance is flexible and delegates are able to pick and choose which sessions they want to go to.
Delegates will be sent instructions to register on the event platform Hopin after purchase.
The programme for this event is available below.
A prestigious evening awards ceremony recognising the best of the independent care home sector will be held online tonight (Friday 14 May 2021) to highlight the contribution of care home staff before and during the Coronavirus pandemic.
Scottish Care, the representative body for independent social care services across Scotland and organisers of the event, are encouraging those working in the sector and the wider public to join the online Awards to recognise and celebrate the role of care home workers.
Winners will be announced at the Awards Ceremony tonight, hosted by presenter, columnist and Pop Idol winner Michelle McManus.
Awards will be given out over thirteen categories:
The past year has been difficult for everyone, but it has been especially difficult for our care homes as the Covid-19 virus has presented a particular threat to the lives of residents and staff in care homes for adults.
Yet throughout this time, the dedication and professionalism of staff in supporting residents, families and each other has been exceptional. Care home staff have demonstrated resilience whilst adapting to the challenges of Covid-19. The care home response to Covid-19 has involved new innovative activity, unprecedented collaboration and people going above and beyond the call of duty.
Therefore, the Care Home Awards is an important opportunity to recognise individuals, teams and companies, who are delivering care at an incredibly high standard in a challenging period and within an increasingly demanding work environment.
The next in our series of Rights Made Real Workshops is taking place on June 2nd, 1:30-4pm.
The theme of this workshop is ‘A Human Rights Approach to End of Life Care Conversations’.
Acknowledging that conversations, such as anticipatory care planning conversations, can present challenges, we will explore what can be of support to staff, residents and relatives when engaging in these conversations.
There will also be a follow-up discussion on June 23rd, 2-3pm.
Further details about the workshop are outlined in flyer below.
The Fair Work in Social Care Group aims to improve the working experience of those in the adult social care workforce, working together to progress the recommendations already outlined in the Fair Work Convention report, which have also been endorsed by the Independent Review of Adult Social Care.
Scottish Care is now issuing two short surveys on effective voice (that is, how much influence people can have on their working experience) on behalf of the Fair Work group in collaboration with CCPS.
One survey is for employers and one for employees. These surveys are designed to help the group understand what effective voice looks like for you.
We kindly ask you to complete the survey once, based on your job role – either employer or employee. You may share the employee link with other staff members. Your answers will be completely confidential as the data will be held by Scottish Care.
Employer survey: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/FairWorkEmployerSurvey
Employee survey: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/FairWorkEmployeeSurvey
We would be grateful if you could complete this and thank you in advance for taking part. We look forward to hearing your experiences.
Survey deadline: Sunday, 23rd May, 5pm
Many thanks,
Karen (Scottish Care) & Alison Christie (CCPS [email protected])
The Fair Work in Social Care Group
By Rachel Payne – Managing Director
Somehow a year has passed since we first had to lockdown. There has been huge change, loss, grief and also amazing camaraderie and compassion. Here, I interview our General Manager, Katharine Spence to hear her reflection on a most challenging year….
What is your role within Bandrum?
As General Manager I’m responsible for leading the delivery of care and the staff team within Bandrum.
How has your role changed over the past year?
I have become a more visible leader – providing extra support to residents, staff, and relatives.
Because Covid was a new and unfamiliar disease, and guidance was developing (and changing daily at times) I had to get more involved in clinical decisions that were out with the knowledge of our very – experienced nurses. Restrictions meant that our relatives could not be as involved as before, so we had to find new ways to keep in touch. There was an increase in the layers of scrutiny and reporting, which has been an extra pressure.
I am now in regular personal contact with our relatives to try to keep them up to date with all the changes and re-assure them about their loved ones. This has been very important.
What are you most proud of?
I’m so very proud of the high-quality care we delivered despite the challenges that the year has brought. I am immensely proud of the staff – they have been fantastic and I’m also so proud in the way relatives have supported us.
What have you learnt?
I’ve learn that I’m quite resilient, and that if you are honest and try your best then people will trust you. We have been open and transparent throughout the year and our relatives now know that we will be in touch if there is a concern. Also, as a leader, you have to be brave and make difficult decisions!
Bandrum has learnt that we can do change! It wasn’t our best skill, but we have all embraced it very well. Some of the changes include the addition of our Nurse Assistant role, activation of Wi-Fi throughout the home, which has enabled all the video contact, and our ever-expanding Facebook page with all the interactions. We have also developed outdoor activities in our lovely grounds to support social distancing while keeping folk entertained.
Is there a moment that you’d like to share?
Yes, we’ve been so resourceful and found loads of great ways to make our own entertainment. We have had to be resourceful to support social distancing, and made great use of the courtyard to provide entertainment such as Body – Boosting Bingo, Going for Gold and dancing. The sight of residents and staff dancing together, in the sunshine, really cheered us all up.
Id like to share a heartfelt THANK YOU to Katharine for the non-stop, tireless dedication she has given to Bandrum. Every resident, relative and staff member has benefited from her expertise and compassionate leadership. We are very lucky to have her.
Scottish Care celebrated International Nurses Week 2021, from Thursday 6 May, this celebration week ran until Wednesday 12 May, which is International Nurses Day.
This year’s theme is innovation and throughout this week, Scottish Care collated and shared stories from care homes and individuals.
It was important for us to share these positive stories to recognise all the work nurses and care home staff do, especially during these difficult times.
On Wednesday 12 May, to mark International Nurses Day, we encouraged care homes to take part in a “Take a T break” – with the T standing for thank you. This is a chance to say thank you to our dedicated nurses, carers and teams for all the work they do and for stepping up to the challenges of Covid-19.
Stories were shared on Twitter with the hashtag #carenursescot. You can catch up on everything that we shared below.
We have also created a Thank You card for Scottish Care members to download and print off for staff.
To start off this week, Jacqui Neil, our Transforming Workforce Lead for Nursing wrote a short introductory blog.
A year has passed since we had our 2020 week of celebration for International Nurses’ Week. This year, Thursday 6th May starts the beginning of our week of celebration and we look forward to everyone joining in. We recognise that the last year has been challenging to say the least but as our care homes start to open again it is important to keep and develop the innovations in practice that have made the most impact to those who reside within our care homes.
The theme this year is innovation and to celebrate this we will feature a daily example from a variety of care homes that have implemented changes to adapt to the restrictions of lockdown over the last year.
On the 12th we will conclude with our take a T break which represents our Thank you break where we ask all care homes to get behind thanking their staff for all that they have done and continue to do. Please use hashtag #carenursescot over social media to promote this week, especially on the 12th of May.
Colleagues and I at Scottish Care would like to extend our own personal thank you to every member of staff in recognition for continuing to go above and beyond.
Huge thanks to everyone who joined us for the Infection Prevention Control Webinar for Care at Home on Wednesday 5 May, we hope that attendees found the session useful.
If you have any questions further to the webinar please contact [email protected].
There is also a short anonymous survey that you can complete on the webinar, please take some time to fill this out and share your feedback:
https://response.questback.com/scottishgovernment/7lv3vuvmf3
Presentation slides will be shared with attendees after the session and will also go onto the Scottish Government website. Certificates of completion for attending this session will be sent to those who have registered.
More information and FAQ’s from the webinar(s) are now available on: https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-clinical-guidance-care-at-home-housing-support-and-sheltered-housing/pages/care-at-home-webinars/
The recording for this session is now available below:
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