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Exploring the application of Human Rights Principles in Digital Health and Social Care

Scottish Care is delighted to work in partnership with The Health and Social Care Alliance Scotland (the ALLIANCE) and VOX (Voices Of eXperience) to support the development of rights-based digital health and social care policy and practice across Scotland. This includes the exploration of six principles for a human rights based approach to digital health and social care.

We want to engage with people who access services and people who provide support to refine the principles and collectively develop practice-based scenarios that illustrate their application in health and social care. We are hosting three events to gather people’s views and experiences on the application of human rights-based approaches in digital health and social care.

These workshops will be held online on the following dates:

We want to encourage a wide range of views and to ensure participation from people who may not be able to attend the workshops online. If you would be able support an engagement session offline, an engagement pack will be available. Participants will be able to return these electronically or by post at no cost to them.

To find out more, please email [email protected].

* If you cannot attend the first or second event for any reason, you are welcome to attend the event on 26 July.

Human Rights Principles for Digital Health and Social Care

The six principles build on the Human Rights Charter for Technology and Digital in Social Care launched by Scottish Care in September 2019 and are intended to be embedded into digital health and care developments at all levels.

  • People at the centre. Any digital experience needs to be flexible around individual needs, preferences and choice.
  • Human rights foundations. All digital services need to respect and protect human rights, whilst also seeking to enhance and fulfil individuals’ ability to exercise their rights.
  • Digital as ongoing choice. ‘Digital first’ approaches can risk alienating or disadvantaging those who are currently excluded from accessing digital services. Instead, there should be ‘digital choice’. People should have equal access to services on equal terms, regardless of their circumstances. Moreover, we need to recognise that circumstances change, and that people might want to switch between digital and analogue service provision seamlessly, in a way that suits them.
  • Digital where it is best suited. Digital service provision lends itself better to some outcomes and processes (i.e. updating preferences online, transactional services) than others (i.e. tailored support, relational services). We need to be aware of this and build digital capacity where it is most impactful and appropriate, whilst also keeping in mind that digital does not resolve everything and should not replace face to face services.
  • Digital inclusion, not just widening access. For digital to achieve its potential of delivering better outcomes for people, it needs to be truly inclusive of all members of society, including those most at risk of exclusion or harm. While widening access initiatives are a welcome step forward, digital exclusion needs to be tackled at all levels in the community through person-centred rather than system-available responses. Digital skills, confidence and literacy need to be at the heart of digital inclusion activities going forward.
  • Personal ownership of digital data. The move to digital services will come with increased amounts of digital personal data being created, shared and used across systems. In line with Data Protection regulations, we believe that citizens should have ownership over their personal information and be in control with regards to its use.
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‘Unexpected Consequences’ – a webinar on bereavement

‘Unexpected Consequences’ –  a virtual webinar on bereavement.

Tuesday 11th May 13:30 to 15:15.

Last spring saw the launch of Scotland’s first-ever Bereavement Charter for Adults and Children. Since then, the Charter has developed and grown and been used in many different ways.

The Group which developed the Charter is holding the first in a series of webinars exploring different elements of death and bereavement as part of the Demystifying Death Week.

During the webinar, you will have the chance to hear from three speakers and then have the opportunity to reflect on what you have heard in a short workshop on one of the themes.

Please register for this webinar on: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZItceCqrzsoG9eMbM4TuNlFIWfrURPZqpBR

Bereavement-Charter-Webinar-Outline
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Privacy Statement

We are committed to ensuring the confidentiality and security of personal data for which we are responsible. The information collected at registration will be used only to deliver the webinar. The legal basis for our processing this personal data is public task.

Your personal data will only be seen by those delivering the webinar, and will be deleted in line with the corporate retention schedule. We may produce aggregate booking statistics, or quote briefly from your event feedback, but this will be done in way that prevents re-identification of individuals.

If you would like to obtain more information about the processing of your personal data, your rights, how to contact our Data Protection Officer (DPO) for advice, please see the link below to our main privacy notice: https://scottishcare.org/gdpr-policy-and-privacy-statement/

Note: Scottish Care is data controller and Zoom is our data processor. You can see the Zoom data processing addendum by visiting the following webpage: https://zoom.us/docs/doc/Zoom_GLOBAL_DPA.pdf

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Job Opportunity – Technology & Digital Development Officer

TECHNOLOGY AND DIGITAL DEVELOPMENT OFFICER

SCOTTISH CARE

£32,473 per annum pro rata – 14 hours per week

Fixed term contract funded for 9 months (initially)

Do you have an interest in improving the role of technology and digital in social care, can you COLLABORATE, INNOVATE AND COMMUNICATE, and would you like to join a successful, committed and highly motivated team? This could be the opportunity you have been waiting for.

We are seeking to engage a Technology and Digital Development Officer to support an exciting new project exploring Future Workforce Roles in Social Care. Hosted by Scottish Care and working closely with care providers and partners, the post involves exploring the role of technology and digital in social care.

The post holder must be highly motivated, be able to use initiative, possess excellent communication and networking skills, demonstrate success and experience working in collaboration with key stakeholders including, policy makers, providers, regulators, people supported by services and carers. Qualifications and experience in implementing technology and digital in social care to support integrated working would be an advantage.

The post holder will be expected to create and support significant collaborations across the independent care sector while contributing to the development of future workforce roles enabled by technology and digital, which will result in the delivery of improved outcomes for people who access care and support. The post holder will play a key role in coordinating and supporting this collaborative project, working towards transformational change and be able to evidence impact. The role requires considerable and skilful collaboration with our key partners in the NHS, Local Authority, Carers, third sector organisations and other forums.

The post may be home or office-based and is hosted by Scottish Care.

To request an application pack, please contact Laura Bennie (Office Manager & Executive PA) [email protected]

Closing date 4pm on 7th May 2021.  Interviews will be held by video conference on the 17th of May.

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Save the date – Homecare Festival (15-17 June)

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 theme of ‘Home 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.

More details will be available shortly.

#homecarefestival  #homefirst
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Webinar – Infection Prevention and Control for COVID-19 in Care at Home

A series of webinars has been organised for care at home providers and those that provide paid care in client’s homes. The aim of the webinar is to enhance the confidence and knowledge of paid carers and personal assistants to appropriately apply Infection Prevention Control (IPC) measures within home settings. The webinar will include example scenarios applicable to working within a client’s home and will be an opportunity to focus on the practicalities of applying IPC while carrying out tasks within these environments. The webinars will be led by Specialist Advisor-Infection Prevention & Control within ARHAI and supported by the Scottish Government

The ultimate objective is to ensure all current IPC measures are effectively implemented in Care at Home settings.

These workshops will include a section where participants can raise questions and all questions and answers will be complied and published after the sessions.

We encourage all those working within care at home environments to attend the workshops.

Three sessions will be held on the following dates

27 April 2021 – 14:00-15:30

28 April 2021 – 14:30-16:00

5 May 2021 – 14:30-16:00

We recommend joining the session 5 minutes before the starting time due to there being limited spaces.

Please note, the sessions on 27th and 28th April are being hosted by Scottish Government via Microsoft Teams and therefore spaces are limited and are on a first come, first served basis. You can join by clicking the link. Registration for these sessions is not required.

27th April 14:00-15:30

Join on your computer or mobile app Click here to join the meeting

Or call in (audio only) +44 131 376 2847,,67101228#   United Kingdom, Edinburgh

Phone Conference ID: 671 012 28#

28th April 14:30 – 16:00

Join on your computer or mobile app Click here to join the meeting

Or call in (audio only)

+44 131 376 2847,,58698890#   United Kingdom, Edinburgh

Phone Conference ID: 586 988 90#

The session on 5th May is being hosted by Scottish Care. This webinar will be hosted on Zoom and is open to Scottish Care members and non-members. Registration is required and spaces are limited therefore please register early to avoid missing out.

Registration link: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_cW2Sq_5dQOym7Ero3kRAWA

Once you have registered, you will receive an email invite from Zoom with the details to join this session.

If you come across any issues registering or do not receive an email invite after registering, please contact [email protected].

The session hosted via Zoom will be recorded and it is intended that it will be available for use after the sessions have taken place.

For further guidance on IPC within community care settings can be found: National Infection Prevention and Control Manual: Scottish COVID-19 Community Health and Care Settings Infection Prevention and Control Addendum

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Media Statement: Discharges from NHS Scotland hospitals to care homes – Public Health Scotland Report

The updated report and in particular the new Section 3 consolidates the earlier work undertaken by Public Health Scotland and university academics. We consider that this is a robust and thorough piece of statistical work.

Scottish Care believes that the statistical data together with the new genomic information provides part of the picture of the impact of the transfer of individuals from hospital to care homes.

What is needed, however, to get us even closer to an understanding of the impact of these transfers is to undertake independent research on the experience of care home staff and managers and those of the relatives of residents who died in this early phase of the pandemic. Their testimony and stories are the missing piece in a complex jigsaw.

We believe that such an investigation needs to happen as a matter of urgency and should not wait until a Public Inquiry given that we are already one year on from the events which were experienced.

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Media Statement: Covid-19 Deaths in Care Homes

We note the publication by the BBC of data supplied by the Crown Office detailing the deaths of hundreds of people in Scotland’s care homes during the pandemic. This data demonstrates the terrible toll which has been felt by those who live, visit loved ones, and work in care homes as a result of Coronavirus. However, whilst the numbers tell us one story there are many things which they do not communicate.

The numbers do not describe the unique lives of special individuals who have been lost to the pandemic. Lives which have been cut short before their time by a deadly virus. Behind each number is an individual who is loved and greatly missed by family and friends. Their loss is felt too by care home staff who have cared for and supported them for many months and years.

The numbers do not describe the sad reality that those living in group and congregated settings such as care homes have been disproportionately affected across the world. They do not describe the reality that those who have suffered the most and who have died across the world are those who are very old and frail, and those living with multiple co-morbidities.

The numbers do not describe at what point in the pandemic lives were lost in individual care homes. The number may describe deaths in multiple outbreaks across a long period of time or they may equally be a description of an intense and overwhelming single incident.

The numbers do not detail at what point of time the deaths occurred in the last year. They do not describe whether they happened after testing had been introduced for frontline care staff after we learned the lessons of asymptomatic spread and the risk this posed to residents.

The numbers do not describe whether individuals had been transferred from hospital or community, potentially carrying the virus into the care home.

The numbers do not describe whether or not the deaths occurred at a time when we know less than we do now about the use of PPE and other infection control measures which are now protecting so many.

The numbers do not describe whether these deaths happened during this particularly hard second wave with a much more virulent strain of the virus which has had such a devastating impact.

The numbers of deaths tell part of the story but what they certainly do not tell of is the amazing professionalism, sacrifice and dedication of frontline nursing and care staff who daily put themselves at risk and on the line to protect some of our most vulnerable citizens facing the threat of this deadly global virus.

As we consider the numbers, we remember all the lives lost and the dedication of those who worked to save life. As we consider the numbers, we would ask everyone to reach out to support the care homes, staff, residents and families affected and to do so with compassion and solidarity.

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Essentials of Safe Care Webinar – 29 April

The Patient Safety Programme (SPSP) has now published the Essentials of safe care (EOSC) so we have decided to have a follow up webinar to put this in context as we move into the implementation period. Supporting this is the EOSC package which provides a range of resources people can access including a website housing all of the essentials information, a measurement framework and case studies available here ihub.scot/spsp

This webinar session will take place on Thursday 29 April at 2PM.

The Essentials of Safe Care support health and social teams to deliver safe care for every person, every time.

This session aims to

  • provide an overview of this package of guidance and support,
  • explore how it can benefit your service, both service users and staff,
  • hear from teams about how they plan to use it, and
  • describe the system to support implementation and learning

This webinar will be hosted by our Transforming Workforce Lead for Nursing, Jacqui Neil who will be joined by:

  • Jo Matthews (Healthcare Improvement Scotland)
  • Nancy Burns  (Healthcare Improvement Scotland)
  • Sarah Battersby (Advinia Healthcare)
  • Kate McConville (Advinia Healthcare)

Please note that this webinar will be a in a Teams meeting format to allow speakers to interact with attendees. 

Details to join this webinar will be available shortly on the Members Area of this website.

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Save the date – Nursing Event (24 June)

We will be hosting a virtual nursing event on 24th June from 10:00 am – 2:00 pm.

This event will look at the future vision for health and social care nursing. We have a full programme of speakers including presentations from frontline staff, and representation from professional bodies: NMC around the new standards and RCN in supporting revalidation. We also have a panel session that centres around education and leadership, in supporting our future leaders.

The event will be supported by the CNO, the Scottish Government, as well as the Chief Nurse with the Care Inspectorate.

More details to follow.

If you have any questions on this event, please contact our Transforming Workforce Lead for Nursing, Jacqui Neil at [email protected].

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Financial Sustainability Webinar – 22 April

Sustainability Payments and related payments such as the Social Care Support Fund are crucial for services to carry on in the fight against Covid-19.

Scottish Care has been gathering information from the members at our weekly surgery meetings, as well as reporting on a regular basis to Cosla. It was noted there are many ongoing questions and concerns members have about these payments.

We have arranged a webinar update on Financial Sustainability on Thursday 22 April at 2PM  with colleagues from COSLA and the Scottish Government.

We are delighted to be joined by:

  • Mirren Kelly (COSLA)
  • Clare Thomas (COSLA)
  • Catherine McGoldrick (Health and Social Care Scotland)

This session is for Scottish Care members only. Please join this session to ask any questions or raise any issues you may have.

Details to join will be available on the Members Area of this website. If you have any issues accessing this area, please contact [email protected].

If you have any questions for the webinar panellists, please email [email protected].