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Rights Made Real – What has helped the projects link their practice to human rights?

Linking practice to health and social care standards

One project looked at the health and social care standards and thought how they link in in terms of anticipatory care planning. They agreed that no resident should be discriminated against in terms of the services available to them due to status as a care home resident or a diagnosis of dementia, by exploring the preference of final days being spent at family home and how the care home could help to facilitate this, upholding their right to private and family life (article 8 of the HRA 1998).

Dignity and Respect - 1.2: “My human rights are protected and promoted and I experience no discrimination.”

Workshops as a forum to explore basic human rights knowledge and dilemmas in practice

Respecting resident’s human rights at the end of life

The art of balancing the resident’s last wishes with that of their relatives and how to do this sensitively came up on several occasions.

As a support provider we should always respect a resident’s last wishes even when they look different to our own views and cultural beliefs. We should always support the person to achieve their wishes even if it is not what their family want. (Right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion article 9 of the HRA 1998). An example the group discussed was of a resident that was very vivacious in life but wanted a private funeral. We explored how that made staff feel and they came to their own conclusion that they had to respect the resident’s wishes to privacy even though it was difficult to know they could not attend her funeral.

Feedback from workshops

Some of the managers gave us feedback on how their staff about the human rights in practice workshops.

 

‘It was an absolute pleasure having you come along to [care home] and deliver [human rights workshop] to my staff. It was great success - the staff are still regaling about it and how it sparked memories and made them reflect on their practice past and present’.

 

The manager commented that the workshops and input have changed the attitudes of staff from, “this is an awkward conversation that neither party would like to have, with a tick box form, to an attitude of .. wanting to personalise the process to help staff find out what is important to the resident, their relatives and learn how to help to include them to live a life they want to right up until the last days and hours”.

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Rights Made Real – Dignity within activities

Dignity within activities

Dignity is an inherent principle of human rights legislation with its beginnings seen many times throughout the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights document. Indeed Article 1 of the Declaration states that:

‘All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.’

Dignity is therefore tightly connected to humanity, freedom and equality from birth. It can be most prominently seen to be included in article 3 of the Human Rights Act 1998 – the right to freedom of torture and inhumane or degrading treatment. Having an awareness of what could be compromising a person’s dignity or identity is vital in being able to deliver high quality care and support that is right for that individual, especially for those who have protected characteristics for example a diagnosis of dementia.  

 

With help from the learning partner Tamsin, the staff have been practising their observation skills to notice a resident’s demeanour during an activity and recognising the extra support someone with a visual impairment may need and what they sensory stimulation they benefit from.

“There was a vibrating coming from a lamp and we thought this was too loud – the resident said she liked it, she could feel her feet on the floor, felt grounded. “

Staff have realised from this it is always good to check out with residents as they are the experts of their own experience. This builds trust between staff and the resident, addressing the power imbalance and promoting the level of control they have over their lives.

Wellbeing: “I am supported to make informed choices, even if this means I might be taking personal risks.”

A member of staff sharing what they could see during a Hawaiian themed day, what was around them, the smells and the colours of the garlands. One resident said

‘I really enjoyed that, I could visualise myself on the beach’.

“This resident never compliments us and it really helped me realise how important it is to explain the resident’s surroundings to them and to ‘be their eyes’. I will do this more now with other residents.”

Compassionate: 2.8 “I am supported to communicate in a way that is right for me, at my own pace, by people who are sensitive to me and my needs.”

When thinking about activities of daily living in the project around anticipatory care planning, staff take care not to exclude people as their physical condition deteriorates and still help them to have control over their decisions as much as possible. When dignity might be compromised then activities come to the person in their room and are specifically tailored to what they like and what helps to relax them. Often this focus towards individual activity in bedroom is driven by the presence of family who want to spend time with the person which often happens in the privacy of their own room and meets a host of the person’s human rights whilst working to the health and social care standards.

Compassion: 1.6: “I get the most out of life because the people and organisation who support and care for me have an enabling attitude and believe in my potential.”

Responsive care and support: “My health and social care needs are assessed and reviewed to ensure I receive the right support and care at the right time.”

“My care and support adapts when my needs, choices and decisions change.”

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Rights Made Real – Human rights and human connections are not defined by our role

Everyone is involved in activity e.g. chef chatting with residents and finding out what people like to eat. One of the residents wrote a braille letter to the chef for the lovely selection of food that reminded him of his late wife’s cooking.

The musician knew the residents well, he knew some of their names and knew how they liked to engage, e.g. what songs they like

A support worker assisted a resident to a football match and commentates the game for him.

The support worker said to activities coordinator, “I’ve supported you, can you support me?” Teamwork is vital in helping each other grow in confidence of their own abilities.

With each activity, there is an opportunity for staff to learn about residents’ behaviour and preferences, for example, one lady sat further away during a music activity as the staff knew she didn’t like to be too close to the noise and she liked to hear from a distance.

Compassion 1.6 : “I get the most out of life because the people and organisation who support and care for me have an enabling attitude and believe in my potential.”

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Consultation on practical fire safety guidance for care and housing support providers

The Scottish Government is currently gathering views on draft Fire Safety Guidance for Specialised Housing (and other supported domestic accommodation) and will use the responses to further develop and refine the guidance.  The consultation is open until 22 October 2019.

Scottish Care will be submitting a response on behalf of members and want to ensure this is grounded in the views and experiences of providers.  If you have comments you would like included in the response, please contact Swaran Rakhra by email or phone by Friday 18 October.  We also encourage members to submit their own responses where appropriate.

What is this consultation about?

This Fire Safety Guidance has been drafted to deliver on the sixth recommendation from the Review of the Fire Safety Regime for High Rise Domestic Buildings in Scotland. The Review’s other recommendations relate to fire safety in high rise domestic buildings and were agreed by the Scottish Government Ministerial Working Group on Building and Fire Safety that was set up following the tragic fire at Grenfell Tower. The sixth recommendation “Introduction of Scottish guidance concerning fire safety in specialised housing” is not specific to high rise domestic buildings but also agreed by the Ministerial Working Group.

Why Specialised Housing and supported domestic accommodation?

The Scottish fire regime review found there are no major gaps in the Scottish legislation but it did identify a lack of guidance related to the consideration of the needs of vulnerable people. It advocated a “person-centred” approach to meet the needs of all individuals that may need additional help in terms of fire safety.

What is Specialised Housing and what else does the guidance apply to?

Most specialised housing is provided for older people, who, with advancing age, may require a degree of care and support. This includes sheltered and very sheltered or extra-care housing. Other forms of specialised housing have evolved for people with specific needs, including housing for adults with physical, sensory, mental health or cognitive impairments who live, to varying degrees, independently within the community in group home environments. In some cases, such residents may require significant care and support (known collectively as “supported housing”).
It is also recognised that some people will be receiving home care services in what might be referred to as “general needs” housing. Therefore, the guidance has been drafted with a “person-centred” approach and aims to meet the needs of all individuals that may need additional help in terms of fire safety in the home. The guidance is also applicable to very small, domestic care homes, akin to supported housing.

Who is this consultation for?

The Guidance is primarily to be used by people that provide the housing or care/support services, and those regulators who ensure resident and tenant safety is adequately addressed. However, everyone who lives in specialised housing (or other supported domestic accommodation) and those with fire safety responsibilities are encouraged to respond to the consultation. This includes:
• Residents / tenants
• Independent/private sector housing providers
• Housing associations
• Local authority housing providers
• Managing agents or facilities managers
• Care and support providers
• Local authority service commissioners
• Enforcement Officers in local housing authorities
• Enforcement Officers and Community Safety staff of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service
• Advice agencies
• Consultants/contractors carrying out fire safety risk assessments
• Other people with responsibility for Fire Safety
• Anyone else with views including relatives of people who live in specialised housing

The consultation documents and questions can be accessed here: https://consult.gov.scot/fire-and-rescue/fire-safety-guidance-specialised-housing/ 

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Rights Made Real – Resident led activities and creative approaches

Resident led activities

Two of the projects are focusing on resident led activities, however all the care homes are involved in providing activities that the residents enjoy and find meaningful in their lives. Activities don’t have to be all singing all dancing, activities ca meaningful care, experiences and spending time with a resident doing things they enjoy, no matter how small.

Creative approaches are needed

Staff in one project noticed that boards weren’t being used to their full potential, so the activities coordinators created photo frames using coloured paper and placed photos of residents participating in activities at eye level throughout the home to remind residents of activities they have previously taken part in. This has been a great conversation starter and it has also encouraged people to walk around the home to look at the photos. With one resident commenting “Is that me? Is that really me?”

Families and visitors also enjoy looking at the photos too and it keeps them up to date on what has been going on for those that do not attend a residents meeting.

Be included - “I am included in wider decisions about the way the service is provided, and my suggestions, feedback and concerns are considered.

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Rights Made Real – Using a Visual Inquiry Tool

Visual inquiry tool to explore and develop understanding

Using images has been helping staff express what human rights means to them in their own language. The visual inquiry tool created by My Home Life can help to build connection between people, as they share in real and meaningful ways, while staying safe and only sharing what they feel comfortable with. Other benefits to using this method are that the images can evoke ideas, thoughts and feelings that the person participating was previously unaware of themselves. For example, one person selected the image to the right and explained:

 

 

We only see the top, we don’t see what is hidden.

This tree has its own shape, it is allowed to grow as it needs to, also it is sheltering the birds, there is protection.

 

 

Feedback from staff on using the visual inquiry tool

  • "If we were asked the question outright we would talk about the theory – this helps us go to a deeper level and use our imaginations."
  • "It would be good for reviews – at the moment we tend to talk around rather than with – reviews are focussed on what is keeping someone alive rather than what matters and what helps them to feel alive."
  • "Useful to use at the beginning and end of the project to gauge people’s attitudes and feelings around a subject."
  • "I’ve changed my mind about using images, I thought I didn’t like it and found it hard but it helped me go with my gut reaction."

If you would like more information on the use of images in practice please click on the link below.

Visual Inquiry Tool link

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Rights Made Real – A Summer Update

Over the Summer there has been lots of progress within the Rights Made Real in Care Homes Project.

  • Three human rights workshops successfully completed with another two dates set before the end of the year.
  • Two projects are coming to the end of their project and had a celebration event to reflect on all they have achieved and how they plan on embedding the learning.
  • The sensory garden in Tiree is blossoming and is due to be completed in the next month
  • Group Zoom call on the 11th September was a great success where we explored the progress of each project that was represented, different tools such as curiosity cards and the use of language in human rights. Our next group Zoom call is on 6th November

We are also excited and preparing for a two-day learning and sharing event in Perth, where all the projects no matter where they are on their journey are coming together to:

  • reflect and celebrate how far they have come
  • share their journey with others
  • think about how their practice has changed in terms of “I used to but I now….”
  • think about 'why YOU are so important in the realization of human rights'
  • future form – 'how do we embed this learning and where do we go from here?'

We can’t wait to share the findings from the upcoming learning event with you all in the near future.

 

On Tuesday and Friday on the next few weeks we will be sharing reflections from the projects across each of the following themes:

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News Release: Call for an Older Persons Human Rights Convention

Call for an Older Persons Human Rights Convention

On the UN International Day of Older Persons, 1 October, The Five Nations Care Forum, comprising eight national social care organisations, added their voice to the urgent call for a United Nations Convention on the Rights of Older Persons.

Globally, between 2017 and 2030, the number of persons aged 60 years or over is projected to grow by 46 per cent (from 962 million to 1.4 billion).

This day is an opportunity to highlight the important contributions that older people make to society and to raise awareness of the opportunities and challenges of ageing in today’s world.

Older people have always played a significant role in society, yet they are at risk of ageism, discrimination, poverty and disability, because their rights are not respected.

Old age is something which should be valued, but societal attitudes fail to recognise the benefits and potential of older persons. Old age is seen as a challenge rather than an opportunity.

Across the UK and Republic of Ireland we join the call, led by HelpAge International, for a new convention on the rights of older people. We believe that this is a crucial way to make sure that all people enjoy their human rights in older age, and on an equal basis with others.
Ends.

Notes for editors

1. The Five Nations Care Forum enables representative care organisations for England, Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, Scotland and Wales to explore shared agendas in relation to models of care, registration, regulation and social care policy. For more information see: http://www.fivenationscareforum.com/

2. For further details on the importance of the Convention see: https://www.helpage.org/what-we-do/rights/towards-a-convention-on-the-rights-of-older-people/

3. Enquiries to [email protected] / 07584 659995

 

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Take part in Arts in Care – Luminate’s creative project for care homes

Background

Arts in Care is an ambitious new project developed by Luminate in collaboration with the Care Inspectorate, Creative Scotland and the Baring Foundation. The aim of Arts in Care is to embed high quality arts in care activity across Scotland, with a long-term aim to build the skills, capacity and strength of both the arts and care sectors. Artist training and professional development will run alongside a creative programme for residents and staff in 30 care homes across Scotland.

Opportunity for Care Homes

Luminate are now inviting care homes for older people to apply to take part in this project.

Each selected care home will host an artist to deliver 5 half-day creative sessions with residents and staff at no financial cost to the home. This activity will take place between February and May 2020, with dates and times to be agreed between participating artists and care homes.

30 care homes for older people from across Scotland will be selected, they are looking for a group of homes with a range of different attributes - urban and rural, mainland and islands, homes of different sizes and with different governance structures (local authority, private, voluntary/not for profit organisations); as well as a diversity of experience delivering creative activities.

Embedding creativity in care settings has been shown to be hugely beneficial to residents and staff, improving wellbeing, providing opportunities to socialise and to learn skills, as well as helping people living with dementia. There are already many examples of fantastic creativity happening across the sector, however we acknowledge that there can be barriers to facilitating such activities, whether that is due to limited resources and training, or the challenges of meeting the specific needs of individuals amongst a large group.

This project aims to build capacity, skills and confidence of the care sector through learning opportunities and knowledge exchange between artists and care staff.

Each selected care home will receive:
• 5 x 1/2 days of high quality creative activity delivered by skilled artists, at no cost to the home.
• Opportunities for residents, staff and managers to engage in activities to develop skills, confidence and creativity.
• Participation in a Scotland-wide project with ambitions for long-term impact on the sector.

Each participating care home will commit to the following:
• Care home manager and other staff will meet with the artist in advance, to help him/her plan the project. Activity coordinators are also welcome if there is one.
• Care home staff will support residents’ engagement with the creative activity during each visit.
• Supporting staff and managers to participate in sessions to enhance their own learning and development
• Care home manager and other relevant staff will contribute to the evaluation of the project (an independent evaluation body is to be appointed, and will produce an evaluation report which will be published at the end of the project).
• Please note that you must seek permission from residents/family members before consenting to take part in this project as photographs, filming and other collection of data may take place.

Selection criteria

Please note that this opportunity is open to care homes who achieved grade 3 or above for all five key questions at their last inspection. If not all key questions were inspected against please use the grade from a previous inspection.

• How well do we support people’s wellbeing?
• How good is our leadership?
• How good is our staff team?
• How good is our setting?
• How well is our care planned?

Successful care homes will be able to demonstrate:
• How you will maximize the potential impact of the creative project in your care home.
• How you will support the artist and participating residents throughout the project.
• How you will support staff to participate meaningfully in the project and any activity.

Please note that the final selection will take into account the need for a geographical spread and mix of urban and rural locations, as well as a diversity of scale and governance and experience of supporting creative activity. The Arts in Care project will be supported by an Improvement Adviser from the Care Inspectorate.

How to apply

Interested care homes should:
• Apply in their own words as to why the feel their care home is suitable for this project, with particular emphasis on why they feel the arts are important to their residents and to overall wellbeing outcomes.
• Please include general (not confidential) details of any particular health needs of your residents that may need to be taken into account.
• Please include details of the expected number of residents taking part and any issues around space or facilitation.
• Include all this information in either one Word document or a PDF.

Please email your application to Lisa Maynard, Improvement Adviser, Care Inspectorate at [email protected] with ‘Arts in Care: Care Homes Opportunity’ in the subject line

All applications must be received by 23rd October at midday.

Applications will be reviewed by a panel comprising representatives from Luminate, Creative Scotland and the Care Inspectorate.

If you have any enquiries about this opportunity, please contact Lisa Maynard, Improvement Adviser, Care Inspectorate, ahead of the deadline: [email protected] / 01382 207393 / 07970405050.

Update Piece on Arts in Care (002)