The following is the text of the address given by our Chief Executive Dr Donald Macaskill as he opened the Scottish Care Palliative Care event, ‘Trees that bend in the wind.’ in Glasgow on the 8th February.

Welcome to The Trees that bend in the wind… the Scottish Care Frontline Worker Event on Palliative Care.

Death happens to us all. It is a journey whose steps we each of us will make in our own way, at our own pace, and in our own time; it will for some of us be a journey which is a long one with all the emotions, energy, and fears and tears that a parting brings; for others it will be short, painfully brief, leaving us breathless with regret, with hopes unmet and tasks unfulfilled.

That journey at the end of life will happen at a time beyond our calculation or design; whether in the depth of winter’s cold or the tiredness of an uncomfortable summer it has a season of its own time. For some it will be heralded by progressive illness and decline, for others its suddenness will take our living breath away.

For many people today around Scotland they will make that journey and take these steps, in the company of others; their families, friends partners and lovers  – who will sit with them and walk with them, carry them and support them.

 For countless hundreds the last few weeks and months of life will be accompanied by someone who entered into their life as a stranger,  became a companion and often towards the end becomes a friend.

 It is those individuals, the undervalued, unrecognised thousands of frontline carers in care homes, in homecare and housing support services whose contribution to giving our fellow Scots a good death we are here to value, to learn from and be inspired by.

 It is they who somewhere in a quiet house at the bottom of a glen will be the worker who this morning shares a moment of laughter which distracts from the loneliness of absence;

 It is they who in a high rise flat are giving companionship and a listening ear to someone who never gets out anymore and probably won’t leave their home until they die;

 It is they who in a suburban, very ordinary street, are the worker who today right now is holding someone’s hand as they tremble with emotion and upset;

 They are the worker who brushes the hair and dries up the tears of the woman in the room in the care home that has become their home showing that touch is often more important than talk;

 It is these workers who when folks are on their end of life journey and stumble in uncertainty and fear, in pain and distress – it is they who give the strength to find direction and carry on; it is these workers who spot the subtle signs of conditions changing, a new path starting and a final stage dawning.

 Today we are indeed here to celebrate these workers, to hear their stories,  but we are also here to be challenged by their words and experiences.

 Because we have not always valued these workers or their contribution; we have not always resourced them so that they feel more confident and skilled;

Indeed we have through some of our practices served to place very real obstacles in their path as they have sought to bring solace and give comfort to others at the end of their life’s journey.

 So in the midst of the stories you hear this morning, do not just listen to the words of dedication and professionalism; give space in your listening and your response to the challenge and to the call to do things differently and better.

 This morning is part of a bigger piece of work we have started here at Scottish Care on palliative and end of life care. We hope that our call in this report for a National Conversation on Dying will encourage our fellow Scots to challenge the silence, which adds to the loneliness of our final steps.

 For whilst the ending of our life will always be a journey which no-one else can make for us, we can become much better as a nation at being there, being with, at talking, consoling and holding.

 Donald Macaskill 

Today (8 February 2017), Scottish Care has launched its latest report relating to the role of social care staff in palliative and end of life care.

‘Trees that bend in the wind: Exploring the experiences of front line support workers delivering palliative and end of life care’ is a 47 page report which provides a forum where the views, experiences and values of social care staff in palliative and end of life supports are explored in detail.

It has allowed those involved in the front line of social care to:

• speak for themselves
• share their insights on what constitutes good palliative support
• express their frustrations and anxieties, and
• explain what keeps them going in the face of such emotional challenges.

The report highlights the contributions of 50 individual staff in care home and care at home services in four areas of Scotland who took part in structured focus groups. The research took place in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Highland and Dumfries and Galloway but the insights are without boundary or geography.

The report was launched on the 8^th February at an event which brought together over 100 stakeholders from across Scotland who explored together its insights and recommendations.

At the event Scottish Care’s Chief Executive, Dr Donald Macaskill, highlighted Scottish Care’s commitment to ensuring that the often unrecognised and undervalued contribution of social care staff in palliative and end of life care was given a greater prominence at both policy and practice levels.

He said the aim of the research was to ensure that everyone in Scotland was able to achieve a truly person centred end of life experience by being supported by staff who were properly resourced and supported. He reflected on the way in which the ‘tree that bends’ (an image from one of the workers to describe their role) was in danger of breaking unless front line care staff are adequately supported.

Dr Macaskill encouraged all stakeholders to work together with Scottish Care to ensure the recommendations in the report, which arose directly from the insights of the frontline workforce and which included a call for a National Conversation on Dying, were enacted as soon as possible. In addition, the report highlights the potential contribution of social care staff to supporting the work of Integrated Joint Boards in achieving positive end of life outcomes, including the benefits of joint team-working and the value of Anticipatory Care Planning.  It also stresses the need to explore the role of commissioning practice in relation to palliative and end of life care in social care delivery.

We hope you will find reading the report of interest.  It is also available in hard copy format directly from the Scottish Care offices.

We would be more than happy to meet with individuals and organisations to discuss ways in which we could work collaboratively in the implementation of the report’s recommendations.

If you have any questions either about the report or our work with front line support staff, please don’t hesitate to contact Katharine Ross, Becca Gatherum or Donald Macaskill.

The Scottish Government recently ran a public consultation on the new National Health and Social Care Standards, to which Scottish Care submitted a response.

This response was informed by the National Care Standards Consultation event which Scottish Care ran for members on 10 January 2017.  Thanks to all those who participated.

Scottish Care’s response can be accessed here.

Now that the consultation has closed, the Scottish Government will review and analyse the responses.   The Project Board and Development Group will consider the findings and a consultation report will be published in Spring 2017.

The final Standards will be published in Spring 2017, and will be implemented from Spring 2018.

For more information about the new Standards, visit http://www.newcarestandards.scot/