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November 2021 edition
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Welcome to the 19th edition of the Provider Forum information bulletin. We hope that you, your team, family and friends are continuing to keep safe and well during this pandemic.
In lieu of the Provider Forum, we will send out these bulletins regularly summarising updates from Gloucestershire County Council (GCC), Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), as well as local and national initiatives.
Remember, the bulletin is interactive, so make sure you click the links to get the most out of it.
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Have you got something to share?
We would love to hear your feedback or contributions, so if you have anything which you want to share, or have a question to ask us, email us here.
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If you had your second dose of the Covid vaccine more than six months ago, you’re now eligible for a booster to help protect you this winter. Please note, booster vaccinations are not mandatory to enter a care home. Book an appointment at one of either community pharmacies via the National Booking system, or look out for a PCN site which is open to walk-ins for boosters. Just remember to check the list on this page to find out what ID you need to take to prove you’re eligible for a booster as a health and social care worker.
Boosting your immunity, by getting vaccinated, remains the best way to protect yourself against COVID-19 and seasonal viruses. Take action today!
If you have any questions about the vaccination programme, whether that’s first, second or booster doses, please take a look at the Gloucestershire NHS COVID-19 portal in the first instance. This includes information in a variety of community languages.
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From 11 November 2021, all care home workers and anyone entering a CQC registered care home will need to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, unless they are exempt under the regulations. Second doses can be booked and received six weeks after the first.
What do you need to do as a provider?
• You should encourage all staff to get both doses of the Covid jab and be aware of the vaccination status of your staff.
• Share details of local drop-in vaccination clinics that staff can access to get their jab.
• Posters, information, and other resources are available for social care providers to help encourage and reassure staff about having the COVID-19 vaccine click here to view them.
• Make sure staff are aware that they will be expected to show their COVID-pass when visiting care home settings.
• If a staff member has refused the vaccine or is unable to receive it, conversations around re-deployment may be required.
While checks may be undertaken by other members of staff acting under instruction of the registered person, registered persons are ultimately responsible for ensuring compliance with the requirements.
Please click here for advice to registered persons on the implementation of the regulations. When deciding how to implement the regulations, the registered person must also refer to the code of practice on the prevention and control of infections which we are currently updating and will publish as soon as possible.
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All visiting staff from the Quality Team will be able to provide evidence of their COVID vaccination status via the NHS App upon arrival to the service. Quality Team staff will comply with the ‘Guidance for visiting professionals’ as well as adhering to the appropriate IPC measures.
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The DHSC has published the guidance and conditions in relation to this latest round of funding. We are currently going through our internal governance process and will be writing out to providers about how they can access grant funding for infection control, testing and vaccinations in due course. Please look out for the e-mail.
The DHSC also recently announced £162.5 million of new funding to help workforce retention and recruitment. We are awaiting details of how this will be allocated and is to be administered. Once this has been established, we will again write out to providers with details.
People who are most at risk from the complications of flu are recommended to get a flu vaccine every year. This winter it is especially important with flu and coronavirus (COVID-19) both in circulation. Research shows you're more likely to be seriously ill. Flu vaccination is important because if you're at higher risk from coronavirus, you're also more at risk of problems from flu. If you've had COVID-19, it's safe to have the flu vaccine.
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From the 1st November 2021, the Financial Assessments & Benefits Team (FAB Team) will no longer be sending Client Contribution letters via email. Instead, these letters will now be published via the Provider Portal and appear as a downloadable pdf on your list of ‘Actions’ within the ‘Actions & Change Requests’ section of the Portal.
If you have any queries relating to the Client Contribution document, you can simply ‘Reply’ to the initial FAB message that includes the Client Contribution letter, or you can create a new Action and assign it to the FAB team which will be sent to them directly.
IMPORTANT: Where possible, please raise any actions against the specific client in question by navigating to the ‘Care Package Line Item’ page and clicking the ‘Submit Action’ button next to their name. Please see an example below:
 If you are experiencing problems logging onto the Portal or have any questions, please email the brokerage team by clicking here.
For access to the Provider Portal, please click here.
ECM Providers,
Going forward, please submit any variation requests via the Provider Portal through an Action.
Once you have logged into the Provider Portal, click on the ‘Actions & Change Requests’ icon on the home page and select the ‘New Action’ option. This will generate a new screen, please use the below as a guide to complete the required fields:
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Type: ‘Client Invoice Variation’
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Related To: ‘Client’
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Entity: Name of the client in question
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Assign To: Brokerage Team
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Title: ‘ECM Variation for *name*’
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Text: Free text box to enter any information relating to the variation.
- Then click ‘Create Action’
Any issues, please email here for assistance.
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A new service is being launched to provide mental health and wellbeing support for everyone working in health and social care in Gloucestershire.
The Wellbeing Line is confidential and free of charge. It provides rapid mental health and psychological wellbeing assessments as well as signposting to appropriate services where required. You can contact The Wellbeing Line directly if you are struggling with your own mental health or wellbeing, or if you are worried about a colleague. There is no need for a referral. If you are a team manager then you can contact The Wellbeing Line if you would like support managing the wellbeing of your team or an individual team member. The Wellbeing Line is in addition to, and not instead of, your organisation's occupational health service.
Get in Touch
The Wellbeing Line can be contacted by phone or email. Phone: 0300 421 7500
Email: hello@thewellbeingline.co.uk
Visit: www.thewellbeingline.co.uk
Opening Hours
Initially the opening hours will be 10am to 4pm, Monday to Friday. If you call outside of those hours, you will be invited to leave an answerphone message and somebody will return your call when next open. In due course, the aim is to extend the opening hours to reflect the shift working nature of health and social care staff.
What happens when I contact The Wellbeing Line?
When you call The Wellbeing Line you will speak with somebody who is experienced in supporting people who are struggling with their emotional wellbeing. They will listen to your concerns and will help to connect you with the appropriate help and resources. They will also arrange to “check in” with you a couple of weeks later to see whether that support was helpful or whether you might need to try a different type of support. This is a supportive telephone conversation and you will be listened to without judgment. The Wellbeing Line does not provide therapy, but does provide a safe space for you to discuss your concerns and works with you to find the appropriate support. The Wellbeing Line does not replace other services but helps to navigate support offers available and find what is best for your individual needs.
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On December the 2nd we will be launching our MHELO’s feedback line- please see our attached poster and information below.
MHELO's feedback line is a platform to share current and ongoing experiences of using mental health services.
Its purpose is to aid in raising issues and areas of unmet need so we can highlight the gaps in mental health services to commissioners and help support bridging those gaps.
We want to know what your experiences are!
The line will be open:
First Thursday of every month 9.30am-12.30pm
Supported by the MHELO chair and Coordinator
Call us on 07404 663935.
This is not a support or advice line.
MHELO (Mental Health Experience Led Opportunities) is a network of individuals who have lived experience of mental ill health, are carers of those who have mental ill health or who have an interest in the area of mental ill health.
We want to raise the voices of those who have experience of mental ill health and the services they use to commissioners and services providers to make those services better. Our feedback line is one of the ways we will do this.
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