Dear colleagues,
Thank you to all of you who helped keep our residents safe and well in the recent heatwave, whether this was through working to the heat health plans in place in our care homes and day services or through sharing information and advice for keeping people safe in services that we buy on residents' behalf. There is often very little warning about the level of threat and your care and attention was essential to people's wellbeing.
As a follow-up to some of the safeguarding adult reviews that we have shared in Portsmouth, and our continued work to try and keep people well and safe, we will be asking you to tell us what you think of our new communications that aim to help us all talk to a colleague if we feel worried about something we see in our work. Please attend our all staff live event on Wednesday 21 September to learn more.
July was an important month for the NHS, as Integrated Care Systems (ICS) began life on 1 July. These systems are made up of people who provide health and care, such as general practitioners (GPs), practice staff, hospital and community based health professionals, such as nurses and therapists, and people who arrange and purchase care for local residents (known as commissioners). The ICS also draws on the expertise of charities and care providers, for example care homes and domiciliary care, as part of the system. An ICS works towards collaboration between all of these agencies to improve population health. Portsmouth is part of the Hampshire & Isle of Wight (HIOW) ICS.
The idea of integrated care systems has been in development for several years but the Health and Care act put them onto a statutory footing. These slides give more detail around the ICS and some useful resources. The ICS website is also now live and can be found here. There are two short videos, one here from various people across the ICS talking about what the system hopes to achieve and one here from the Kings Fund explaining how the NHS works and what has changed. I hope this all helps to explain what can sometimes feel like a complicated area. If you have any questions, please do get in touch.
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Also this month, Jacquie Bickers shared more about the Liberty Protection Safeguards (LPS), changes we will all be implementing, in an all ASC staff live event.
You can view a recording of the event and see the slides.
We had some great feedback on the event with multiple people saying it was "very informative". The chart explaining the key differences between Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) and LPS was particularly well-received. You can view that chart here. We also had some feedback that the event could have been longer as we slightly overran, so we will be trialling live events lasting 45 minutes from next time.
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Also in this newsletter, we share an update on the progress with the Southsea Unit as we create a permanent discharge-to-assess unit in Portsmouth.
We also celebrate our fantastic community connectors, learn about wellbeing walks and have a spotlight on one of our staff and the work they do that makes a difference for our residents.
I hope you enjoy the newsletter, stay safe,
Andy Biddle
Director of adult social care
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🔍 Agendas and minutes of council meetings available online
Did you know? You can view the agendas, decisions and minutes for all council meetings on the PCC website. So if you're interested in discussions that are taking place around health and social care, or any other council meetings, you can find them online.
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🖱️ Introducing the new Health and Care Portsmouth website
The new Health and Care Portsmouth website provides information on local services, including primary care, adult social care, and mental health, to help residents access advice and support.
The website also displays some of the different projects under Health and Care Portsmouth and explores how these projects are helping people across the city.
What is Health and Care Portsmouth?
Health and Care Portsmouth is all about working together so that people receive better care, seamless services and get the support they need.
Six organisations from across the city are part of Health and Care Portsmouth - they are:
- HIVE Portsmouth
- NHS Hampshire and Isle of Wight Integrated Care Board
- Portsmouth City Council
- Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust
- Portsmouth Primary Care Alliance
- Solent NHS Trust.
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✉️ A message from Rachael Roberts
An update from Rachael Roberts, deputy director of adult social care
I am delighted to advise you all that Yvonne Anthony has been appointed on a permanent basis as the team manager of the response team (duty), within adults care and support. Many of you will know that Yvonne has been acting into role for some months now, and it will be great for the team and for adult services that this arrangement has now been made permanent.
I am also pleased to announce that Laura Ternofsky will be taking on the deputy head of service role for safeguarding, mental health and learning disabilities (MH and LD) on a secondment basis for 12 months from 1 September 2022. Laura will retain operational responsibility for the adult multi-agency safeguarding hub (MASH). This is a great opportunity for Laura - her excellent colleague relationships and extensive safeguarding knowledge will bring stability and consistency to the service line, and we look forward to her joining the senior management team.
🩺 Southsea Unit and Jubilee House
We are now in a position to provide you with an update on the Discharge to Assess (D2A) plans with the Southsea Unit and Jubilee House, which is run by Solent NHS Trust.
As we mentioned in our update on 11 July, an agreement in principle was agreed following meetings with all partners involved that would allow you to continue providing Portsmouth residents with outstanding care, and that you would be able to do so in a good working environment.
It has now been confirmed that the Jubilee House building will close and Solent staff will move to the Southsea Unit and be co-located with PCC staff there. It will be a Solent-led service seeing PCC colleagues transferred into Solent to provide a consolidated workforce. The service will provide a D2A offer from Harry Sotnick House from autumn 2022 onwards.
It is expected that members of staff identified as working within the Southsea Unit within Harry Sotnick House will automatically transfer to the employment of Solent NHS Trust on 1st October 2022.
This transfer of employment is governed by the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (TUPE). As part of this process, a formal consultation process will begin on Monday 1 August and will last until Sunday 11 September.
We will be holding consultation sessions with staff affected and a set of frequently asked questions have been made available for them.
We will continue to share updates over the coming months to ensure you are all fully informed.
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Community Connectors - learning to walk again
The Community Connectors team produced their quarterly report for January, February and March with some really impressive results and some amazing stories.
During the first three months of the year 26 people have received support from community connectors. After intervention, 80% have said they feel less lonely or isolated, 100% said they feel more confident going out and about since using the Community Connector service.
You can find the amazing story of one man referred to the service below.
Pete's story
52-year-old Pete, was referred to the Community Connectors Service by his recovery worker at the Recovery Hub in Portsmouth.
He had recently been discharged from hospital with a liver condition, and wanted to re-build his confidence, get outside and meet more people in the community.
Pete was getting around the house with crutches and visiting the local shops on a mobility scooter. He said he had a low mood, was anxious to make phone calls and would only leave the house once or twice week. He said he had no interaction with his local community, except from his carers and recovery worker once a week. Pete was also finding it difficult to take public transport and so rarely travelled to see family who lived outside Portsmouth.
He talked about what he enjoyed previously - this included: air rifle shooting and being by the seaside. He wanted to link in with a befriending service and to have someone to go to the beach with.
We initially built up Pete's confidence to get outside by meeting regularly in local green spaces. We chatted about wildlife and Pete mentioned his love of the outside and nature.
I told Pete about wellbeing walks, which are available across Portsmouth including the seafront. Pete said he'd like to attend but was extremely nervous and nearly didn’t turn up. He said the only reason he did was because he knew his community connector would be waiting for him and he didn’t want to let us down.
Pete completed his first walk halfway on his scooter - he said he found it difficult, but it motivated him to keep trying. He continued to attend every Monday, and gradually began using crutches. Pete's confidence built week on week, until finally he didn't need his crutches to walk.
While he was coming to the walks, Pete began a new relationship - he said this was incredibly positive for him. He also joined a local library, started to walk to other places in the city from home and took the train for the first time without his mobility scooter.
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Nine months on from his first contact with community connectors, Pete is walking completely unaided. He no longer has a mobility scooter or crutches, and just uses a stick for when he goes walking.
Pete has moved into a new flat, which he says has improved his mood and wellbeing. He is volunteering full-time and training new volunteers. He no longer receives a care package as he can manage his daily tasks such as washing and cleaning. He enjoys cooking in the evenings, taking his partner's dogs out for walks and describes his life as "always on the up'".
Pete has said that when he was referred to community connectors, he was in a dark place and described himself as "ready for the morgue". He credits his renewed self-worth with the support he received from community connectors and wellbeing walks, and the power of being out in the community.
Pete's story shows the power and impact of a community-based project, and the positive changes this can have. Pete no longer requires support from adult social care, his visits to the NHS have decreased, and he has now completed his support with the recovery hub.
Pete stated that the thought of his story being shared "made him beam".
🍓 Afternoon tea for carers
12 carers from the McDonald Watson Carers Group met for afternoon tea at the Tennis Club Cafe in Southsea as a special treat.
This was paid for by Portsmouth Carers Centre's Covid Recovery Grant. Needless to say, everyone had a wonderful afternoon with lots of chat and laughter amongst friends.
McDonald Watson Carers Group is for any adult Carer (aged 18+). They meet on the second Wednesday of every month at the Portsmouth Carers Centre, from 1- 3pm. They have a variety of activities, speakers and outings.
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📚 Libraries Make a Difference newsletter
The Portsmouth Libraries Make a Difference newsletter has been published for April to June, packed full of photos and information about what our libraries have been up to in our communities.
You can read the newsletter at the link below.
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🎓 Well done, Kaye!
Congratulations to Kaye Taylor-Ryall on the achievement of a first class in her MSC in educational leadership and strategic management.
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As always, please let us know what you think of this newsletter. What did you like or not like? What would you like to see featured next time? This is your newsletter and we want it to be shaped by you. Get in touch at ASCstaffnews@portsmouthcc.gov.uk
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