Merry Christmas! Best wishes to everyone in Adult Learning Disabilities.

Page created by Manuel Murray
 
CONTINUE READING
Merry Christmas! Best wishes to everyone in Adult Learning Disabilities.
LD Staff Briefing – December 2012

                                             Merry Christmas!
                                             Best wishes to everyone
                                             in Adult Learning
                                             Disabilities.
                                             Thank you for all your hard work
                                             this year. Paul Miller,
                                             Dr Satheesh Kumar and Michelle
                                             Churchard-Smith.’

                          Norovirus affecting hundreds of thousands of people –
                          take responsibility!

                          About 880,000 people have been affected by outbreaks of
                          norovirus across the UK this winter, the Health Protection
                          Agency (HPA) has said. There have been just over 3,000
                          confirmed reports of norovirus so far this season, but for
                          every reported case there are likely to be a further 288
                          unreported sufferers. It means 880,000 people could be
                          affected by the stomach bug – an 83% increase on 2011 so
far this season. Norovirus is highly contagious and can be transmitted by contact
with an infected person; by contact with contaminated surfaces or objects or by
consuming contaminated food or water. The virus spreads rapidly in closed
environments such as hospitals, schools and care homes.

Symptoms of norovirus include a sudden onset of vomiting
and/or diarrhoea. Some people may have a temperature,
headache and stomach cramps. The illness usually resolves
in one or two days and there are no long-term effects. Having
norovirus infection is very unpleasant but it is short-lived and
most people will fully recover in a couple of days.
Merry Christmas! Best wishes to everyone in Adult Learning Disabilities.
Please remember you must not return to work for 48hrs after your last episode
of diarrhoea or vomiting, to ensure you are fully recovered.

Make sure that you or anyone you are caring for takes plenty of fluids to avoid
dehydration. Over-the-counter medicines can also be useful in reducing headaches
and other aches and pains.

Christmas and New Year arrangements
Please click here
http://www.leicspart.nhs.uk/Library/LDWin
terServiceDirectory20122013.pdf for
everything you’ll need to know about
Christmas and New Year arrangements,
including:

      Bed Based Services – Short Break
       Homes
      Agnes Unit
      Community Learning Disabilities
       Teams
      Clinical Psychology
      Speech and Language Therapy Team
      Autism, Outreach and Hastings Road Day Centre services
      Medical arrangements
      Medical on Call arrangements
      Managers on Call arrangements and availability

Update on our Performance
The Executive Team congratulated us in November for having no open contacts and
we are successfully bringing our agency expenditure down despite high sickness in
the Division. We are also showing a ‘break-even’ position on the overall Division
budget.

There are still some areas where we need to improve:

      To ensure patients/clients have a lead if they are not on CPA we would like
       staff to discuss this in their team allocation meeting and then ensure this is
       entered onto Maracis as soon as possible.

      Personal Development Plans (PDPs). For the first time in months the Division
       PDP completion rates have fallen, and we are now red for compliance with
       these, please remind your Manager if your PDP is due.

      We are still not entering data in a timely manner and this must be improved.
       All relevant staff will have a PDP objective related to this but in the meantime
       please input your date promptly.

Quality Standards
Merry Christmas! Best wishes to everyone in Adult Learning Disabilities.
This is just a reminder that we will be re-auditing compliance with the agreed local
quality standards for working with people in learning disabilities. These are reflected
in the core care pathway document and checklist. Please make sure the checklist is
completed for all referrals to the team from November and evidence of the
discussion or actions are captured in the patient/client notes.

Personal security – please be careful in the car parks
Please remember to take extra care when going to and from car parks, especially in
the darker evenings and around Farm Drive and Mansion House areas.

          Report car parking security concerns.
          Park in well-lit areas close to your destination.
          After dark return to car with colleague if possible.
          Have car park access card and car keys handy so you can get into your
           car and park/exit quickly.
          Close windows, remove ignition keys and remember where your car is
           parked.
          Do not leave valuables or other attractive items in view in the car. Lock
           them in the boot.
          Reverse into spaces so you can drive away easily.
          Consider protecting your car using window etching and alarms.

Click here to read the Trust’s security guidance, which includes information about car
parking: http://www.leicspart.nhs.uk/Library/PocketSummarySecurity.pdf

Clinical Care Pathways – latest update
From the recent Team Seniors Day there are three messages from each of the
clinical pathways:

   1. Epilepsy
         a. Please see the assessment guidance (it includes all the NICE
            guidelines).
         b. Make sure every patient with epilepsy has an annual epilepsy review
            using the template given in the pathway.
         c. Be aware of risk of SUDEP in people with epilepsy and make carers
            aware of this as well.
   2. Dementia
         a. Make sure that patients suspected to have dementia have a physical
            health examination (where this is not possible use OK health check at
            the minimum) as well as the dementia screening blood tests.
         b. Make sure psychiatrists, community nurses and OTs undertake their
            identified roles in the assessment and management.
         c. Be aware of the end of life care guidance and implement this in
            practice.
   3. Mental Health pathway
         a. Familiarise with the trigger lists from HoNOS but use clinical judgement
            and discussion with psychiatrists before triggering the pathway.
         b. Awareness of the treatment protocols for specific mental health
            conditions
Merry Christmas! Best wishes to everyone in Adult Learning Disabilities.
c. Use of the accessible information to educate users and carers on
              mental health conditions as well as medications.
   4.   Challenging behaviour pathway
           a. Use the framework of functional analysis in CB assessments
           b. Be aware of your role in the management of challenging behaviour (as
              outlined in the Care Pathway)
           c. Use pro-active behavioural, communication and environmental
              approaches before proceeding to the use of interventions or other
              restrictive interventions. All challenging behaviour care plans should
              have evidence of proactive, active and reactive strategies in place.
   5.   Eating and drinking pathway
           a. We are doing timely assessments and signposting to right care
              (foundation work assessment)
           b. Bring back the assessment to the locality team and discuss the findings
              to arrive at a care plan.
           c. Undertake multi-disciplinary visits where necessary
   6.   Forensic pathway
           a. Be aware of the offending risks in people with LD
           b. Thorough risk assessments are the key to a good management
              (discuss and consult)
           c. Consider multi agency approach (MAPA, CPA framework for multi-
              agency liaison, etc.)
   7.   ASD Pathway
           a. Ensure the individual has a clear diagnosis
           b. Support carers and users in understanding what Autism means to them
              and where to get good help.
           c. Be aware of your role in the management of the patient

If you wish to discuss any matters further, please contact the Pathway Leads. Click
here for more information about the Care Pathways:
http://www.leicspart.nhs.uk/_Divisions-LearningDisabilityService-CarePathways.aspx

Short breaks – potential home move
The Trust currently runs a short term break home at Tournament Road in Glenfield,
Leicester. This is available for use by adults with severe learning disabilities, many of
whom have a combination of physical and challenging behaviours. This bungalow
has been adapted many times over the years to improve accessibility, but now
requires extensive structural work if it is to continue to be used. The Trust now needs
to consider whether to invest a large sum of money into carrying out this structural
work or move the facility to another home. The Trust and the West Leicestershire
Clinical Commissioning Group have been working with staff, service commissioners,
Leicestershire LINk (Local Involvement Network) and The Carers’ Centre (previously
CLASP) to look at what the options might be. One of these is to move from
Tournament Road into 2, The Grange on the Glenfield Hospital site. This is next door
to another of the short breaks homes. We’ll keep you updated on progress.

Clinical Photography – guidelines and policy

                                Clinical photography is used in the Trust to monitor
Merry Christmas! Best wishes to everyone in Adult Learning Disabilities.
the progress and deterioration of some wounds and for educational purposes.

This is recorded in the Trust policy for consent available on eSource here:
http://www.leicspart.nhs.uk/Library/ConsentPolicy_Final_October2012.pdf

The following are general guidelines:

       •      Any wounds where safeguarding is a potential concern must be
              photographed on first contact.
       •      A Trust camera and not a personal mobile phone or any other device
              must be used.
       •      There must be no possibility of recognition from the photo.
       •      Consent must be recorded in the notes.
       •      Genitalia must be covered to preserve dignity.
       •      Where tissue damage has occurred around the genitals and
              safeguarding is a concern clinical judgement must be used.
       •      Clinical judgement is paramount in the decision to utilise photography
              at end of life; this must be clearly documented.

Please contact your divisional Tissue Viability or Safeguarding nurse with any
queries.

Therapeutics and Learning Disability symposium success

                                             The Therapeutics and Learning Disability
                                             symposium, held on 9 November at the
                                             Leicester Marriott Hotel, was a huge
                                             success this year with over 130 delegates
                                             from all over the region attending. The
                                             conference is hosted annually by the
                                             Learning Disability Division of LPT in
                                             collaboration with Partnerships In Care
                                             and was inaugurated on this occasion by
                                             Prof Richard Collacott. There were a
                                             variety of topics related to care and
support of people with learning disability. The morning session consisted of lectures
by eminent academics and clinicians on topics ranging from annual health checks,
future direction of inpatient services, and forensic aspects of learning disability. The
afternoon comprised two parallel sessions of four seminars each on topics including
pharmacology, care pathways, guidelines, assistive technology, psychotherapy,
commissioning and innovation. The organisers would like to thank the speakers and
the delegates who attended.

Infection Prevention and Control mandatory training - are you up to date?
As a Division we have very low rates of compliance with Infection Control Training;
only 7% for clinical staff. We have been given a challenge to improve our compliance
rates by the end of March 2013. It is mandatory to undergo update training every
three years. Training is taking place on 11 and 18 January, between 1-4pm and 8
and 15 February between 1-4pm. The training will be held in the Recreational Hall at
Merry Christmas! Best wishes to everyone in Adult Learning Disabilities.
Mansion House and can be booked via Debra.Beadman@leicspart.nhs.uk or on
0116 295 7155.

           On a related note, Antonia Garfoot, Senior Infection Control Nurse, would
           like to say Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all her Link Nurses
           - thank you for your work carrying out this role.

Training dates
Dates for resuscitation training and Strategies for Crisis Intervention and Prevention
(SCIP) can be found in the Academy Course Directory. Some topics – particularly
resuscitation training – have very limited spaces at present and therefore it is
recommended you call the Academy on 0116 225 3669 to get the latest availability.
More course dates for January to March 2013 are being planned and will be
advertised through the Trust e-Newsletter and cascaded through divisional
management teams.

New resuscitation dates available
In response to demand, extra dates have been scheduled for January to March
2013. If you are out of date with adult basic life support, adult and paediatric basic
life support or adult immediate life support please call The Academy on 0116 225
3669 for the latest availability. If you are unsure which resuscitation you are required
to attend in your role the Academy’s Course Directory gives some basic guidance or
you can contact them to check at academy@leicspart.nhs.uk or 0116 225 3669.

Fire safety training

It is mandatory for every member of staff to complete Fire Safety training every year.
Training can be accessed in one of two ways:

      Attending Trust Induction (for new starters) and the three-yearly core
       mandatory training workshop. Dates can be found in the Course Directory. By
       attending one of those training programmes you will be compliant with fire
       safety awareness training for one year.

      In the years when you do not attend induction or a core mandatory training
       workshop you should complete a Fire Safety Checklist with your manager.
       The checklist is designed to refresh your memory of fire safety procedures
Merry Christmas! Best wishes to everyone in Adult Learning Disabilities.
specific to your work area. This can be found here:
       http://www.leicspart.nhs.uk/Library/FireRefresherChecklistSept12.pdf

For further information please visit: http://www.leicspart.nhs.uk/_SupportServices-
EstatesandFacillities-FireSafety.aspx

New policies

A number of policies have been adopted by relevant Board Committees in November
2012 and are now available on e-Source. These are:

       Name of Policy                                       Link
                                     H&S Policies
Respiratory Sensitisers and      http://www.leicspart.nhs.uk/Library/RespiratorySens
Health Surveillance Policy       itisersandHealthSurveillancePolicy_Final_Novembe
                                 r2012.pdf
                                     HR Policies
Dress Code and Uniform           http://www.leicspart.nhs.uk/Library/Uniformandwork
Policy                           wearpolicy2012Finaldoc.pdf
Voluntary Redundancy             http://www.leicspart.nhs.uk/Library/VoluntaryRedun
Scheme                           dancyScheme.pdf
                       Patient Safety and Experience Group
Venepuncture Policy              http://www.leicspart.nhs.uk/Library/VenepuncturePo
                                 licy_Final_November2012.pdf
                            Senior Clinical Quality Group
Clinical Supervision Policy      http://www.leicspart.nhs.uk/Library/ClinicalSupervisi
                                 onPolicy_Final_November2012.pdf
Searching of Patients            http://www.leicspart.nhs.uk/Library/ProcedureforSe
                                 archingPatients_January2011.pdf

Please note that the most up to date Directory of LPT Policies 2012 is now
available on e-Source and staff will be informed accordingly via this week’s e-
Newsletter.

Research grants available – but be quick!
Do you have an idea for patient focused research that, when developed and
undertaken, will translate into direct patient benefit? If so, there are Trust awards of
up to £2,500 available for you to take your project forward. The closing date is 25
January, and you will need to submit a short proposal. Click here to find out more:
http://www.leicspart.nhs.uk/Library/AwardsSchemeRevisedDec2012.pdf

Clinical Audit in Adult Learning Disabilities
                                   The clinical audit team is keen to spread the
                                   word about clinical audit and will be regularly
                                   appearing in this newsletter to promote its
                                   involvement in Adult Learning Disabilities. If you
                                   have participated in an audit and not known the
                                   outcome let the team know and they’ll try and
                                   feedback in future newsletters.
Merry Christmas! Best wishes to everyone in Adult Learning Disabilities.
Did you know that Clinical Audit is all about improving the quality of patient care? It
enables us to drive up standards, demonstrate quality improvement and plays a
pivotal role in quality assurance. Did you also know that:

“All clinical staff working in LPT are expected to participate in the clinical audit
programme and to accept responsibility for carrying out and/or acting on individual
clinical audits and their findings, and to make the necessary changes to improve
patient experience and outcomes.” Clinical Audit policy, page 6.

The division has a dedicated clinical audit officer, Elena Wragg (pictured above).
Elena assists staff on all aspects of the audit cycle, which includes advising on and
developing appropriate audit methodology and design, inputting and analysing data
and preparing audit reports and action plans. Elena can be contacted on Tel: 0116
295 7636.

For a clinical audit to take place it needs to be approved and eventually audit results
shared at the divisions Clinical Research & Audit Group (CRAG). The group is
chaired by John Devapriam and includes representatives from all service areas.

Clinical Supervision Audit – for all clinical staff to complete
Clinical Supervision is a formal process of professional support and learning where
staff can talk through any issues about their role, or about the people they provide
care, treatment and support to, with their line manager or supervisor. It includes one-
to-one sessions or peer group meetings, and enables staff to develop knowledge,
competence and take responsibility for their own practice and enhance patient care.

Please complete the audit as it will enable the Trust to identify the number of staff
receiving clinical supervision and gather information to inform future training and
policies. If you are a clinical member of staff and have not yet completed the
audit, please click on the link below. The audit will take less than five minutes to
complete: http://s.zoomerang.com/s/ClinicalSupervision_LD

If you would like further information about the audit, please contact Janie Chan
(Janie.Chan@leicspart.nhs.uk) or Diane Postle (Diane.Postle@leicspart.nhs.uk).

Police reminder – suspects may breach bail
                          At times Leicestershire Police will come into contact with
                          families who are clients for social care services. In some
                          cases suspects will be arrested and given bail, either so
                          further enquiries can be carried out, or so that they can
                          attend court. Often bail is granted subject to certain
                          conditions, which are designed to reduce the risk of further
                          offences being committed. These may include a ban on
                          making contact with alleged victims or witnesses, a ban on
                          visiting certain locations, or a requirement to live at a
                          particular address. Although the police will monitor and
where necessary take action for any breaches, you should not assume that the
suspects will obey those conditions. You should still consider a full range of
options to safeguard vulnerable families and individuals.
Merry Christmas! Best wishes to everyone in Adult Learning Disabilities.
Do you have some news?
If you’d like to have your good news included in this Staff Briefing, please contact
Paul Widdowfield, Communications Manager, on paul.widdowfield@leicspart.nhs.uk
or 0116 295 0924.
You can also read