5 minute read
Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
The Age UK Notts Worry Catcher Service, the Covid pandemic, and adventures into a ‘virtual’ world!
The Covid pandemic has presented all of us with many challenges and affected many aspects of our lives. We have lived through lockdowns, got used to wearing face masks, experienced food shortages and had difficulties accessing a variety of services. And that doesn’t even touch on the impact that the virus has had on our personal lives.
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In response to the pandemic, AGE UK NOTTS (AUNN) has had to make changes to all our services, which has impacted on all our service users, and at the same time meant staff have had to adapt very quickly to working from home.
Whilst these changes have been happening, some people have still needed to be admitted to a mental health ward and this can be stressful at the best of times. Being admitted during a pandemic has brought even greater challenges, as patients were not able to receive visitors for many months - and even now visiting is still subject to restrictions, causing additional worries for both patients and their families. That’s why it’s so important they have an independent person to talk to about their worries and concerns.
AUNN’s Worry Catcher Service has been working in partnership with Mental Health Services for Older People (MHSOP) at Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, for nearly 5 years. The service delivers free, independent and confidential support to patients, along with their relatives and carers, during their stay in hospital on the MHSOP wards across Nottingham and Nottinghamshire. These being: • Ward B1: Clumber and Blyth Units (Bassetlaw Hospital)
The main aims of the service are to provide the best possible patient experience on the ward and to support the patient’s discharge from hospital, working with both the patient and their relatives/carers. These are undertaken through Worry Catcher sessions, community/patients’ meetings and non-statutory advocacy support.
We offer:
• An independent, confidential service tailored to a person’s needs
• Someone to provide a listening ear and discuss any concerns with
• Support and representation – someone independent to speak on the person’s behalf to ensure their wishes are respected and their rights upheld
• Information to enable people to make informed choices and decisions around things that affect them e.g. health and social care matters, discharge, financial and legal matters
• Information and supported signposting/referrals to other agencies and services offering assistance e.g. befriending and social groups, day care services, community transport, shopping and gardening services
The weekly Worry Catcher sessions on each ward give patients the opportunity to share their views about the ward – what they like, what they are not so keen on, and to make suggestions for improvement.
made to the wards, which has made a positive difference to patients’ experiences”.
We are keen to capture feedback and suggestions from patients to improve inpatient experience and work together with the Trust to affect positive change. Improvements have included: adding new questions around financial matters on the admissions paperwork to ensure patients’ financial matters are in hand whilst in hospital, down to influencing the way food is served on the ward, around food options, and feeding back about the meals through food diaries. Suggestions from patients have included having signage on the wards in different languages and having double-handled teapots available at mealtimes so patients can pour their tea more easily.
Importantly, the service also provides patients with the opportunity to share any individual worries or issues they may have, and these are addressed through nonstatutory advocacy. Some issues are related to the ward and have included liaising with staff around how they are feeling, medication clarification, and finding lost possessions. However, issues are not restricted to ward matters and are extremely varied. Past examples have included support to access solicitors, benefits queries, researching social groups in the community, mobility aids and attending to safeguarding matters.
Pre-Covid, the service was delivered face to face on the wards, but when the national lockdowns commenced this had to cease. We knew how much our service was still needed by patients, so we took a leap into the virtual world!
Using Microsoft Teams, we have provided a virtual presence, enabling patients to see Lindsey over a laptop, or via a television screen. The activity coordinators on the wards have been pivotal in facilitating these sessions. This virtual service has also been provided via telephone or email for those who prefer alternative methods.
Lindsey and the activity coordinators have worked very closely to make sure that as many patients as possible have accessed the service to address their issues. One patient gave the following feedback after a virtual chat over a laptop: “Well, that was better than using the telephone!”.
Before the pandemic Lindsey would speak directly with relatives when they were visiting their loved ones on the wards. However, since visiting has been off the ward in specific visitors’ rooms, she has ensured that the service has been publicised via posters, as well as making a video introducing the Worry Catcher Service, which has been uploaded to every ward’s webpage.
For many patients, their issues have not differed greatly since before the virtual service commenced. However, for relatives, concerns have centred more around what processes and procedures take place and what routines and facilities are available on the wards and Lindsey has been able to provide all of this information.
She has also been able to provide support and information around discharge planning, how to find a suitable care home, funding matters etc, and in doing so has been able to provide reassurance and independent support.
One relative who was supported with multiple concerns around their spouse’s stay on the ward stated: “I feel more positive now with the issues being addressed. Thank you very much, I don’t feel alone anymore.”
Despite all the challenges of the pandemic, by embracing technology in new and innovative ways, we have been able to maintain our commitment to excellence.
The final word on the Worry Catcher Service goes to a patient who received support from the service:
