change champions & associates newsletter november 2012
DESCRIPTION
Newsletter for Innovators in Healthcare and BeyondTRANSCRIPT
NEWSLETTER
The Queensland Smart Home Initiative
Health and aged-care reform through
Internet technologies
For innovators in
healthcare & beyond
N o v e m b e r 2 0 1 2
The Queensland Smart Home Initiative
(QSHI) was formed in late 2006 follow-
ing a briefing by smart home and
assistive technology experts, Dr.
Jeffrey Soar from the University of
Southern Queensland and Dr. George
Margelis from Intel, with the then
Queensland Minister for Health Hon
Stephen Robertson and Queensland
health department executives includ-
ing Dr. Stephen Duckett. The briefing
and discussion aroused great interest
and afterwards a question was asked
by the Ministerial advisor – as a next
step where can we see these
technologies in operation?
(Continued p.2)
The Queensland Smart Home Initiative
Professor Jeffrey Soar, University of Southern Queensland Kind 2 Mind Social Media Mental Health Initiative Dominic McCann & Jayde Lovell Improving psychosocial support for people affected by cancer in South Australia
Afaf Girgis & Vibeke Hansen A Partnership Approach to Improved Care Lisa Pearson Hearts in Healthcare: Community of Health Professionals Book Reviews of ‘Time to Care’ by Dr. Robin Youngson Catherine Lothian & Leonie Curran POINT OF VIEW: Experiences of a Facilitator
Dawn Skidmore
UPCOMING SEMINARS
Five practical workshops on public speaking, leadership and change management
The Challenge of Long Term Alcohol Abuse in Older Adults Pathways to a Consumer Focused Organisation – Governance and Managerial Approaches
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Dr Soar then formed a small group of stakeholders to
establish Queensland’s first demonstration Smart Home for
supporting ageing at home, access to care and independent
living. Before then people could see samples of some Smart
Home technologies but not fully installed and in operation
in a home setting. The formation of the Queensland Smart
Home Initiative involved a broad range of stakeholder
organisations including Tunstall, Ekoliving, Blue Care, Aged
Care Queensland, Intel, U3A-Online, COTAQ, Nexus On-line
and the University of Southern Queensland.
QSHI’s first Smart Home was hosted by Blue Care at a
refurbished independent living unit its Kenmore campus in
Brisbane and was launched by Minister Robertson in 2007.
Financial support was provided by the Queensland
Government and QSHI partners; technologies were
supplied by Tunstall and Ekoliving, and fit-out and
furnishing by Blue Care. That first Smart Home was visited
by over 200 people in its first year of operation; visitors
came from across Australia and overseas. Since then
government and industry support was obtained for the
QSHI’s new demonstrator Smart Home at LifeTec in
Newmarket, Brisbane. This was opened by Deputy Premier
Paul Lucas in 2009 and continues to draw visitors. An
advantage of the new Smart Home was its location at
LifeTec (Queensland’s Independent Living Centre) in an
inner suburban shopping centre with good access and
parking. It further enabled the QSHI to raise awareness of
Assistive Technology with the general public. Subject to
funding there is a goal of establishing other demonstration
Smart Homes in regional locations.
QSHI researchers attracted several grants and other
support for a program of research aimed at developing the
pathways to adoption of Smart Home technologies where
there were benefits for consumers, families, carers and
others. This included a pilot of home telehealth for heart
failure patients with technology supplied and supported by
Tunstall, an Australia Research Council-funded project to
develop information integration across sectors of care
through innovative technology and supported by
Queensland Health and technology innovator Nexus On-
line, development of smart software, a model for security
of information and many others.
Now in its sixth year since inception QSHI has attracted
expert researchers in “Game-changing” new technologies
such as Big Data, the Cloud, image technologies, the
Internet of Things, sensor networks and many others. It has
strong links with researchers in Asia and has attracted
support from the Chinese government for collaborative
research. QSHI is planning to launch a new entity to
strengthen its collaboration; it invites stakeholders from
across ageing and community care to participate in its
research program and also to bring ideas for new projects
to benefit older people and their families. For further
information contact:
Professor Jeffrey Soar, University of Southern Queensland
[email protected] or 07 46311255
Healthcare Emerging Managers Network
– now on Linked In
This brand new group provides support to emerging
managers (e.g. clinical, program/project managers)
working in health and aged care in Australia and
New Zealand. Members will be willing to share
their experiences, ideas for dealing with challenges
and information/resources. So if you are out on a
limb and all at sea…
join up at www.linkedin.com or email us to join you
up at [email protected]
3
Upcoming Workshops
Handy Hints for the Novice Conference Presenter
If you are doing great work but never or hardly ever present to a live
audience because the thought of it turns your knees to jelly.... then here is a
workshop for you. Delegates from outside health also welcomed.
12 November 2012: Melb, VIC
19 February 2013: Sydney, NSW
26 February 2013: Canberra, ACT
05 March 2013: Melbourne, VIC
19 March 2013: Adelaide, SA
14 May 2013: Brisbane, QLD
21 May 2013: Perth, WA
Moving Forward: Accepting and Embracing Resistance to Change
This one day workshop is a fantastic opportunity for new leaders and project
managers from any industry or public sector who are keen to develop their
skills in change management.
13 November 2012: Melb, VIC
21 February 2013: Sydney, NSW
28 February 2013: Canberra, ACT
07 March 2013: Melbourne, VIC
21 March 2013: Adelaide, SA
16 May 2013: Brisbane, QLD
23 May 2013: Perth, WA
The Better Boss Workshop
Ever wondered how you rate as a boss? How you could be a better boss? This
workshop is ideal for enthusiastic emerging leaders, new managers and su-
pervisors with no formal management training and those who are just won-
dering if they are really are being the best boss they can be.
14 November 2012: Melb, VIC
19 February 2013: Sydney, NSW
26 February 2013: Canberra, ACT
05 March 2013: Melbourne, VIC
19 March 2013: Adelaide, SA
14 May 2013: Brisbane, QLD
21 May 2013: Perth, WA
Assessing Change Readiness
Overflowing with enthusiasm to implement an exciting new program that
promises to bring much needed change for the better? This workshop offers a
step by step introduction by systematically assessing change readiness across
a range of levels to optimise the potential for success.
15 November 2012: Melb, VIC
20 February 2013: Sydney, NSW
27 February 2013: Canberra, ACT
06 March 2013: Melbourne, VIC
20 March 2013: Adelaide, SA
15 May 2013: Brisbane, QLD
22 May 2013: Perth, WA
Managing Forced or Unplanned Change
Take this opportunity to learn how to transition from a change recipient to a
change champion. This is a great new workshop for managers who are work-
ing in small organisations, in the not for profit sector or on funded programs-
and want to learn change management strategies in the face of a crisis or un-
expected situation. (Not suitable for commercial entities)
22 February 2013: Sydney, NSW
01 March 2013: Canberra, ACT
08 March 2013: Melbourne, VIC
22 March 2013: Adelaide, SA
17 May 2013: Brisbane, QLD
24 May 2013: Perth, WA
REGISTER ONLINE: www.changechampions.com.au
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City of Kingston – Sands Australia
‘KIND 2 MIND’
Social Media Mental Health Initiative
Mental illness is a significant issue in the Australian community. This is also the case in the City of Kingston.
Kingston City Council through its Kind 2 Mind initiative is trying to improve the quality of life for people who
experience mental ill-health and for their carers and families.
Kingston Council plays an important role in developing a vibrant and cohesive community by promoting
positive mental health and wellbeing and by responding to the needs of the community through the provision
of information, hosting positive mental health initiatives and the support of service provision and support
networks.
Kind 2 Mind was developed as a two day mental health and wellbeing expo to promote a positive approach to
mental health and wellbeing through an innovative program of informative panel discussions, presentations,
mental health information, art, theatre and creative activities.
Successful though these expos were Council began looking at new ways of connecting with the community
and increasing and improving access for people with mental ill-health to appropriate services and support
groups.
In the era of modern communications social media such as Facebook, Yammer, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc. are
powerful mechanisms for sharing information, keeping families and friends and community connected and
building social cohesion. Kingston Council through Kind 2 Mind is now exploring the possibilities of using these
types of social media in creative ways that can be used to deliver positive mental health outcomes for the
Kingston community.
The Kingston Kind 2 Mind social media initiative has 3 main aims;
1. To promote positive mental health and wellbeing messages to the community
2. To provide opportunities for mental health organisations and community groups to collaborate
and enhance mental health initiatives for the Kingston Community
3. To develop and implement social media strategies to connect local community groups and
individuals to achieve positive mental health outcomes.
A partnership to deliver this initiative has been developed with Sands Australia. Sands are the Stillbirth and
Newborn Death Support service, and have 30 years of experience offering grief and bereavement support in
Australia. They also have extensive experience in engaging users via social media, and linking social media to
their face-to-face service provision in the City of Kingston.
5
course Outline
MASTER CLASS with Alice Rota Bartelink
The Challenge of Long Term Alcohol Abuse in Older Adults
Managing Older Clients living with
Alcohol Related Brain Injury
Book an in-house
In house opportunities available for facilities in Australia & New Zealand
To read Alice Rota-Bartelink’s bio, or for more details about the
master class, visit www.changechampions.com.au
Introduction Alcohol & Alcoholism Symptoms Alcohol and the Ageing Body Comorbidity Alcohol and the Brain The Role of a Neuropsychologist Treatment Managing Challenging Behaviour Aggressive Behaviour Self Care Practices - Staff Case Profile Conclusion
The Kind 2 Mind project will embrace social media by
launching a Facebook portal. This portal will hold a range
of resources to help promote positive wellness messages,
as well as awareness of mental health issues facing the
community.
The project will have a range of exciting features, including:
A resource library, full of fact sheets, podcasts
and videos
Live-Chat capacity, so people experiencing mental
health issues can speak to a service provider
A listing of clubs and groups operating in Kingston
A listing of crisis phone numbers such as Lifeline
Importantly, the portal will be hosted in the Facebook
‘apps’ library, and will be available for any organisation to
install on their Facebook page. The hope is that hundreds
or even thousands of organisations will install the ‘app’,
and promote themselves as a Kind2Mind organisation.
We believe this project is the first of its kind to use a
Facebook ‘app’ to increase community engagement. We’re
really looking forward to seeing the portal ‘go live’, and
hopefully increase engagement and connectedness in the
Kingston community.
For further information contact:
Dominic McCann Co-ordinator Community Wellbeing,
Kingston City Council at
Jayde Lovell, Communications and Fundraising Manager,
Sands Australia at [email protected]
6
Despite improved survival rates, a cancer diagnosis remains a major life stressor
and cancer treatments are often invasive and prolonged, placing significant
demands on the person diagnosed and their families and partners. Between 20-40%
of individuals with cancer experience considerable physical, psychological and social
morbidity and family members often find the cancer experience more distressing
than the patients themselves. The ability of patients and partners to manage cancer
challenges has been shown to impact on their short and long-term health and well-
being and, potentially, survival. National guidelines recommend psychosocial care
from the time a cancer is diagnosed.
The Cancer Council South Australia plays a significant role in the provision of
support services to people affected by cancer in South Australia. Therefore, the
Cancer Council has commissioned a project to identify gaps in their support service
provision and potential partners in SA which can facilitate the provision of optimal
support services to meet the needs of the SA people affected by cancer.
This project will undertake one-on-one telephone interviews with people affected
by cancer in SA, including survivors and their caregivers, to explore their psychoso-
cial support needs at different stages of the cancer trajectory, information and
services they utilised and perceptions of the helpfulness of these, perceived gaps in
psychosocial support, how these gaps can be addressed and the Cancer Council’s
potential role in the provision of psychosocial support in SA.
The results of this project will be used to inform recommendations to the Cancer
Council on possible actions which could be taken to improve its services. Hence, this
project has the potential to improve the availability and quality of psychosocial
support services provided in the future, and thereby better meeting the support
needs of those affected by cancer.
Improving psychosocial support for
people affected by cancer in South Australia
Professor Afaf Girgis, from the
University of NSW, is undertaking
this project for the Cancer Council,
along with Vibeke Hansen. People
who are interested can obtain more
information by calling 1800 080 322,
or by emailing
Afaf Girgis
Vibeke Hansen
We are currently recruiting participants to this projects, and would love
to hear from South Australian residents who;
are 18 years or over AND
a) have ever been diagnosed with cancer, OR
b) who are a partner/caregiver of someone diagnosed with cancer
(current or recently bereaved).
7
2012 MASTER CLASS
Pathways to a Consumer Focused
Organisation – Governance and
Managerial Approaches
It is timely for health care organisations, from boards to
front-line staff, to gain a clear understanding of consumer
participation and consumer experience principles.
Set within the context of the current health reforms and
expanding mandatory requirements this Master Class is a
strategic exploration and examination of the health consumer
participation trilogy: consumer engagement, consumer
involvement and consumer partnerships for organisation-
wide quality improvement.
2012 in-houses available
For more details please visit our website and
download & fill out an expressions of interest
form. We’ll then get back in touch with the relevant information
Audience Profile
Board members, health services executives, clinicians, safety
& quality co-ordinators/managers, risk managers, clinical
governance managers and health consumers.
With facilitators
Stephanie Newell
& Mitchell Messer
Visit www.changechampions.com.au
To download official flyers and register online for seminars
8
The Hume Region has been participating in Victoria’s
implementation of The Council of Australian
Governments Long Stay Older Patients (COAG LSOP)
initiative since 2006. There are four areas of focus in
this initiative:
1. Strengthened attention to the needs of frail
older people in our hospital and community
settings
2. Improved consistency and integration of service
delivery
3. Improved access to a range of age-friendly
services and settings
4. Reduced inappropriate hospital usage by older
people
A state-wide evaluation of the initiative in 2010
resulted in a two year extended funding period with
Victoria’s Implementation Plan continuing to focus
on building organisational policy and program
capacity to improve care processes for older people.
A major focus is on minimising functional decline.
Key resources developed by the Victorian
Department of Health will continue to support this
work, including Best care for older people
everywhere – the Toolkit (www.health.vic.gov.au/
older/toolkit) and Improving the environment for
older people in Health Services – an audit tool (the
audit tool) (www.health.vic.gov.au/older). The
toolkit aligns with the National Safety and Quality
Health Service Standards.
The Toolkit provides a range of evidence-based
resources in person centred care, advanced care
planning, assessment, communication, mobility/
vigour/selfcare, nutrition, swallowing, depression,
dementia and delirium, continence, medication, skin
integrity, pain, and palliative care.
A range of innovative practices, to prevent functional
decline, have been incorporated in health services
across Victoria. The many initiatives have been
shared across metropolitan and regional health
services.
In the Hume region five funded health services -
Albury Wodonga Health, Goulburn Valley Health,
North East Health, Benalla Health, and Seymour
Health - have worked as a consortium to implement
improvements in the hospital environment and care
processes. This is underpinned by person centred
approaches and driven by strengthened policy.
Significant funding has been provided to create age
friendly hospital environments. An environment that
is older person-friendly capitalises on an older
person’s ‘strengths and abilities, protects against
harm and takes account of the needs of staff
charged with their care’ (O'Keeffe; WorkSafe Victoria
2002).
An Environmental Audit Tool was developed by the
National Ageing Research Institute (NARI) to guide
the improvements. Each of the Hume region’s
funded health services has used the audit to identify
and implement appropriate physical improvements.
These improvements have been completed, are
underway or linked to capital improvements.
Improving the physical environment has been linked
into Health services strategy and organisational
policy.
(Continued next page)
A Partnership Approach to Improved Care
9
Change Champions & Associates invites you to contribute to this publication!
Are you or your organisation working on a new project or initiative? We’d love to hear about it!
Please send us a 1 page article highlighting the major aspects of the
initiative you are part of.
Email articles, suggestions and advertising enquiries to Diane Vatinel at: [email protected]
Person Centred Care has been incorporated into strategic
plans, position descriptions, orientation programs and
clinical practice guidelines.
Assessment and screening practices have been reviewed
and improved to identify risk of functional decline. Nursing
handover, referral and discharge planning practices have
been reviewed and improved.
The introduction of initiatives such as the Red Tray, Meal
Time Mates, and protected meal times aims to improve the
nutritional outcomes of patients requiring assistance at
mealtimes.
For patients with, or at risk of developing, delirium and
dementia, improved systems for assessment and screening
have been introduced as well as improvements in behaviour
management practice, the building of external gardens, and
the use of a wider range of diversional therapies.
A demonstration project to build capacity in delivering
person-centred continence care produced the document
‘Why Continence Matters- a Centre Promoting Health
Independence project for the West Hume’. This document
outlines models of care, resources and local findings to
provide service development opportunities to improve
access to specialist services and coordinated continuing
care, as well as provide a regional approach in the Hume
region for education, clinical consultation and governance.
The Toolkit has been embedded in practice in hospital
settings through awareness raising, education and training
with examples such as Best Care for Older People Expo
packages. My Name is Frank and Frank matters are two
poems written and performed by Colin Milligan Australian
Bush poet champion and produced and directed by Matt Gill
of Benalla Health. Matt has developed interactive training
packages for each toolkit domain; these include hyperlinks
back to the on-line toolkit. Health literacy programs for
consumers and the community, and foyer information
displays on reducing the risk of functional decline have
further raised awareness.
The areas identified in the toolkit have been used to
structure document and information management at Albury
Wodonga Health which is introducing the Bosnet software
system.
Since the Best Care for Older People everywhere initiative
was commenced in 2006 changes within the governance,
management and care systems have ensured the
embedding of sustainable change. Initiatives and outcomes
have been inspired, promoted and improved due to the
collaborative approach taken by Improving Care for Older
People Project officers and their executive sponsors who
have worked to share their knowledge and resources to
provide evidence based care for older hospitalised patients
across the Hume region.
For further information contact:
Lisa Pearson
Goulburn Valley Health
Phone: 03 58 323763
Email: [email protected]
10
HEARTS in HEALTHCARE is an inspirational community of health professionals,
students, patient advocates, health leaders, and many others who are champions for compassionate
care. We believe bringing like-minded people together is the first step to re-humanizing healthcare
around the world.
Healthcare is in crisis, all around the world. Too many health professionals are feeling stressed, overworked,
tired, and heading for burnout. And the deteriorating working conditions are doing great harm to patient care
too. The sheer pace of work, the overwhelming workload, the staff shortages, and the increasing use of
technology, mean that too often the basic human needs of patients are neglected.
Yet research shows that whole-person, compassionate care is safer, more effective, achieves better outcomes,
reduces demand, satisfies patients, gives meaning to work, and costs less.
HEARTS in HEALTHCARE aims to put the care back in healthcare
And joining this community could be good for your health. We’ll be sharing the simple practices that make a
significant difference to your happiness and wellbeing.
Even better, we’ll enroll you in a major international research collaboration with Dr. Martin Seligman, the
founding father of positive psychology. You can opt to join a longitudinal study of the happiness and wellbeing
of those who bring their hearts to practice.
JOIN HEARTS IN HEALTHCARE
http://www.heartsinhealthcare.com/welcome
AIMS:
To encourage health workers to reconnect to the heart of their practice
Allow compassionate caring to rise above institutional rules and limitations
Promote and encourage whole-person care that serves the needs of patient and families
Explore together what is best in healthcare and inspire new communities of practice in
compassionate caring
Increase the happiness, well-being and resilience of all our members
Create the world’s most inspiring community of health professionals, students, patient
advocates and leaders, working together in a worldwide movement to transform healthcare
from within
11
ACT ! A professional
development program
(8 CPD points) for staff &
families who care for people
Ideal for all clinical staff and Managers
working in Aged Residential, primary
and community care, mental health,
emergency departments and after
hours medical facilities
W ho should come?
I S TA & A g e d C a re Tra i n i n g
W hat wi l l you lear n?
The Early Identification of the potential
for Aggressive Behaviour in people
with Dementia/delirium
How to reduce harm to yourself and
your team members
Communicating with people affected
by Dementia/delirium
How to keep yourself safe in everyday
situations i.e. Showering and dressing
people who may demonstrate
unpredictable behaviour
De-escalation and breakaway
techniques
26 Nov 2012 — QLD
27 Nov 2012 — SA
The skills you will acquire :
Accredited unit of competency from
the National Training Package
Provide Communication, De-escalation
and Breakaway Techniques
Reduced Risk of harm to your
employees
Consultation Techniques for
Occupational Violence
ISTA will train your
staff face to Face
www.changechampions.com.au
12
We asked two of our
subscribers to read and
review Robin Youngson’s new
book Time to Care
...Here’s what they thought
Book Reviews
Review by: Catherine Lothian Clinical Nurse Educator
I found the book ‘A Time to Care’ by Robin Youngson to be fascinating, intriguing and enlightening. I have read the
book from cover to cover twice since I received it, I just couldn’t put it down. It is easy to understand and is filled with
personal accounts of the author’s journey through burnout, compassion and caring about himself and his patients. It
is a book where you find yourself reflecting on similar situations and how you handled yourself and others. Robin
backs up his claims with research and stories from people he has encountered. He describes healthcare as
dehumanised and then gets you to see healthcare from the patient’s side which in turn gives further cause for
personal reflection.
I am an Essentials of Care facilitator which is about teaching others to be person centred in their work. I wish I had
read this book years ago, as is describes how to care for yourself, your patients and your colleagues. As a facilitator I
need to ‘walk the talk’ and this is almost a text book full of how to do this, how to be kind, compassionate,
empathetic and mindful of patient’s needs. Being mindful is being aware of your surroundings, yourself and your
actions. You can choose to be happy and your happiness can be projected onto others. Once you have seen it for
yourself, you will reap the rewards.
In a world of chronic illness, aging populations, staff shortages and lack of resources ‘A Time to Care’ paves the way
allowing me to care firstly for myself and then my patients. Sometimes we forget the patient is a person when we get
caught up in our workload, but by investing time and kindness in our patients we actually save time and feel more
satisfied in our work.
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Review by: Leonie Curran Nurse Educator
This timely book is a call to all of us, as health professionals who chose our career because we
care, because we want to make a positive difference in the world, yet we’ve become stressed,
anxious, burnt out and just want to leave. We work in a health system that’s going broke and has
so many rules and regulations to improve patient safety, yet the care factor sometimes feels like
zero. There are unwritten rules within the health system that we must remain emotionally detached from our patients, if
we are to be objective in our management of the many who need attention daily. As health professionals we experience
internal tension between the ideal of healing, and the reality of patients we can’t save, or accidently harm, with too much to
do in too little time.
Dr. Robinson relates many stories from his practice as an anaesthetist, including a very moving story about an elderly
patient, Jessie who needed bowel surgery – she presented a huge surgical risk, but was determined to have the opera-
tion. This courageous and compassionate elderly woman, taught him some profound lessons: that we need to remove our
clinical defenses and share our humanity with our patients, to simply be a caring human being. Jessie clarified the
importance of caring being a two-way process: that when both health professional and patient care for each other, issues of
‘non-compliance’ or ‘difficult’ patients cease to exist. Another key lesson learnt: that ‘no matter how dire the circumstanc-
es, there is a place for sharing gentle humor, mischief, fun and a good belly laugh’, and that we can all choose our attitude:
‘If Jessie could choose humor, laughter and compassion in her awful circumstances, then what excuse do we have to be
grumpy or feel sorry for ourselves?’
Attitude is highly contagious, felt the moment you walk into a hospital, a ward, or a room. Our attitude to our workplace,
our colleagues, and our patients, can be resentful and intolerant, or we can choose to dispel negative thoughts and instead
greet, acknowledge and be caring of those we work with. By changing our own attitude, we can change, and very much
improve, our interactions with others.
There is much to learn within this book, with many practical strategies. For example, to notice the negative things we tell
ourselves, and to check the validity of our thoughts, to quieten the negative voice, and develop a more optimistic self
explanatory style. The ability to notice and regulate our thoughts will help manage our minds, and our subsequent
emotions and behaviours. We can become stuck in the emotions of the past, or worry about the future, or choose to be
fully present – healthcare offers deep opportunities to be present in our work, to be fully absorbed in our caring.
As a Nurse Educator, I’ve been trying to improve both myself, and my effectiveness, learning more about positive
psychology and mindfulness, and supporting initiatives such as TCAB (transforming care at the bedside), but I’ve felt worn
out, unable to be really effective in changing our workplace culture for the better, and seriously considering leaving the
profession. Dr. Youngson’s book has finally galvanized my thoughts and my attitude. I now feel a sense of peace, that by
focusing on my own interactions with others, I can and will make a positive difference, and that this difference may be
contagious toward building a happy and fulfilling workplace, enhancing wellbeing and resilience of our staff, our patients
and their families.
If you want to rediscover the reason why you became a health professional in the first place, read this book .
To purchase your copy of ‘TIME to CARE’ by Dr. Robin Youngson (MA MB ChB FANZCA), Purchase is available from:
www.time-to-care.com and on www.Amazon.com
14
P int of View
Experiences of a Facilitator by Dawn Skidmore
Many people might agree that some of the most significant development opportunities in the careers
of successful leaders have been critical incidents or role changes that have “stretched” them intellec-
tually and emotionally. These are the situations that take us out of our comfort zone. This presents
challenges for facilitators since not all of these opportunities and incidents can be planned for – many
are unpredictable.
During my career to date I have facilitated many initiatives, projects and programs, involving individu-
als, groups and organisations and learned a few tips that others might find of interest. I should start
with what I mean by a “facilitator”. There are a variety of definitions including:
"An individual who enables groups and organizations to work more effectively; to collaborate and
achieve synergy. He or she is a 'content neutral' party who by not taking sides or expressing or advo-
cating a point of view during the meeting, can advocate for fair, open, and inclusive procedures to
accomplish the group's work"
"One who contributes structure and process to interactions so groups are able to function effectively
and make high-quality decisions. A helper and enabler whose goal is to support others as they
achieve exceptional performance
"The facilitator's job is to support everyone to do their best thinking and practice. To do this, the facili-
tator encourages full participation, promotes mutual understanding and cultivates shared responsibil-
ity. By supporting everyone to do their best thinking, a facilitator enables group members to search
for inclusive solutions and build sustainable agreements"
For me each of these definitions has something to offer. As a facilitator I have aimed to facilitate par-
ticipants in learning situations that are both planned and unplanned and have developed some
'golden rules”:
1 Ensure a thorough understanding of the requirements, outcomes and the brief itself for all involved.
This includes how the work is to be integrated into existing portfolios or development programs for
the participants. How essential is it that the skills, knowledge and capabilities gained are harnessed
and applied, and how quickly?
2 Developing effective four way relationships with the sponsor and his / her organisation as well as
participants is crucial. Facilitators need to be able to be credible with all and contract accordingly.
3 Developing an appropriate level of involvement in the project or work, that is the right balance of
hands – on / hands – off approaches.
15
Submit your Tricks of the Trade
It is often the surprising discoveries and personal experiences that make all the difference in change management, reform, redesign programs, etc. We invite you to submit a short article for our newsletter, sharing the personal experiences and unpredicted lessons that could never be found in a book.
All submissions should be emailed to [email protected]
Ensuring participants understand about the rationale, role, relevance and integration of the facilitated experience is
fundamental. When involved in complex and challenging work, participants may naturally get frustrated, nervous or
dissatisfied. I have found that some work challenges and development programs can elicit emotional responses –
especially if participants are stretched intellectually and emotionally. So it is essential that they understand why a
particular process is being adopted. And managing expectations of the sponsor and his / her organisation throughout the
process has also been key.
The level of involvement a facilitator needs to take can of course vary between different contracts and within a single
contract ,at different phases of the work. At times I have needed to get more involved to ensure participants do not miss
key opportunities and critical reflection. They might not see the relevance of an incident or occurrence because they are
focused on a task or their own role or because their learning to date has not enabled them to. The capacity for self
reflection is a core skill of leaders and senior managers and as a facilitator, ensuring this alongside delivery of the work
itself, is important.
In some assignments the pressure from participants to “help” or “rescue” them has been great. It can be tempting as a
facilitator to provide clues and prompts or to use one's own knowledge and wisdom. Being aware of this has been im-
portant in safeguarding against such collusion, which would potentially influence the outcomes and skills gained.
Facilitating others is both challenging and rewarding!
Dawn Skidmore
Principal Consultant
1. Facilitator's Toolkit NITSA Tools for Continuous Improvement 2. Michael Doyle, quoted in Kaner, S. with Lind, L., Toldi, C., Fisk, S. and Berger, D. Facilitator's Guide to Participatory
Decision-Making, (2007) Jossey-Bass p. xiii. 3. Bens I, 2000, Facilitating With Ease!: A Step-by-Step Guidebook with Customizable Worksheets on CD-ROM, (2000)
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I N T E R N A T I O N A L
NHS
The Accountable Lead Provider: Developing a powerful disruptive innovator to create integrated and accountable programmes of care
Paul Corrigan and Dr. Steve Laitner
There is broad agreement about the need to commission integrated care or as patients and their carers
would be more likely to call it “joined up care”. In this Casebook, Paul Corrigan and Dr Steve Laitner ex-
plore and develop the idea that commissioners could commission an Integrated and Accountable Pro-
gramme of Carefor a population of patients with particular needs. Such populations could be “the Frail
Elderly” or “Children with Complex Disabilities” or “People with (and at risk of) Respiratory Disease”.
http://www.rightcare.nhs.uk/downloads/Rightcare_Casebook_accountable_lead_provider_Aug2012.pdf
NHS How-to guides
How to: use shift systems and workforce planning to effectively reduce costs
This guide is part of a series of how to guides produced by NHS Employers to help promote good practice
and offer guidance on a range of workforce practices aimed at achieving workforce productivity efficien-
cies. Aimed at assisting organisations in reducing their expenditure on agency and locum staff, this guid-
ance provides advice to trusts on a range of effective ways to reduce costs through the use of workforce
planning, shift systems and maintenance of appropriate staffing levels.
http://www.nhsemployers.org/PlanningYourWorkforce/Flexible-workforce/AgencyWorkers/
ReducingAgencySpend/HowToGuides/Pages/Howtouseshiftsystems.aspx
Institute of Medicine of the National Academies
Informatics Needs and Challenges in Cancer Research - Workshop Summary
There is a particular need to integrate research and clinical data to facilitate personalized medicine ap-
proaches to cancer prevention and treatment – for example, tailoring treatment based on an individual
patient’s genetic makeup as well as that of the tumor – and to allow for more rapid learning from patient
experiences.
To further examine informatics needs and challenges for 21st century biomedical research, the IOM’s
National Cancer Policy Forum held a workshop February 27-28, 2012. The workshop was designed to raise
awareness of the critical and urgent importance of the challenges, gaps and opportunities in informatics;
to frame the issues surrounding the development of an integrated system of cancer informatics for accel-
eration of research; and to discuss solutions for transformation of the cancer informatics enterprise. This
document summarizes the workshop.
http://iom.edu/Reports/2012/Informatics-Needs-and-Challenges-in-Cancer-Resea rch.aspx?utm_medium=etmail&utm_source=Institute%20of%20Medicine&utm_campaign =07.16.12+Report+-+Cancer+Informatics&utm_content=New%20Reports&utm_term=Aca demic
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I N T E R N A T I O N A L
SafeMedicationUse.ca
Take Steps to Prevent Mix-ups with Pets’ Medicines
Many consumers consider their pets to be part of the family. What they may not realize is that a mix-up
with a pet's medicine could harm a human family member! Recently, a consumer reported that an el-
derly relative had accidently taken the family dog's deworming pills, instead of a regularly prescribed
medicine, for several days.
http://www.safemedicationuse.ca/newsletter/newsletter_pet_medicine_mixup.html
Strategic Society UK
Who Uses Telecare? Andy Ross, James Lloyd
There has been growing interest in telecare during the last decade, as a way of enabling individuals
with care and support needs to remain independent for longer, and reduce the costs of their personal
care. However, policymakers have lacked quantitative social science evidence on who telecare users
are.
This research report analyses data from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA) for 2008 to
explore the characteristics of personal alarm and alerting device users in the older population. The
research explores dozens of factors including gender, age, income, receipt of formal and informal care,
health and disability, and housing.
Building on this descriptive analysis, the research also includes estimates of potential telecare users in
the older population, concluding that as many four million people could be potential users of telecare.
http://www.strategicsociety.org.uk/book/who-uses-telecare.html
NHS
The NHS Change Model
The model has been created to support the NHS to adopt a shared approach to leading change and
transformation. We hope to build this website further and add practical information, tools and support
over the coming months. Please tell us what you think to help us shape this model and the ongoing
future work using the knowledge share facility.
http://www.changemodel.nhs.uk/pg/cv_blog/0/network?cview=33331
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RESOURCES From Australia
The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care has finalised resources to assist health service
organisations to implement the National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) Standards, and also established
an Advice Centre to assist with queries about the Standards and the accreditation process. These initiatives are
described below.
1. SAFETY AND QUALITY IMPROVEMENT GUIDES The Commission has developed Safety and Quality Improvement Guides (the Guides) for each of the 10 NSQHS Standards. These Guides are designed to assist health service organisations to align their quality improvement programs using the framework of the NSQHS Standards. The Guides are primarily intended for use by people who are responsible for a part or whole of a health service organisation.
2. ACCREDITATION WORKBOOKS Two Accreditation Workbooks, one each for hospitals and day procedure services, that focus on the processes of accreditation and:
outline the key steps in an accreditation process
provide examples of evidence that could be used to demonstrate the NSQHS Standards have been met.
The Workbooks are designed for use by individuals in health service organisations who are responsible for coordinating accreditation processes. These resources are available to download from the Commission’s website at http://www.safetyandquality.gov.au/our-work/accreditation/nsqhss/safety-and-quality-improvement-guides-and-accreditation-workbooks/
SQUARE
Square – Suicide, Questions, Answers and Resources – is an educational
resource for primary health care and community specialists and any
individuals working with people who are at risk of suicide.
http://square.org.au/
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Hourly Rates
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working in isolated regions or just working in isolation those with little previous experience sufferers of imposter syndrome (i.e. feeling way out of your
depth or certain that you lack of skills will shortly be discovered) Telephone coaching service available in or out of hours. Face to face coaching also available by appointment. Ph: 02-9692 0533 or email [email protected] for more info.
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