Reflections from the Adults’ Services Customer and Carer Group
This past year has seen our group continue to embrace the opportunities and challenges of ‘hybrid’ meetings which give people the opportunity to attend in person or to join online. This has included getting used to new technology in the form of the Owl microphone. The Owl has improved the experience of the meetings by ensuring that everyone can be heard and seen, regardless of whether they are taking part in person or online.
We took part in planning the Adults’ Services staff conference held in April 2023 which brought together 250 staff, customers and carers, and some of us attended a selection of workshops on various topics including co-production and equality, inclusion and belonging.
Other areas of focus for us included reviewing and providing feedback on suggested changes to the adult social care ‘contact us’ webpage, improving information given to people about the financial assessment process, and sharing our experiences as part of the social care ‘front door’ project.
In the coming year we are looking forward to taking part in meetings with Adults’ Services senior leaders and working with them to improve services for people in West Sussex.
If you are interested in joining our Customer and Carer Group, please get in touch by emailing workingtogetheras@westsussex.gov.uk or by calling 0330 22 28954.
Reflections from the Chair of the Minorities Health and Social Care Group
The Minorities Health and Social Care Group brings together the County Council, NHS Sussex, voluntary and community sector organisations and individuals who have established links with diverse communities in West Sussex.
Over the past year the group has continued to focus on understanding and tackling the inequalities experienced by some communities in West Sussex, and we have shared examples of good practice from across the county.
The group worked with Adults’ Services to co-design guidance to support staff to work sensitively and respectfully with people from different communities. The Council’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Lead provided us with a comprehensive overview of the activities taking place across the organisation to ensure that staff work in an inclusive environment and are treated with dignity and respect by colleagues and the people they support.
Our work plan for the coming year includes helping to ensure that Adults’ Services policies and processes reflect issues of diversity, inclusion and representation. We will also be contributing to the development of the information and advice service to make sure that people from all our diverse communities know what is available to support them when they need it as early as possible.
We look forward to supporting Adults’ Services as it embeds this vital work across all areas of its operation.
Dr Iyadh Daoud
Reflections from our Principal Social Worker
Along with all local authorities nationally we have worked within the context of increasing demands and pressures on our social work and social care services which has provided us with both challenges and opportunities.
During 2022-23, we continued to work closely with our partners, not least the NHS, to deliver safe and effective social work and social care. We understand how pivotal the profession of social work is in ensuring the right care, at the right time and in the right place for our residents, including at the point of being discharged from hospital. This is why our hospital teams, working in partnership with the NHS, aim to make sure people spend as little time as necessary in hospital.
The great work our social workers do was highlighted to the Department of Health and Social Care’s Chief Social Worker, Lyn Romeo, when she visited St Richard’s Hospital social work team in October 2022.
“I was delighted to meet with social workers and other staff working in St Richard’s hospital and to hear about the challenges they have managed in ensuring that people get the right help at the right time to support them to be safe and live as well as possible. It is uplifting to have such positive, ‘can-do’ social work staff who are committed to making a genuine difference every day!”
Lyn Romeo, Chief Social Worker.
Of course it is not just in our hospital social work teams that such good work happens as this is mirrored across our various social work services. During 2022 we worked with colleagues from all services to design new assessment processes and improve the way we allocate funding to people we support. We will be embedding these processes over the coming year and keeping people at the centre of decisions about them, supporting them to live the life they want and to stay as independent as possible.
As always, we continue to support our workforce with their professional development and career progression. In 2022 we undertook a programme of international recruitment for social workers for the first time and I’m delighted that they are really settling in and flourishing in West Sussex. This brings an opportunity for shared learning and benefits us all.
Tracy Davis
Reflections from our Principal Occupational Therapist
After eighteen months in post as Principal Occupational Therapist, I increasingly appreciate working alongside local and national partners and our committed and highly skilled occupational therapy and social care workforce, to support people in our communities live independent lives.
Since starting my role, I have developed the network of organisations we work with to ensure we deliver coordinated occupational therapy solutions to residents. This includes the Integrated Care Board, Allied Health Profession Sussex, the Royal College of Occupational Therapy, the local and national Principal Occupational Therapy network and the Association of Directors for Adult Social Services for professional practice. This invaluable network of support provides the opportunity to reflect on challenges, share new learning and create innovative occupational therapy solutions for our residents.
As a new normal for demand emerges, we are listening to the people we support and their carers about what matters to them and they are telling us about the importance of receiving the right support at the right time. By embedding skills learnt during the pandemic to reduce waiting times for assessment, occupational therapy staff identify solutions using technology to reduce risk and meet peoples’ needs at the earliest opportunity.
Despite very challenging times, the cost of living and the pressures on our NHS, occupational therapy staff work tirelessly with people to build on their strengths and remove the barriers to improved health and wellbeing. They continue to make sure that the things that matter to people are achieved.
Meg Brownings