MENTAL HEALTH NURSES ON CALL
NOTICE BOARD
Earlier this year, care and support minister Norman Lamb announced extra funding of £25 million for mental health professionals to expand their work in the criminal justice system. The finance is to support the assessment of those with mental health and learning disabilities suspected of committing an offence. The government believes that prompt treatment may lead to reduced re-offending, and the assessment information could help police and courts with charging and sentencing decisions. Criminal justice liaison team (CJLT) manager at Mersey Care NHS Trust Gary Smith is eager to see what benefits come from the new funds. Mr Smith qualified as a mental health nurse and worked as a manager in an acute psychiatric ward before moving into criminal justice 15 years ago.
NEIL O'CONNOR
New funding is making it easier for those in the criminal justice system to access help with mental health assessments
What Gary Smith says about the service The working environment: ‘The criminal justice environment is very different to working in a ward or clinic where nurses and patients develop a rapport. Here, the criminal evidence clock is constantly ticking. It is a busy, noisy environment with lots of activity.’ The rewards: ‘Moving somebody away from the criminal justice system who does not need to be there, who there is no public interest in prosecuting and who is in need of mental health provision. We never see some patients again. Reducing the re-offending rates is key.’ The future: ‘I hope the funding and innovations across the pilot sites will lead to a national framework in criminal justice mental health services.’
Raising concerns NHS Employers has produced a flowchart to explain to staff the process for raising concerns about patient safety and care. The chart is one of a number of free resources from NHS Employers to improve reporting of quality and safety issues. Resources include three downloadable posters that can be customised by adding the organisation’s name and the contact details of locally designated officers. See tinyurl.com/NHSEraisingconcerns Emigration BBC2 is making a new series about families and/or couples considering a move to any one of the following places – islands in the Caribbean, India, Central and South America, Thailand and Costa Rica. The programme makers want to explore the reality of what it is like to up
The CJLT service at his trust works closely with Merseyside police and the criminal justice system in the region. The service started in 1995 with one nurse based at Liverpool Magistrates Court. Now there are eight mental health nurses and two administrative staff throughout the criminal justice system. The nurses offer a seven-day, 9am-5pm service supporting colleagues in police custody suites, magistrates and crown courts, forensic medical examinations, prisons, the probation service and voluntary sector services. Mr Smith explains: ‘If a custody sergeant in a police station, for example, is concerned about someone’s mental health, they may ask a member of my team to carry out an assessment. ‘This is to see if they are fit for detention or interview or need an appropriate adult to accompany them. Our intervention may result in someone being diverted to hospital or other services.’ Merseyside is one of ten areas in England receiving funding to test new service models which, if successful, will be rolled out across the country by 2017.
sticks and emigrate to a place very different from the UK. They are looking for people who want to test the experience of a new life before making the final decision to move. For a chat, call Claire Parry on 0117 974 6666 or email [email protected] Flu programme Public Health England has produced a resource to educate healthcare practitioners involved in delivering the national flu immunisation programme for the 2014/15 flu season. It consists of a slide pack developed for trainers and leaders of the national flu programme. The pack is intended for those involved in delivering the programme to all age groups, such as practice nurses. A separate resource for those involved in vaccinating children and older people has also been developed. Visit tinyurl.com/Fluprogramme
64 september :: vol 29 no 4by:: ${individualUser.displayName} 2014 STANDARD Downloaded24 from RCNi.com on Nov 15, 2015. For personal use only. NoNURSING other uses without permission. Copyright © 2015 RCNi Ltd. All rights reserved.
CAREERS
Petra Kendall-Raynor is a freelance journalist RESOURCES RCN nursing in criminal justice service forum: tinyurl.com/RCNNCJS Custody nurse practitioners: www.metpolicecareers.co.uk/ nurses
Two nurses teamed up to launch their own nursing home
Doing it their own way Visiting London to pick up an award for her work on a training programme for care home staff changed the life of Queen’s Nurse Mikki Jarvis. It was the occasion when she met fellow award winner Jon Ryland and the two discussed their ambitions for their own care home. Despite their lack of business experience, they decided to remortgage their homes to buy a rundown Georgian manor house in Gloucestershire. Longhope Manor Nursing Home is now the only nursing home in England awarded associate status by the Queen’s Nursing Institute (QNI) in recognition of its innovative and supportive services. The transformation from nurse to entrepreneur has been a steep learning curve. As a student, Ms Jarvis, pictured, had been shocked by older people’s care in hospital. ‘Yet good nursing care for older people should be the foundation for each individual,’ she says. Using their 25 years of combined nursing and management experience, Ms Jarvis and Mr Ryland worked with business advisers who helped them secure bank funding to renovate Longhope Manor.
Healthcare assistants In March 2013, the Code of Conduct for Healthcare Support Workers and Adult Social Care Workers was published. In the health sector, the intended audience for the code was healthcare support workers who report to nurses and midwives. Skills for Health has received feedback that the code could apply to all roles that involve direct patient contact and are not already covered by other codes of conduct. An online consultation is open until October 31. Go to skillsforhealth.org.uk/ about-us/consultations Nightingale letters The Florence Nightingale Digitisation Project is spearheaded by the Florence Nightingale Museum in association with Boston University Howard Gotlieb Archival Research Center, the RCN and the Wellcome Library.
Cramped toilets were replaced with wet rooms, the ballroom was turned into care apartments and a dingy kitchen was replaced. The home has now been awarded a five-star rating by the local environmental health team. ‘Jon and I have different and complementary skills and we are both nurses,’ says Ms Jarvis. Working together, they make sure their home gives good person-centred care, employing a full-time activity co-ordinator and qualified complementary therapist. A system of domiciliary person-centred care has been piloted and the team is also developing a care café to provide space for activities and to enable residents to entertain their families. ‘I am delighted with all we have achieved,’ says Ms Jarvis. ‘But we would never have managed it without the support of the QNI, which has given us the confidence to believe that we can do things differently. Other nurses can develop their own vision of excellent care, too’ NS SWNS
For the Mersey Care team, the funding enables them to extend their work. For the past 18 months, one nurse has been based in the largest police custody suite during office hours and one on weekend call. Mr Smith says that under the new 24-hour police custody provision, a mental health nurse will be available in all suites between 7am and 10pm seven days a week, with on-call provision after 10pm. ‘At the moment, only those aged 16 and over benefit from our services, so we want to create a youth justice liaison and diversion team,’ he adds. He says the funding should enable the team to employ a psychiatrist, psychologist, speech and language therapist and a healthcare support worker to assist the Youth Justice Liaison and Diversion extended team, and several band 6 and band 4 staff to support the 24-hour police custody provision NS
Carol Davis is a freelance journalist
The institutions have pooled their holdings of Nightingale’s correspondence on to a website where researchers can search letters by date, author, subject and partner name. Results offer a description of the letters, the institution that houses each one and the option to read them. See tinyurl.com/FNMletters Nursing competence Healthcare Events will hold a conference on demonstrating and expanding nursing competence on October 2 at Colmore Gate Conference Centre, Birmingham. This event will provide a guide to measuring, demonstrating and safely expanding nursing competence with a focus on delivering the competence element of the 6Cs and demonstrating competence in preparation for revalidation. A 20 per cent discount is available by quoting HCUK20RCN when booking. See tinyurl.com/HCEcompetence
NURSING 24other :: voluses 29without no 4 :: permission. 2014 65 DownloadedSTANDARD from RCNi.com by ${individualUser.displayName} on Nov 15, 2015. For personalseptember use only. No Copyright © 2015 RCNi Ltd. All rights reserved.
NOTICE BOARD
Earlier this year, care and support minister Norman Lamb announced extra funding of £25 million for mental health professionals to expand their work in the criminal justice system. The finance is to support the assessment of those with mental health and learning disabilities suspected of committing an offence. The government believes that prompt treatment may lead to reduced re-offending, and the assessment information could help police and courts with charging and sentencing decisions. Criminal justice liaison team (CJLT) manager at Mersey Care NHS Trust Gary Smith is eager to see what benefits come from the new funds. Mr Smith qualified as a mental health nurse and worked as a manager in an acute psychiatric ward before moving into criminal justice 15 years ago.
NEIL O'CONNOR
New funding is making it easier for those in the criminal justice system to access help with mental health assessments
What Gary Smith says about the service The working environment: ‘The criminal justice environment is very different to working in a ward or clinic where nurses and patients develop a rapport. Here, the criminal evidence clock is constantly ticking. It is a busy, noisy environment with lots of activity.’ The rewards: ‘Moving somebody away from the criminal justice system who does not need to be there, who there is no public interest in prosecuting and who is in need of mental health provision. We never see some patients again. Reducing the re-offending rates is key.’ The future: ‘I hope the funding and innovations across the pilot sites will lead to a national framework in criminal justice mental health services.’
Raising concerns NHS Employers has produced a flowchart to explain to staff the process for raising concerns about patient safety and care. The chart is one of a number of free resources from NHS Employers to improve reporting of quality and safety issues. Resources include three downloadable posters that can be customised by adding the organisation’s name and the contact details of locally designated officers. See tinyurl.com/NHSEraisingconcerns Emigration BBC2 is making a new series about families and/or couples considering a move to any one of the following places – islands in the Caribbean, India, Central and South America, Thailand and Costa Rica. The programme makers want to explore the reality of what it is like to up
The CJLT service at his trust works closely with Merseyside police and the criminal justice system in the region. The service started in 1995 with one nurse based at Liverpool Magistrates Court. Now there are eight mental health nurses and two administrative staff throughout the criminal justice system. The nurses offer a seven-day, 9am-5pm service supporting colleagues in police custody suites, magistrates and crown courts, forensic medical examinations, prisons, the probation service and voluntary sector services. Mr Smith explains: ‘If a custody sergeant in a police station, for example, is concerned about someone’s mental health, they may ask a member of my team to carry out an assessment. ‘This is to see if they are fit for detention or interview or need an appropriate adult to accompany them. Our intervention may result in someone being diverted to hospital or other services.’ Merseyside is one of ten areas in England receiving funding to test new service models which, if successful, will be rolled out across the country by 2017.
sticks and emigrate to a place very different from the UK. They are looking for people who want to test the experience of a new life before making the final decision to move. For a chat, call Claire Parry on 0117 974 6666 or email [email protected] Flu programme Public Health England has produced a resource to educate healthcare practitioners involved in delivering the national flu immunisation programme for the 2014/15 flu season. It consists of a slide pack developed for trainers and leaders of the national flu programme. The pack is intended for those involved in delivering the programme to all age groups, such as practice nurses. A separate resource for those involved in vaccinating children and older people has also been developed. Visit tinyurl.com/Fluprogramme
64 september :: vol 29 no 4by:: ${individualUser.displayName} 2014 STANDARD Downloaded24 from RCNi.com on Nov 15, 2015. For personal use only. NoNURSING other uses without permission. Copyright © 2015 RCNi Ltd. All rights reserved.
CAREERS
Petra Kendall-Raynor is a freelance journalist RESOURCES RCN nursing in criminal justice service forum: tinyurl.com/RCNNCJS Custody nurse practitioners: www.metpolicecareers.co.uk/ nurses
Two nurses teamed up to launch their own nursing home
Doing it their own way Visiting London to pick up an award for her work on a training programme for care home staff changed the life of Queen’s Nurse Mikki Jarvis. It was the occasion when she met fellow award winner Jon Ryland and the two discussed their ambitions for their own care home. Despite their lack of business experience, they decided to remortgage their homes to buy a rundown Georgian manor house in Gloucestershire. Longhope Manor Nursing Home is now the only nursing home in England awarded associate status by the Queen’s Nursing Institute (QNI) in recognition of its innovative and supportive services. The transformation from nurse to entrepreneur has been a steep learning curve. As a student, Ms Jarvis, pictured, had been shocked by older people’s care in hospital. ‘Yet good nursing care for older people should be the foundation for each individual,’ she says. Using their 25 years of combined nursing and management experience, Ms Jarvis and Mr Ryland worked with business advisers who helped them secure bank funding to renovate Longhope Manor.
Healthcare assistants In March 2013, the Code of Conduct for Healthcare Support Workers and Adult Social Care Workers was published. In the health sector, the intended audience for the code was healthcare support workers who report to nurses and midwives. Skills for Health has received feedback that the code could apply to all roles that involve direct patient contact and are not already covered by other codes of conduct. An online consultation is open until October 31. Go to skillsforhealth.org.uk/ about-us/consultations Nightingale letters The Florence Nightingale Digitisation Project is spearheaded by the Florence Nightingale Museum in association with Boston University Howard Gotlieb Archival Research Center, the RCN and the Wellcome Library.
Cramped toilets were replaced with wet rooms, the ballroom was turned into care apartments and a dingy kitchen was replaced. The home has now been awarded a five-star rating by the local environmental health team. ‘Jon and I have different and complementary skills and we are both nurses,’ says Ms Jarvis. Working together, they make sure their home gives good person-centred care, employing a full-time activity co-ordinator and qualified complementary therapist. A system of domiciliary person-centred care has been piloted and the team is also developing a care café to provide space for activities and to enable residents to entertain their families. ‘I am delighted with all we have achieved,’ says Ms Jarvis. ‘But we would never have managed it without the support of the QNI, which has given us the confidence to believe that we can do things differently. Other nurses can develop their own vision of excellent care, too’ NS SWNS
For the Mersey Care team, the funding enables them to extend their work. For the past 18 months, one nurse has been based in the largest police custody suite during office hours and one on weekend call. Mr Smith says that under the new 24-hour police custody provision, a mental health nurse will be available in all suites between 7am and 10pm seven days a week, with on-call provision after 10pm. ‘At the moment, only those aged 16 and over benefit from our services, so we want to create a youth justice liaison and diversion team,’ he adds. He says the funding should enable the team to employ a psychiatrist, psychologist, speech and language therapist and a healthcare support worker to assist the Youth Justice Liaison and Diversion extended team, and several band 6 and band 4 staff to support the 24-hour police custody provision NS
Carol Davis is a freelance journalist
The institutions have pooled their holdings of Nightingale’s correspondence on to a website where researchers can search letters by date, author, subject and partner name. Results offer a description of the letters, the institution that houses each one and the option to read them. See tinyurl.com/FNMletters Nursing competence Healthcare Events will hold a conference on demonstrating and expanding nursing competence on October 2 at Colmore Gate Conference Centre, Birmingham. This event will provide a guide to measuring, demonstrating and safely expanding nursing competence with a focus on delivering the competence element of the 6Cs and demonstrating competence in preparation for revalidation. A 20 per cent discount is available by quoting HCUK20RCN when booking. See tinyurl.com/HCEcompetence
NURSING 24other :: voluses 29without no 4 :: permission. 2014 65 DownloadedSTANDARD from RCNi.com by ${individualUser.displayName} on Nov 15, 2015. For personalseptember use only. No Copyright © 2015 RCNi Ltd. All rights reserved.
