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Herefordshire Carers Support

Herefordshire Carers Support strives to ensure family Carers are recognised and valued by policy makers and public alike as fundamental to strong families and stable communities. We listen to carers, inform and guide them to help them balance caring with a wider life of their own, this is particularly important for Carers of people with Dementia. We empower and facilitate carers to shape and extend the services that support them and one outcome of this is the Carers Charter which local Trusts and Providers have signed up to. We provide practical and emotional support, particularly at the time of diagnosis, as well as specific training courses which offer the opportunity to gain a better understanding of the illness in a peer group setting, supporting and sharing experiences with others in a similar situation. We are currently chairing the Herefordshire dementia services implementation plan.

Updated:
9 March 2016
Location:
West Midlands
Sectors:
Care
Local Alliances:
Herefordshire Dementia Action Alliance

1. Action Plan

1. The National Dementia Declaration lists seven outcomes that the DAA are seeking to achieve for people with dementia and their carers. How would you describe your organisation’s role in delivering better outcomes for people with dementia and their carers?

  • We provide up-to-date information via a quarterly magazine, social media, website, support groups etc.
  • We deliver a ‘Dementia Aware’ training programme specifically aimed at Carers of people with Dementia
  • We offer advice, advocacy and one-to-one support
  • HCS Director chairs local dementia services implementation plan which brings together all statutory agencies and local providers to ensure an effective joint approach and supportive environments and which is based on what Carers and service users told us they need and want
  • We work in close partnership with Health & Social Care and have developed particularly strong links with local GPs to try to ensure that appropriate support and information is provided to Carers at the point of diagnosis & throughout the dementia pathway.
  • We supported Carers to produce their own Carers Charter detailing the standards they expect

2. What are the challenges to delivering these outcomes from the perspective of your organisation?

  • Ensuring that Carers are recognised, valued and included throughout the Dementia pathway
  • Ensuring that primary care agencies systematically refer Carers to HCS to make sure that they get the advice, information and support from the point of diagnosis
  • Getting on-going commitment to the dementia services implementation plan from local agencies and organisations
  • Annual monitoring of the commitment and outcomes for the Carers Charter

2. Actions

  • Monitor plans / actions within the Dementia Services Plan

    HCS chairs the Implementation Plan for Dementia Services, we will hold regular review meetings to ensure that actions are delivered according to the plan.

    Status:
    Planning

    2016 - First Quarter Update

    Regular meetings continue to ensure delivery against the Action Plan.

  • We will continue to raise awareness of Carers’ needs, particularly amongst primary care settings to ensure that Carers can access the support they need when they need it

    We will develop the strong links we have established with local GP surgeries including the GP Award Scheme which was introduced in 2013.

    We  will raise awareness of Carer issues at every opportunity by attending promotional and information events at every opportunity.

    We use our quarterly magazine, website and social media to ensure Carers have access to up-to-date information and are aware of developments in the care of dementia sufferers.

    Status:
    Delivery

    2016 - First Quarter Update

    We continue to build on the strong links we have established with local GP surgeries including the GP Award Scheme which was introduced in 2013, the next Award will be presented at Carers Rights Day Conference in nov 2014.

    We now have a Carer Lead withing each GP practice (24 in total) in Herefordshire.

    We have a Dementia Nurse Trainer based within the team who offers training to Carers to help them understand underlying health issues such as infections, how these affect someone wih dementia and how they can be recognised, hopefully prevented and/or basic treatment.

    Our second Dementia Awareness Course runs in Oct/Nov 2014.

    We  raise awareness of Carer issues at every opportunity by attending promotional and information events at every opportunity.

    We use our quarterly magazine, website and social media to ensure Carers have access to up-to-date information and are aware of developments in the care of dementia sufferers.

    2016 - First Quarter Update

    We continue to develop the strong links we have established with local GP surgeries including the GP Award Scheme which was introduced in 2013, the award for GP and GP Practice is presented at our Carers Rights Day Conference each year.

    the Carer Leads from each GP practice (24 in total) across Herefordshire meet twice a year to share new ideas and Best Practice.  The GP Link Worker from Herefordshire Carers support is in regulat contact with the GP network to share information.

    Two Dementia Awareness Courses for Carers, each consisting of 5 half-day sessions are planned during 2016.

    We raise awareness of Carer issues at every opportunity by attending promotional and information events across Herefordshire.

    We use our quarterly magazine, website and social media to ensure Carers have access to up-to-date information and are aware of developments in the care of dementia sufferers.

    We work closely with the Alzheimer's Society, meeting regularly with Dementia Community Advisors to ensure that sufferers and Carers get the best possible help and support.

    2014 - Second Quarter Update

    We continue to develop the strong links we have established with local GP surgeries including the GP Award Scheme which was introduced in 2013, the next Award will be presented at Carers Rights Day Conference in nov 2014.

    We now have a Carer Lead withing each GP practice (24 in total) in Herefordshire.

    Our second Dementia Awareness Course runs in Oct/Nov 2014.

    We  raise awareness of Carer issues at every opportunity by attending promotional and information events at every opportunity.

    We use our quarterly magazine, website and social media to ensure Carers have access to up-to-date information and are aware of developments in the care of dementia sufferers.

  • Deliver a training programme for Carers of people with dementia

    We will deliver two 5 week Dementia Aware courses during 2014/15

    Status:
    Delivery

    2016 - First Quarter Update

    We will deliver two 5 week Dementia Aware courses to family Carers during 2016.

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