Safeguarding Adults Updates

Presented by Christine MacleanSafeguarding Adults Consultant and Trainer

December 20141

Adult Social Care

• Safeguarding Advisors in each of the 11 Localities

• Recruitment process to begin shortly• Interim Head of Safeguarding and QA to be

recruited to• Making Safeguarding Personal• Multi Agency Procedures• Internal Procedures

Care Act - SSAB

• SSAB Legal right of existence• 3 core duties: 1. Must publish a strategic work plan 2. Must publish an annual report detailing activities undertaken during the year including all partner agencies activities 3. Must conduct SAR (SCR’s) S 44 of Act

SSAB cont…

• Identify responsibility of each agency• Establish data analysis and interrogation all agencies• Establish how it will hold partners to account• Determine arrangements for peer review and self audit• Develop preventative strategies• Develop policies and strategies – reviewing and impact• Peer challenge• Multi agency training• Joint resources to manage the work of the Board• Supply of Information (providers/agencies must provide)

Types of Abuse• Physical abuse• Domestic Abuse• Sexual abuse• Psychological abuse• Financial or material abuse• Modern slavery• Discriminatory abuse• Organisational abuse• Neglect and acts of omission• Self neglect

LA’s should not limit their view of what constitutes abuse or neglect

Co-operation

• LA’s must cooperate with each of their relevant partners an those partners must cooperate with the LA in the exercise of their functions relevant to care and support including those to protect adults.

Advocacy

• Requires that each LA must arrange for an independent advocate to represent and support an adult who is the subject of a safeguarding enquiry or SAR where the adult has ‘substantial difficulty’ in being involved in the process and there is no other suitable person to represent and support them.

Enquiries (Investigation)

• The Local Authority must make enquiries or cause another agency to do so whenever abuse or neglect are suspected in relation to an adult and the LA thinks it necessary to enable it to decide what (if any) action is needed to help and protect the adult

• May decide that another agency should make the enquiry, for example a care provider (unless there is a conflict), LA can challenge outcome if it considers that the process/outcome to be unsatisfactory

• Health professionals should undertake enquires relating to medicine management or pressure sores

• All those undertaking enquiries must be suitably qualified and have received appropriate training

Record Keeping

• All agencies must keep clear and accurate records• All agencies must identify procedures for incorporating, on

receipt of a complaint or allegation, all relevant records into a a file to record all action taken

• Records must be available for CQC and Commissioners• Staff must have clear direction as to what information is

recorded and in what format• Records should be kept in a way that the information can be

collated for local and national data collections