Issue 3Jan/Feb 2009-Circulation 1000

Its been a busy start to theNewYear! The InterimSteering Group and LINkSupport Team havecontinued to promotethe LINk and raiseawareness and themembership continuesto rise on a daily basis.Twenty Four Active LINk

Members received freeSafeguarding Adults, Basic Awareness

Training and further sessions will bearranged for Active LINk Members,throughout the coming year. Look out fordetails in future editions of this newsletter.A LINk Induction session, Enter andViewTraining and a full training programme iscurrently being developed for Active andBoard Members ofWirral LINk. TheWirralLINk has now held its first public meeting onWednesday 11th February to publicise anddiscuss its draft governance structures,policies and procedures ready forpublication. The meeting had 50+ people inattendance, thanks to all of you could makeit and for your valuable feedback. Thedocuments were agreed with some minoramendments and will be publicised on ourweb-site at www.vcawirral.org.uk andavailable to download. The minutes will alsobe available very shortly following next

Steering Group Meeting, and a copy will beplaced on the web-site and circulated to theLINk Membership.

The LINk is now fully operational and ready togo!

The Election process for the LINk Board hasnow commenced through the Electoral ReformSociety and the timetable is as follows:-

Despatch of Nomination Forms:

16 February 2009

Closing Date for Nominations: 6 March 2009

Despatch of Ballot Papers: 23 March 2009

Close of Voting: 14 April 2009

Result: 16 April 2009

LINKEDUP NEWS

Announcement ofElectedWirral LINkBoard: 16 April 2009

The very first job for the newly electedBoard will be to look at the commentsalready received by the LINk and raised atthe public meeting, to devise aWirral LINkworkplan and start work. An exciting andbusy time ahead. We will of course providethe results and details of the new Board inthe next edition of this newsletter. Look outfor the ballot papers to ensure your vote iscounted.

Wirral LINk -“Growing Stronger Communities, by joining together, many whispers become

one voice”

Story So Far

Our Health • Our Care • Our Say

1

2 Winter Edition

The Local Authority andNHS Trusts Respond to Your QuestionsYou may recall we published the questionsand issues raised at the LINk Event inNovember in our last newsletter. Thesewere recorded on an anonymous basis andwritten word for word as submitted, andsubsequently forwarded to the localstatutory bodies for a response. It wasnoted that it was not possible to provide aresponse to some of the questions, as theywere not specific, but were valued generalcomments.

Q No transport to Mill Lane Hospital –from Egremont once new services open?

A Received from NHSWirral—The number106 circular bus route runs every 30 minutesbetween Egremont and Liscard areas and isa well established service.

Q No chemist in Egremont open fromFriday 6.00pm-Monday 9.00am?

A Received from NHSWirral—The nearestoptions outside of this time are Boots andAlliance in Liscard plus Asda inWallasey.Prescriptions are usually issued after 6.00pmon Friday and there is sufficient localbusiness for a general pharmacy to remainopen in the area over the weekend. Ifrequired, we can provide all details ofpharmacy availability out of hours ifrequired.

QAre the Community Nurses moving toPrenton Dell?

A Received from NHSWirral—The nursesmoved out of the centre in September 2008to different locations across the area.

Q Involvement in drugs and alcoholissues?

A Received from NHSWirral—WirralDAAT (Drug and Alcohol Action Team) andits partners are committed to ensuring thatservice users and carers are involved in a realand meaningful way in decision makingwhich influences the services that arecommissioned and provided. There are arange of ways of involving service users andcarers to assure delivery of effective drugand alcohol treatment systems inWirral,these range from formal and informalconsultation processes to involvement inspecific programmes and working groups

including service user and carer led groups.Anyone wishing to get involved shouldcontact: Natasha Smith—Project Manager:0151 643 5327.

Q.I deal with BME Elders. It is verydifficult to get carers on theWirral whocan care for clients who do not speakEnglish well or English period. At themoment we are using Liverpool which isnot very flexible.

A. Received from Local Authority - It isdifficult to find care providers who cansupply carers who speak other languageswell. DASS is aware of this problem and willhave it in mind when the next re-tenderingfor providers takes place. Hopefully this willbe at some point during 2009.However, we do use the Merseyside ChineseCommunity Development Associationwherever appropriate and we try to makearrangements as flexible as possible by co-ordinating this service through our Multi-cultural centre.There is also some work about to beundertaken at a corporate level, which aimsto review the provision of interpretation andtranslation services available to the council.

Q.Form – Agree database. Change shareinformation with others to give clearerunderstanding what share means.

A. Received from Local Authority - Thedeclaration on the Common AssessmentFramework document has a statementabout information sharing which says wemay need to share information with otherprofessionals who may be involved inproviding support for that person. It has aspace to record if the person agrees verballyto this and also a space for signature and astatement that confidentiality assured.The department takes issues of data sharingseriously and some discussion has takenplace within DASS about the wording of thisstatement. It is recognised that it might beuseful if the statement indicated that theinformation would be stored securely andnot sold to other agencies, as this is often aconcern to the public. It has also beensuggested that the statement might benefitfrom reference to the Data Protection Actand/or Caldicott principles, which mightoffer further reassurance.

DASS is currently hoping to expand theinvolvement of external groups andindividuals in shaping policy. It has beensuggested that perhaps Links might like toprovide some feedback with regard to theirown view on what they feel would re-assurepeople.

Q. Poor response from Social Services.Rang every day for a week – DisabledTeam not called back, person stuck incare for a week when they could behome.

A. Received from Local Authority -Providing the highest quality customer carepossible is extremely important to theDepartment. If in this instance there hasbeen a breakdown in our systems then wewould firstly like to express our sincereregret and secondly promise that we willconduct a full investigation into what hasgone wrong, and take steps to ensure that itdoes not happen again.Wirral Council has customer care guaranteeswhich have been agreed at a corporate level.These state that:• We will answer all telephone calls quicklyand politely.• We will give our name and ask how wecan help you. If your query will take sometime we will ring you back.• If you need to speak to someone else wewill make sure you are connected to them.• If we fail to meet these standards we willalways apologise and try to put it right.

If we fail to reach these agreed standards,the Social Services complaints team canhelp to resolve individual complaints andwelcomes feedback in order to improve theway we provide services. They can bereached on 666 4787, or by writing to

The Quality Assurance UnitSocial Services Department,Westminster House, Hamilton Street,Birkenhead,CH41 5FN.

Q.Young carers.

A. Received from Local Authority - Youngcarers are supported inWirral by PSS whoare a voluntary sector organisation fundedthrough a contract withWirral Children’sand Young People’s Department.

PSS provide support that is tailored to theneeds of each young carer but can includehelp with school issues and support throughgroup work with other young carers. Youngcarers are also involved in helping to shapeservices wherever possible and in particularhave helped to compile a DVD to raiseawareness about the issues faced by youngcarers.PSS can be contacted at

Wirral Young Carers

Leasowe Millenium CentreTwickenham DriveLeasoweWirralCH46 1PQTelephone: 0151 606 5656Fax: 0151 638 0389Email: wirralyc@pss.org.uk

Q.Grandparents looking after youngchildren can be a stressful situation.

A. Received from Local Authority -Wirralhas three Grandparent Carer Groups, whichhave been running for about three years.They aim to support those grandparentswho look after their grandchildren on apermanent basis either through statutoryintervention from the Local Authority or byprivate arrangement.Wirral recognises that this group of people issocially excluded for many reasons and weendeavour to support their needs in theoften mammoth task they have undertaken.Joint work is now being undertaken betweenworkers involved with these GCGs and withthe Drugs And Alcohol Team, so thatunderstanding can be increased ofGrandparents who are affected by issuesrelating to drug and alcohol misuse, possiblyby their adult children. Hopefully this willallow the support offered to Grandparentsto be further strengthened,

Further information is available directly fromthe GCGs, which meet at three locations.These locations are the Lauries Centre,Gannies Meadow and Seacombe under 5s.There is also on-line support available,throughhttp://www.mentorfoundation.org/about_mentor.php?nav=3-27-34-144

3

4

COMMUNITY NEWSOut of Hospital

Project

The Out of Hospital Servicewill be up and running fromthe lst March 2009 locatedin the Discharge Lounge atArrowe Park Hospital. Theservice will run alongside theexisting VCAW care servicesacrossWirral.

The Out of Hospital Service providesshort-term practical support to ease thetransition from hospital to home.

Who does it serve?Any patient can receive help from the Outof Hospital Service, regardless of whetherthey are eligible for care from any of thestatutory services. This service does notreplace any statutory services or the helpthat family, friends and neighbours canoffer. The service is free and confidential,and is provided by trained volunteers, whoall wear identification badges.

ReferralsAnyone can refer a patient to the Out ofHospital Service. Do contact the scheme ifyou would like to discuss this service foryourself or a friend or relative. The Co-ordinator can meet with you on the ward todiscuss the services offered. When a referralis made by the ward staff, the Co-ordinatorwill work, if necessary in conjunction withSocial Services to establish any details ofyour planned aftercare.

Within 24 hours of the referral being made,the Co-ordinator will visit the patient onthe ward to assess their needs and theirwillingness to accept help from the Out ofHospital Service. Where possible, familyand friends will also be consulted. Writtenconsent from the patient (or their carer)will be obtained before any details about

the patient are passed on to a volunteer.

Contacting a volunteerOnce a referral has been accepted by theOut of Hospital Service, and the patient’sagreement has been obtained, a localvolunteer will be contacted by the Co-ordinator to establish their availability. Ifthe volunteer accepts the case, they will besent the patient’s name, address, telephonenumber and other relevant details.

In the client’s(former patient’s) homeThe Out of Hospital Service will usuallyarrange for the volunteer to visit thepatient/client at home as soon as possibleafter discharge from hospital (but may startearlier if required). All volunteers carryidentification, which they will show to theclient when they arrive at their home.If the client would like it, the volunteer canhelp them in the following ways:• Check that they are OK• Shopping (basic essentials)• Making phone calls• Dealing with accumulated post• Collect pension/benefits• Collect prescriptions• Make a hot drink/sandwich• Light house work e.g. bed making,vacuuming, dusting

• Preparation of home prior to discharge• Making sure home is adequately heated• Signposting to other agencies etc.• Just sit for a while and have a chat

For further details, please contact: The Outof Hospital Team at VCAW for an informalchat on 0151 606 4167.

Carers CounsellingService

Did you know thatWIRED have a freeCarers Counselling Service?

Counselling is an opportunity for you totalk to someone who is an outsider; askilled listener who will not judge you orthe things you say.

Counselling does not solve all yourproblems but it can help you with findingyour own solutions, getting a betterunderstanding and clarifying yourthoughts and feelings. It is done in a safeand trusting environment which may helpyou to say things that perhaps you mightnot like others to hear or feel they maynot understand.

All of our counsellors are volunteers andtraining towards their Diploma. They worktowards the British Association ofCounselling and Psychotherapy Code ofEthics.

The counsellors will see you in venues thatare accessible to you, such as your GPSurgery or the Council One Stop Shops.Carers can self refer in to the service ororganisations can refer Carers to us. If youfeel you would benefit from counselling orwould like further information please callSam on 0151 670 1500

Thousands of patients tobenefitFrom Monday 1 April 2009 peopleundergoing treatment for cancer, the effectsof cancer or cancer treatment in Englandwill be entitled to free prescriptions.People undergoing treatment for cancer, theeffects of cancer or cancer treatment canapply for a five-year exemption certificate.Application forms will be available from GPsurgeries and oncology (tumours) clinics,and must be countersigned by the patient’sGP or treatment doctor. The new exemptioncategory will be added to the existingMedical Exemption Certificate applicationform (FP92a). New forms have beendistributed to GP surgeries and oncologyclinics.The Exemption Certificate lasts for fiveyears covering all prescriptions and can berenewed as many times as necessary.

New forms can be submitted from the 9thFebruary. Those submitted before 24thMarch will have certificates processed intime for the new exemption start date.Forms received after the 24th March will beprocessed in normal time frames. Patientswho have not received their certificate by 1April are able to get a refund by asking thepharmacy for FP57 form when paying.A review is currently under way tointroduce free prescriptions for people withother long-term conditions, eventuallybenefiting around five million people.John South, Director of Primary Care andProvider Services for NHSWirral, said: ‘Thisnew scheme gives people living with cancerone less worry at such a difficult time. Freeprescriptions will help the lives of manypeople living with cancer who might bestruggling to pay for drugs.’For further information please visithttp://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/healthcostsor call 0845 8508076.

5

Launch of Hoylake Cottage HospitalDementia Drop-in Café

TheWirral branch of The Alzheimer’sSociety invited carers and their loved onesto the launch of their first Dementia Café atPort Sunlight Garden Centre in Decemberand are now continuing to run cafés thereonce a month.

Due to the positive feedback, this service isnow being expanded with the launch ofanother Drop-in Café at Hoylake CottageHospital at the end of February.

The Alzheimer’s Society was successful inapplying for a grant of £50,000 provided byNHSWirral to help with the continueddevelopment of their services.

Drop-in cafes are designed to give carerssome brief respite in a pleasant, informalsetting, while the person they care for isbeing safely entertained close by. InWirralthere are 4,500 people over the age of 65living with dementia. Across the UK700,000 people have dementia and thisnumber is set to rise to 1 million by 2025.

Donna DiVito, one of two DementiaOutreachWorkers co-ordinating the service,commenting on the previous cafés, said“Carers had welcomed the opportunity torelax over a coffee while their loved onestake part in activities nearby. We tookalong a number of resources such as oldnewspapers and postcards which we use tomaintain memory skills. Past events dohelp to jog the memory and people enjoyeddiscussing them.”

Speaking about the launch of the HoylakeDrop-in café, she added: “It’s wonderful thatwe are able to increase our support tocarers and we are very grateful to the NHSWirral for their support and financialbacking. It is anticipated that this servicewill be of great benefit to both people withdementia and their carers.”

Further Cafés will take place on a monthlybasis at Hoylake Cottage Hospital inBirkenhead Road. The dates (between 1pmto 3pm):

31st March28th April26th May30th June28th July

Further Cafes will also be held at PortSunlight Garden Centre, The Causeway:(between 10am to 12 noon):

4th March1st April6th May3rd June

Carers wishing to attend the Drop-in cafescan do just that – drop in! The Alzheimer’sSociety is also looking for volunteers to helpat these venues. If you are interested,please contact Donna DiVito or ChristineHenry at theWirral Branch onTel: 630 5206.

Message from theAmbulance Service

We all carry our mobilephones with names &numbers stored in itsmemory. If we were tobe involved in anaccident or were takenill, the people attending

us would have our mobile phone butwouldn’t know who to call. Yes, there arehundreds of numbers stored but which oneis the contact person in case of anemergency? Hence this ‘ICE’ (In Case ofEmergency) Campaign.

6

The concept of ‘ICE’ is catching on quickly. Itis a method of contact during emergencysituations. As mobile phones are carried bythe majority of the population, all you needto do is store the number of a contactperson or persons who should be contactedduring emergency under the name ‘ICE’ ( InCase Of Emergency). The idea was thoughtup by a paramedic who found that when hewent to the scenes of accidents there werealways mobile phones with patients butthey didn’t know which number to call.

He therefore thought that it would be agood idea if there was a nationallyrecognised name for this purpose.

In an emergency situation, EmergencyService personnel and hospital Staff wouldbe able to quickly contact the right personby simply dialling the number you havestored as ‘ICE’.

Please forward this. It won’t take too many‘forwards’ before everybody will know aboutthis. It really could save your life, or put aloved one’s mind at rest.For more than one contact name simplyenter ICE1, ICE2 and ICE3 etc.

PLEASE PASS THIS AROUNDAS MANYPEOPLE AS POSSIBLE AS THIS CAN HELP INAN EMERGENCY.

Feedback from MeetingsAttended

TheWirral LINk Interim Steering GroupMembers have agreed to maintain the seatspreviously held by the PPI Forums forcontinuity, and this will be reviewed whenthe elected LINk Board is establishedshortly. Wirral LINk is keen to ensure thatfeedback is provided to everyone, for

meetings attended. Reports are nowavailable on the following, if you would likea copy please contact theWirral LINkSupport Team. Copies will also be uploadedwhere possible, to the web-site:www.vcawirral.org.uk.

Wirral University TeachingHospital NHS Foundation TrustPatient Environmental Action Group – PEATSelf Assessment –

11 February 2009 (Clatterbridge Hospital).

Primary Care Trust (PCT)PCT Patient & Public Involvement (PPI) Sub-Committee – 18 September 2008PCT PPI Sub-Committee – 20 November2008Dental Board – 25 November 2008PCT Dental Board – 9 December 2008Dental Directorate Board Meeting –20 January 2009Dental Service DeliveryWorking Group –19 February 2009Dental – PreventionWorking Group –19 February 2009Dental Directory Board – 12 February 2009Wirral Equalities & Diversity Panel –11 December 2008

Department of Adult SocialServices (DASS) – IndividualBudget Market ManagementWorkstream13 November 2008 9 December 2008

6 January 2009 21 January 2009

Social Care, Health andInclusion Overview and ScrutinyCommitteeFeedback from meeting held on 20 January2009

National Association of LINkMembers (NALM)Feedback from meeting held on 5November 2008

7

JOINWIRRAL LINk

WE NEEDYOUR SUPPORT, SOWHY NOT JOIN THEWIRRAL LINK? WANTA PRESENTATIONTOYOUR GROUP/ORGANISATION? PLEASE CONTACT THE LINk SUPPORT TEAM,

KAREN OR LYNDA ON 0151 645 4038

EMAIL: wirrallink@vcawirral.org.uk or

WRITE TO:LINk Support Team,VCAWirral, 65 The Village, Bebington,Wirral, CH63 7PL

Membership Ideas Request forWirral Link Summer Youth Event

Following the success of theWinterWarmer Event in November —wehope to arrange another event in the Summer time, with a focus onchildren and young people. If you work with young people or children,we would really welcome your ideas for the event, and possible standholders and venue?We are setting up a Publicity Group from our ActiveLINk Membership to look at arranging this event, please let us know ifyou would like to join this Group. This event is in the early stages ofplanning so there is time to really make this event a success with yourhelp and input. You can email us direct: on wirrallink@vcawirral.org.ukor telephone Karen or Lynda on: 0151 645 4038

FlexibleMembership

Make a difference

Join Groups

ReceiveTraining/Support

Get Out &About

Learn newskills

Take part in livelydiscussions

Meet newpeople

8