Letter to Lesley Griffiths AM

 

Lesley Griffiths AM

Minister for Health and Social Services

Welsh Government

12^th February 2013

Dear Minister,

The Report of the Public Inquiry into Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust

The Francis Report into Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust has provided a comprehensive assessment into the roles of commissioning, supervisory and regulatory bodies and why problems were not identified and acted upon sooner.

We very much hope that the findings will not be viewed in Wales as purely an English matter and note the contents of your Ministerial Satement of 7th February. The concerns raised by Ann Clwyd, based upon her personal experience over the care of her husband here in Wales, along with the report from the BBC,12th February, that complaints about the NHS in Wales have more than tripled in 6 years, demonstrates that we have to remain vigilant and respond actively and robustly to improve the quality of care in the NHS in Wales.

In our view the Francis Report offers a further voice confirming many of the concerns raised by the general public in Wales. This view is supported by the Report from the Older Peoples Commissioner in Wales, Dignified Care, a review which examined the experiences of older people in hospital in Wales.

Your statement reflects our own view, we believe Government must tackle the real and perceived lack of compassionate care in the culture within the NHS and not lose sight of the similar concerns in respect of the culture within social care and residential and nursing care.

Government can easily check that a change of culture has occurred. In future people who come into contact with the NHS should never feel that nurses are too busy or too self-important to compassionately care for their needs, or indeed the needs of other patients. Any over-reliance on poorly trained, hard working assistants can not be a substitute, in the Welsh NHS, for qualified nursing and proper staff ratios on wards. Importantly, they should always know, and have free access to, the person in charge, so that concerns can be raised and dealt with.

The Francis Report sets out in detail very sensible proposals for:

· Developing a clear vision for quality

· Supporting staff to deliver the best care

· Boards developing the right culture

· Using data well to drive quality and safety

· Responsive to patients' needs and preferences

· An open and just environment

· Adopting the right leadership styles

· Thinking and acting long term

It is all common sense really, adding up to a return to old fashioned compassionate nursing.

We are most concerned about this issue, and look forward to the implementation of the proposals in your statement in the light of the Francis Report. We seek reassurance that the progress you mention will continue to be made and that all of the concerns in the Francis Report are addressed (unlike what happened in the wake of the similar recommendations by Professor Sir Ian Kennedy in 2001).

Yours sincerely

Jeff Hawkins

Chief Executive

c.c. Sarah Rochira, Older Peoples Commissioner Wales

I Matter – We Matter

We would like to urge the public and people who are involved in our services and activities to get involved in the I Matter – We Matter campaign 'I Matter, We Matter' is a campaign that has been organised by a group of national Alliances concerned with the social care and health of the people of Wales. The Welsh Government is preparing to pass a new law entitled the Social Services and Well-being Bill Wales. At the heart of this Bill is the proposal to create ‘national outcomes for social services and social care services’.  These National Outcomes will set out what support services should help people achieve in their lives. The campaign aims to work with the Welsh Government to ensure that these ‘outcomes’ are built solidly on the views and opinions of the people of Wales. Getting involved is simple. All you have to do is think about 2 questions: What things are important to you in your life? What helps you to do these things? The campaign wants to hear the views of any people who have an interest in making our organisations, services and communities become places where people have choice, control and a feeling of mutual well-being and independence. We would encourage those who would like to get involved to log on to the website http://imatterwales.org.uk/ and join the discussion on the Talk page. At the end of the survey there is the opportunity to say which organisation have supported you to share your views, could you put in Age Concern Cardiff and the Vale so that the organisation is recognised. It only takes a few minutes to complete so please do lend it your support. You will need to act quickly as the closing date for joining the discussion closes on the 14^th February. Your help will be appreciated.

PRESS RELEASE

Main Contact: Karen Steele

Telephone: 029 2068 3604

For immediate release:

Local Charity Shuts Shops to Ensure Future of Frontline Services

After more than 20 years Age Concern Cardiff and the Vale has called time on its two Charity shops in Cardiff*. This brings to an end the Charity’s high street presence.

Chief Executive, Jeff Hawkins said, “I want to offer a very public thank you to all the thousands of customers who have supported the charity over the years and to all the volunteers and staff that have given us such valuable commitment”.

Explaining the reasons behind the decision he said that the lease on the Caerphilly Road office was due for renewal and given the need for the Charity to reduce costs and long term financial obligations, the Board of Directors could not sanction a new long term lease.

The Charity relies on income from the general public and from the public sector and with significant reductions planned in public sector funding the charity had to reduce costs without losing front line services to older people. Of particular concern for the Directors was the loss of profit in respect of their retail sales during 2012. Sales had dipped for two years running.

Explaining the reasons behind this, Jeff Hawkins said “competition in the charity retail sector is fierce. National Charities have huge infrastructures and spend significant money on retail development and fundraising generally, he said the charity’s local research identified there are some 78 charities involved in retail around the Cardiff and surrounding area. Around 11 charities account for 56 of the shops and 9 of these are national charities. The introduction of ‘clothes banks’ where people can get a small payment for goods that they would have normally donated to charities certainly affected the level of donations to our Caerphilly Road Shop”.

Tony Crocker, Managing Director, Track 2000 based in Cardiff said “we are really concerned. We’ve had to make people redundant recently and this is as a direct result of the increased competition from National Charities that are opening huge retail stores, trading in the same goods that we have done for over 40 years. I really do worry for the future”

Jeff Hawkins said “I would urge the public to seriously consider where their money and charity shop donations are going. Local charities are vital in providing valuable, practical help to those living in their communities. Many of these charities are finding it very difficult to raise money and with increasing demand for services it is so important they get financial support to allow them to keep responding to growing local needs”.

Listen to the radio programme

The Charity is keen to make it clear to all users of its service now and in the future that the decision does not affect its core services to older people in the community and that the registered office in Llanishen and other locations in Barry, Llantwit Major and Fairwater remain open for business.

For assistance with Benefits please contact our Welfare Rights Team on 02920 567 883. For all other services please contact the general enquiry line on 02920 683 600.

To support your local Age Concern through making a donation or becoming a volunteer, please visit our website www.age-concern-cardiff.org.uk

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Notes to Editors:

Age Concern Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan is a local charity that has been providing services for older people since 1974. An independently run charity which reaches out to older people in the region, many of whom live alone, are physically frail and live below the poverty line.

*Age Concern charity shops based at Caerphilly Road and Whitchurch Road, Cardiff.

Track 2000 is a registered charity that was established to benefit Cardiff and South East Wales. It has three main aims and objectives that are carried out constantly throughout the year.

• Reuse/Recycle unwanted household and commercial good
• Provide support and training to individuals on low income or benefit
• To assist with environmental management by reducing the mount of waste that goes to landfill sites.

Cold Spell Hits South Wales

The snow is still falling and there doesn’t appear to be any let up. The customary panic buying has already cleared the shelves in my local stores and the roads around my estate are silent from cars. Even the local children only were out for a short space of time. So behind the closed doors of my community we have commuters forced to work from home, children enjoying an extended weekend break from school, people taking the chance to snuggle in front of the fire and enjoy some day time TV and others worrying about love ones far from home.

As many of us are forced to stay at home today why not use a little bit of your time to spread a little warmth. If you are at home today spare some time to think of the many older people living alone, some of whom may not have had the chance to panic buy or who feel they can’t afford to turn the heating up as the cold spell bites. Why not pick up the phone and ring an older person you know, or visit an older person in your street who may be glad to see a friendly face and know that someone is looking out for them.

It often doesn’t take a lot to make a difference.

Christmas for some is a happy time

Christmas for some is a happy time full of family, friends and fun times but what about the millions of older people for whom Christmas accentuates the loneliness and isolation they feel every day of every week. On average, 10% of older people always feel lonely or feel severely lonely.

Recent research shows that loneliness can have similar health risk as smoking and has been linked to heart disease and depression.

There are a number of projects and activities that can help break down social isolation. Age Concern Cardiff and the Vale have been championing them for some years. For example we have been running an Ageing Well Programme for over 21 years providing community facilities and activities where people can meet with others and share interests. We have also been delivering practical and emotional support to older people who have few visitors and who find it difficult to get out and about. Volunteers support through taking people out to the shops, for appointments and on outings, while others provide a regular visit every week. We have also been instrumental in setting up a range of activities throughout the two counties for people to join in with.

These interventions help to keep older people involved and active in their community. They contribute to older people maintaining independence and enhancing their wellbeing.

There is much talk about the preventative agenda but in real terms our experience in relation to older people indicates that practical interventions, largely through third sector organisations working in local communities, are finding it increasingly difficult to attract the necessary funding, to maintain and develop these important services.

This short sighted approach will see more and more people needing to access and contact statutory services for help and support.

Surprise win

In early October the Asda Store at Pontprennau surprised Gareth L. Williams, Co-ordinator of the Llanedeyrn, Roath and Cathays Good Neighbour Scheme, by announcing that they had chosen the Scheme as one of their Charities ‘of the month’.

 

Asda promote 3 local Charities by placing them on their public Notice Boards at the front of the Store, for a 7 week period and shoppers are given a token with which to vote for the charity they feel deserves most help.

 

Gareth had entered the competition many months earlier and hadn’t heard anything more and yet now, suddenly, here was a chance to win a donation of £250 for the Scheme! Ultimately, the Scheme didn’t win the first prize but Gareth was very pleased to hear, in late November, that it had won a runner-up prize of £50. When he went to collect it this photograph was taken of him being awarded the cheque by the Staff. Perhaps it’s not as much as was hoped for but it all helps.

 

Thanks go to the fund raising staff at Asda for this opportunity and donation.

Football anyone?

The phone rings, you pick it up,

"Hia - just a quick call. You free tomorrow for a game of footers?”“ Aye, well yes I am actually. Where and what time? Oh, usual pitch, kick off 2.30.“Brilliant - looking forward to it already. Aye me too - see you tomorrow".

You remember those sort of conversations and you only wish you could relive those times? Or maybe you never played football and looking back you wish you had. Well, it might not actually be too late.

Read on.

In September 2010 Aston University hosted the British Science Festival. One of the speakers there was Peter Reddy from Aston's School of Life and Health Sciences. In his talk he argued that many more of us could actually go on playing well into our 50s and 60s and for some, maybe even longer.

This was not just some dreamt-up-pie-in-the-sky-Disneyworld theory - remember the audience he was speaking to was a science based one and we all know scientists always insist on plausible evidence. So is there any?

Well yes. Research published in 2010 in the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science found that untrained middle-aged men and women who participated in regular football for an hour, two or three times a week and elderly men (63-78 years) exposed to lifelong football had marked physiological, mental and social health benefits. They saw improved cardiovascular health and better bone density and postural strength which can protect against broken bones in older age.

The study participants reported "a sense of flow", a term used by psychologists to describe a rewarding psychological state. They also felt a sense of social belonging, which has benefits on mental health. The benefits were greater than those seen in endurance running for increases in muscle mass, some cardiovascular benefits and reduced worry. Moreover, the footballers had fun.

As one would expect they did warn that previously untrained football players could be at risk of injury so that appropriate fitness training is necessary.

So, maybe for some of us it's not after all too late to take up the beautiful game again? - or for some, for the first time?

You might be surprised to hear that in May of this year, Wales played England in a first ever over-60s international with the Welsh team coming out on top

4-2. The combined age of the two teams was 1,106 years.

The popularity of Vets football throughout the world is on the increase. For example, in British Columbia, Canada, there are 120 teams in the Old-timers Soccer League, while in Boston in the US there are a dozen teams in an over-60s league. Here in Wales over-40s and over-45s leagues are attracting more and more participants and plans are currently being made to create another for the over 50s.

You thought your playing days were well and truly over? - maybe you ought to think again - and you never know, you might even be in with a chance of living your childhood dream and even winning that coveted international cap.. ..

and why not?

For further information about Wales Vets football check out this link

http://www.vetwales.org/index.html

About our guest blogger - Andrew Davies

Originally a native of Harlech in North Wales, from as far back as I can recall (even as far back as my pre-school days) I've loved the game of football. I went to rugby playing schools, where football matches were never formally organised. At university I continued playing rugby, along with the occasional game of college football. One of my college team-mates was someone called Greg Dyke. Later in life he became one of the Directors of Manchester United and Director General of the BBC.

I worked in the civil service for most of my adult life and about 25 years ago a few of us started to organise 5 a side football games amongst ourselves. Since then little by little my fitness has I firmly believe improved in spite of the passing of the years. For the past few years I have been playing 11 a side with a group of players from a variety of countries, with ages ranging from late teens and upwards. From inauspicious beginnings of having informal kick-abouts on a Saturday morning we've grown and grown and we now play all the year round - sometimes on full size grass pitches, sometimes 5 a side and sometimes on Astroturf. We also play the occasional friendly against eg a team drawn from musicians in the National Orchestra of Wales.

I'm a bit of a student of football tactics, play Fantasy Football and last year wrote on a voluntary basis for the PFA website http://www.givemefootball.com/ as a local supporter of Cardiff City.

What if you woke up everyday and knew you aren’t going to see anyone ?

Harry lives alone & is housebound due to illness. His family live away & he is increasingly isolated. He is hoping someone has the time to visit him for an hour a week, to chat about his great loves rugby and film.

Mary lives alone and doesn’t have any family or friends nearby. Driving your own car to take her to Tesco to complete her food shopping once a fortnight would really make a difference.

If you would like to make a difference to people like Harry and Mary and can spare approximately 2 hours a week then we would love to hear from you. Please phone 029 2056 0952 or visit http://www.volunteer-accardiff.org.uk/

Coming of Age

Age Concern Cardiff and the Vale have been running an Ageing Well Programme since 1991 – You could say it has come of age as it now enters its 21^st year.

During this time we have developed and run a range of services and activities that help people to maintain and improve their health and wellbeing by keeping them connected and active in their community. The Programme has run peer mentoring schemes, held healthy ageing training sessions to delivering EXTEND classes, Tea Dances, craft groups and learning activities such as Welsh and IT classes. The list goes on and on but at the heart of all of these activities and classes it is the social contact that people always value the most. Yes they are pleased to learn new things or to keep fit and active but the one thing people say time and time again,” I have met knew friends and old, I don’t Know what I would do with out my group or class”
A WRVS report, published in May 2012, showed that older people in the UK are the loneliest across four comparable European countries. It is shocking that 20% of older people say they are mildly lonely and a further 10% say they have experienced intense feelings of loneliness.
Age Concern has continued to develop projects and activities and in recent years and we have rolled out clubs in Ely, Llanrumney, Llantwit Major, Penarth, Bonvilston apart from the regular activities such as Zumba, Qi Gong, and choral groups.
Below are some video links for you to take a look at the activities in action.
Choir practice
http://youtu.be/27-S8iNTp0o
Phoenix players
http://youtu.be/7h7wpezp8R0
LLantwit Major Qi Gong
http://youtu.be/--v2Ie1ZNq4
LLantwit Major Qi Gong session 2
http://youtu.be/bg5uB9ddLQ4

GlaxoSmithKline in partnership with the King’s Fund announce the 2013 IMPACT Awards, www.kingsfund.org.uk/gskimpactawards - closing date 21st September

Age Concern Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan were award winners in 2011. In this article, Jeff Hawkins, CEO talks about:

· What winning the award has meant to them

· The practical benefits they received

· What they have done as a result

· Some thoughts on applying for the award

Winning the award was a powerful endorsement of the efforts of volunteers, staff and trustees. To be chosen out of a competition involving 420 organisations across the UK is a real test of the work the organisation does locally in Wales. It provides great encouragement and motivation for all the people associated with the organisation.

For the public sector and other organisations that fund Age Concern Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan the recognition helps to validate the support they have given to the Charity.

The Organisation had hundreds of messages of support from people we have worked with, who took the opportunity, perhaps for the first time, to tell us how much they valued the work we do”.

The assessment process for any organisation will be rigorous and providing evidence of health related outcomes to respected professionals on the assessment panel will be challenging. But the process the organisation went through was instructive and allowed for a broader consideration of the IMPACT of the organisations work.

Age Concern Cardiff and the Vale continue to benefit from the exposure and use the award as evidence to other organisations of their ability to achieve results.

What are the practical benefits?? These include:

· The unrestricted grant of 25K in 2011

· Bespoke training to support the finalist’s develop the organisation’s management and sustainability.

· Involvement in the Learning Development Network created the opportunity to share and encourage good practice and is a comfortable environment to discuss issues that face the voluntary sector.

· The interaction with Network Members and the ongoing development of the Network to create a platform and voice for the voluntary sector will bring lasting benefits

· The publicity film of our work has been a valuable tool to demonstrate the breadth of the work and the value placed on it.

http://youtube/tPMxHArd4Aw

People working in the third sector will be aware that grant making bodies and public sector do not generally provide unrestricted grants. The unrestricted grant from GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) is enlightened thinking.

The assessment process provided feedback that was used to inform the programme for the Learning Development Network. This was really valuable to Age Concern and they were able to address potential improvement in their work, for them this included:

· Strategic and Financial Planning and Sustainability (including diversifying income steams). They have done a lot of work using the tools from the development days with their Board of Directors and senior staff.

· Through the experience gained in the Leadership Development sessions they have explored communications and how they engage and discuss difficult, hard to resolve issue, such as financial sustainability, within the organisation openly and constructively.

The assessment process highlighted some practical ways that Age Concern Cardiff and the Vale could improve their sustainability. From the assessment they were told that they were not that good at telling their story. Plenty of good things were happening particularly the value of 340 volunteers supporting older people in their community, but this was not always obvious.

The Organisation has now introduced changes to the way they talk about their work, the frequency and tone of publicity, the material they produce and the use of different mediums, such as facebook and twitter. They have introduced a Blog and now refresh their website regularly.

You can look at what Age Concern Cardiff and the Vale have done by visiting www.age-concern-cardiff.org.uk and following us on facebook and twitter.

Age Concern has used social media in a recent campaign to develop and fund an intergenerational project through gaining the public vote in the Big Lottery People’s Jubilee Millions. The Journeys Project trained students to interview and record the life stories of people living in residential care. The project has produced audio recordings and Life Books as a record of each of the participant’s involvement. Seeing the Life Books and hearing of the positive outcomes for students and residents is powerful stuff.

You can have a look some of this work on www.age-concern-cardiff.org.uk

What has Age Concern done as a result of the Award?

· Lessons have been built into new applications for funding.

· Lessons learnt have been cascaded to others.

· The IMPACT grant has been used to develop their communications.

· The film has been used to promote the achievement of the organisations to health, social care and third sector organisations.

· The working relationships they have locally have been maximised by acknowledging the role played by other organisations in their achievement.

· The CEO has used the strategic planning tools with the Board of Directors, successfully setting a framework for the governance focus of the Board.

In conclusion

Age Concern Cardiff and the Vale is very proud to have been a winner of the GlaxoSmithKline Award. Wales has a great culture of voluntary effort. There is great work being done by relatively small organisations across Wales, much of this goes unnoticed. The GlaxoSmithKline IMPACT award goes a long way towards improving recognition.

Age Concern would really like to see more Welsh organisations applying for the award.

Some practical tips from the CEO include:

Don’t be put off by the size of organisations applying. It is the IMPACT that counts. Small organisations with limited resources and particularly if they use volunteers can often demonstrate a great IMPACT from their work and return on the limited resources they have than larger organisations.

Visit the www.Kingsfund.org.uk/gskimpactawards web site. Look at the information about past winners, view their films and talk to some of the winners about their experience in completing the application.

Talk through each element of the grant application with others inside and outside the organisation. People you work in partnership with ask them to offer their views about the various elements you need to complete.

Let people you work with know you are applying.

Above all, do not be disappointed if you do not get selected. Treat the application as a real opportunity to think through the criteria. If nothing else, you will generate thoughts and information you can use for other pieces of work, the effort will not be wasted.