NEWS
Focus on rehabilitation and employability in Scottish forensic services review , says RCOT
RCOT is recommending that the independent review into forensic mental health services in Scotland focuses on rehabilitation and employability .
Hopes to improve patient survival rates with major trauma overhaul in Northern Ireland
An enhanced major trauma network has been implemented in Northern Ireland , with the majority of seriously-injured patients to be taken directly to a new major trauma centre at Belfast ’ s Royal Victoria Hospital .
The new centre is staffed by a multidisciplinary team and aims to speed up responses to trauma to improve clinical outcomes . Patients will then be able to step their care down through local hospitals and community-based facilities .
It is hoped the changes could improve patient survival rates by a fifth for the estimated 1,500 major trauma patients in Northern Ireland each year . Major trauma is the leading cause of death for people aged under 45 in the UK .
The Royal College was responding to the review ’ s interim findings , before it publishes its final recommendations next month . RCOT and its members also met with the review ’ s chair Derek Barron to elaborate on these points .
‘ We believe that rehabilitation should be the central ethos of every forensic service and every member of staff ,’ said RCOT ’ s Genevieve Smyth in RCOT ’ s submission . ‘ Occupational therapists have expert skills in rehabilitation , but this needs to be shared so every single opportunity is one for skills development and learning . Forensic services could then become true places for positive change .’
The ability to gain employment was also flagged as the main predictive factor , alongside settled accommodation , of making sure people don ’ t re-enter the forensic system . RCOT is recommending that all patients should be asked about their aspirations for work early and throughout their rehabilitation , and that patients should be supported towards work with individualised rehabilitation plans with clear goals and opportunities for progression .
Find out more at : www . gov . scot / groups / forensicmental-health-services-independent-review .
Robin Swann , the health minister , said : ‘ This marks the culmination of several years of co-operation , planning and investment , and demonstrates what we can achieve when the component parts of our health service work together as one system .’
RCOT calls on the government to protect rehabilitation services , as minister says children ’ s therapists should not be redeployed during second wave
RCOT has called on the government to protect staff working in rehabilitation services from redeployment as the health and care services in England cope with a second wave of COVID-19 , with 25 organisations joining the Royal College ’ s call .
As RCOT members continue to experience a tsunami of demand on rehabilitation support services , the Royal College has written to health minister Jo Churchill to ensure that rehabilitation services are supported to restart fully and that staff are protected from redeployment .
It is estimated that 91 per cent of the rapidly growing numbers of people with Long COVID will need some form of rehabilitation .
RCOT chief executive Julia Scott wrote in the letter : ‘ We need a national strategy for rehabilitation , that ensures services that provide these vital services are reopened with the staff and space to make this possible so that :
• people impacted from the first wave do not suffer further from a lack of rehabilitation support ;
• people that get COVID-19 can access the rehabilitation support they need to aid their recovery ;
• people who have non-COVID related rehabilitation needs are able to access vital rehabilitation support when and where they need it . ‘ Rehabilitation is proven to facilitate hospital discharge , reduce the need for packages of care , prevent hospital admissions and reduce pressure on primary care .’
RCOT ’ s letter was co-signed by 26 organisations , including the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy , the British Heart Foundation and the Alzheimer ’ s Society .
The government has also responded to RCOT ’ s call for therapists working with children with special educational needs and disabilities ( SEND ) to be safeguarded .
‘ The department ’ s clear expectation is that therapists should not be redeployed ,’ wrote children and families minister Vicky Ford in a letter to RCOT ’ s Julia Scott , saying NHS England was continuing to ‘ plan for winter and through this period of new national restrictions to ensure that the needs of children with SEND are appropriately prioritised . NHS England is liaising with the chief allied health professional team on this matter .’
The minister noted that messages about redeployment had already been circulated on other services , and that a clear message was sent on the prioritisation of therapists for children and young people with SEND .
Earlier this year , a survey by the Disabled Children ’ s Partnership had found that over half of families with disabled children saw their therapy support stop in the first wave .
Quote of the month The department ’ s clear expectation is that therapists should not be redeployed
Children and families minister Vicky Ford
OTnews December 2020 9