Recovery Group Information Day

Service user trainers wanted to co-facilitate Recovery Groups.  For more information and to apply please click on the link below:-

http://liveitwell.org.uk/docs/blogs/blog_swale/Recovery%20Group%20poster.pdf

Mental Health Support/Action Event at Maidstone on 25th January

MIND are running these national events on the themes of campaigning and influencing the new NHS structures and the tools people need to effectively do so, to showcase peer support research, highlighting interesting and innovative projects, and to look at challenging discrimination through workshops run by Time to Change champions.

The Kent event will be in Maidstone. For further details and to book a place please click on the link below:

http://liveitwell.org.uk/docs/blogs/blogs_all/Take%20mental%20health%20action_A5_v8.pdf

SURF - Winter 2011 Newsletter

The Swale User Representative Forum Newsletter is now available on the link below:-


http://liveitwell.org.uk/docs/blogs/blog_swale/SURF%20Newsletter%20Winter%202011.pdf

NHS Swale Clinical Commissioning Group (Swale CCG), the group responsible for commissioning health services for patients living in Sheppey and Sittingbourne, are putting together a panel of patients and representatives from local voluntary and community groups in the area to become part of a reference group.  The group's main purpose will be to provide public and patient feedback to the CCG and to work with the team to inform the Board about projects, initiatives and improvements to develop and improve local health provision.

An Expression of Interest Meeting will take place on Wednesday 28th November at 6pm at the UK Paper Leisure Club in Sittingbourne to provide information about the group and it's focus.  Anyone who would like to attend the meeting should contact Katie Blissett on 01227 791337 or email katie.blissett@nhs.net by Tuesday 27th November.  Once you have confirmed your attendance you will receive directions and Agenda for the meeting.  Please also state any special requirements regarding access etc.

Acute Mental Health Review Survey

We are looking at how to improve services for people in a mental health crisis. We launched a public consultation on mental health crisis care services in July and want to hear people’s views. The deadline for responses is 26 October and we’d be grateful if anyone  who uses or is involved with mental health services would please complete this survey.

Here is a short film on our YouTube channel which explains what the proposals are and why they are needed: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4PNHI91ovVs

Here is the link to the online survey to have your say: http://www.kmpt.nhs.uk/adultacuteconsultation

There’s also more information on the KMPT website: http://www.kmpt.nhs.uk/acute-mental-health-review

Many thanks for your help.

Emily Turner

Communications and Media Manager

NHS Kent and Medway

Brook House

John Wilson Business Park

Whitstable

CT5 3DD

Acute Mental Health Review Public Consultation Event

Friday 19^th October – 10am-1pm

Sheppey Healthy Living Centre

Off the Broadway

Sheerness

Kent

ME12 1HH

FACES of Kent newsletter published

FACES of Kent (whose website is now online) have published their first newsletter. FACES (Families Affected by Caring Empowerment Services) is a charity that promotes, supports and empowers carers of all ages in Swale and Canterbury.

Draft minutes of the March 2012 Swale LPMG meeting have been published. They contain a presentation from KMPT's Phillipa Macdonald about the Acute Services Redesign, followed by questions and comments.

Minutes are now being published in PDF format.

SURF spring newletter

SURF - Swale User Representation Forum - have published their spring newsletter with lots of news, reports of meetings and seminars, useful contacts, recipes and puzzles!

KMPT Foundation Trust Public Engagement Event

The Kent and Medway Partnership Trust (KMPT) are holding a series of events to enable the public, some of whom will be service users and carers, to open up a dialogue with members of KMPT's Executive team in finding out about the values, visions and future plans of the organisation, and how this inter-links with KMPT's application to become a Foundation Trust.

The East Kent event is on 11 April, 18:30 - 20:30, at

Anselm Hall (Main North Campus),
Canterbury Christ Church University
Homes Road, Canterbury
CT1 1QU

Service user and carer involvement - 15 Steps Challenge

We all know that first impressions count and when walking on to a hospital ward the first “15 Steps” will give you an impression of what is happening on the ward. The NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement are developing the 15 Steps Challenge, a tool to support ward walk arounds, looking at productive wards from the patient perspective. The programme identifies simple things like protecting meal times, protecting drug rounds and preventing interruptions at staff handovers.

The Strategic Health Authority (SHA) are working with mental health trusts across the south of England in developing this tool for mental health, as it was originally developed for Acute Trusts. The Kent & Medway Partnership Trust (KMPT) have adapted this tool slightly to fit in with the productive mental health ward and will be part of the SHA’s work, but in the meantime will use the tool developed.

The process will be that a team of people consisting of non-executive directors, carers and services users, directors, service managers etc. will visit one to two wards every month to audit against the 15 steps criteria (no more that 4 people will be in any team). A programme will be produced and co-ordinated through the Compliance and Risk Management Team who will also work in getting teams together. A briefing session will then be delivered by the Deputy Director of Nursing to the teams.

The dates for the team briefings aimed at a more in-depth explanation of the process are 11th April in Canterbury at 2pm for 90 minutes &10th April at West Malling at 2pm for 90 minutes.

Anyone interested in getting involved in the team visits should contact Janet Lloyd, PPCI Manager Kent & Medway Partnership Trust, via email or on 01227 812034

Are you a mental health service user or carer?

Would you like to ask a question or raise an issue about Kent & Medway Partnership Trust (KMPT) services with senior management?


Andy Oldfield, Assistant Director for East Kent Community Services

Cathy Nyemeck, Service Manager for Canterbury, Coastal & Swale Recovery Services

Michelle Webb, Service Manager for Canterbury, Coastal & Swale Access Services

will be available to talk to you on 23 March 2012, from 2.30pm - 4:30pm

at

Therapy Room, Swale CMHT, Memorial Hospital,
Bell Road, Sittingbourne, ME10 4DT

FACES of Kent

Swale & Canterbury Carers Support have changed their name to FACES of Kent (Families Affected by Caring Empowerment Services).  he name was chosen in consultation with Carers to reflect that Carers aren’t a statistic or number, but are people first. A launch party will be held in April to celebrate the new name and promote the services.

Here is the most recent newsletter.