BreakAway | My time | Out and about | Support Us | Treat Me Right!
Elsa's Blog
April 2010
Treat
Me Right! has now been running for over 17 months and I’m really pleased
with the progress so far. We are waiting to hear about funding going
forward but we are optimistic about keeping the project running until at
least April 2011. I believe we have improved the service for people
with learning disabilities while they are at Ealing Hospital, but there
is still plenty more to do.
All About Me!
At the end of January we had a special support day to help a large group
of people fill in
About
Me! Hospital Passport. These simple plans have proved invaluable in
improving services for people with learning disabilities. They work well
for both patients and staff by providing information about the
adjustments hospital staff might make for a particular patient.
Hospital Protocols
In partnership with the hospital, we have also introduced a series of
protocols for hospital staff to follow when they are relating to someone
with a learning disability and we are continuing to improve
accessibility to printed information and signage around the hospital.
Communication and learning disability resource folders
We have put together a folder with very important information that we
hope will help staff if they aren’t sure where to get the right support
or information. This also contains the “Hospital
Communication Book Part
one and
Part two"
which has helped patients understand what is going on – it has picture
of procedures, parts of the body and much more.
Expert Trainers
Amanda Cresswell and John Keaveny - who both have individual experiences
of using Ealing Hospital services and have learning disabilities - have
been helping me out with training to raise awareness of learning
disability issues. We have been working with doctors, nurses and other
hospital staff and the feedback has been encouraging.
Ward/ Department Champions
To help us keep the information flowing we have also identified a Treat
Me Right “Champion” on every ward and department. Each champion is
undergoing training and we hope that this will mean you should be able
to find a member of staff who knows about Treat Me Right! if you ever
find yourself a patient at Ealing Hospital.
Better facilities
And, we have developed a pilot scheme to install more accessible signs
within the hospital wards – if these are successful (which we think they
will be!) we will aim to install them in as many parts of the hospital
as possible.
We have been campaigning hard for better facilities. Our calls for a
“changing places toilet” to be installed in the hospital have been
heeded and a suitable location has been identified. However, we know
better than to believe that this is the end of the story so we will keep
on campaigning until the facility has been opened.
We know that carers sometimes need to stay overnight in hospital and
that this can mean a very uncomfortable few hours in a chair beside the
bed. To ease this situation we have requested four reclining chairs to
be made available – it’s a small change, but one which could make a big
difference to your hospital experience.
Easier to read information
We know that a lot of information at the hospital is not always easy for people to understand, we are building up a library of information that we hope will help more people know what to expect and to understand their rights in hospital. You can download the Hospital Welcome Pack , Say NO to Abuse! and Outpatients Information here.
Flagging system
After working for quite a while on this area we now have the ability to
flag up if someone has a learning disability on the hospital computer
system. This will then alert hospital staff to the fact that an
individual has a learning disability and may need to have reasonable
adjustments made to ensure they get equal access to health care at the
hospital.
Purple flower system 
Ealing Hospital has a great scheme where they use a discreet purple flower to highlight the fact that an individual may need support with eating and/or drinking. This shows the catering staff that extra support from a trained member of staff is needed to provide this support. The flower is put up next to someone’s bedside and should also be on the main board of names within each ward.
Easier to read picture menus
The hospital has also developed an easier to read picture menu for patients who have difficulty in reading menus. These are great facilities and we want to encourage the hospital to keep up this good work.
What next for Treat Me Right?
Over the coming months I will continue to work with the hospital and exploring various areas such as pain management and accessibility. I will also be focussing attention on ways to improve primary care in and around Ealing. I am working closely with the CTPLD team and other community groups to review the Health Action Plans in Ealing as well as looking to improve the annual health checks that can be carried out in some GP practices. We want this to happen in all GP surgeries and are campaigning for this to happen. I also want to empower people with learning disabilities - and their carers – so that we can all become part of this ongoing campaign to get the best possible treatment from the health care system.
Here to help
If you or one of your friends or family has a learning disability and will be visiting Ealing Hospital in the next few months Treat Me Right! may be able to help - perhaps with an About Me! Hospital Passport or with some general advice.
You can call me on 0208 354 5944 or email elsa.grigg@supportforliving.org.uk
Or if you are in the hospital you can call the PALS team Mon – Fri 9.30 – 4pm on 0800 064 1120
Best wishes
