Carer newsletter – Summer 2023

You can download this carer newsletter as a magazine, see below. Or you can continue to scroll this page to read our latest news for carers as web content.

Introduction to our carer newsletter

Welcome to our third issue of our carer newsletter: Together with friends, family and neighbours.

With carers and staff, we’ve made this newsletter to share information from our Trust and local communities.

We work alongside people who care for their partners, neighbours or friends. We know that many unpaid carers may not identify as one, or know they are one. In this newsletter, when we say carers, we mean anyone who provides unpaid support that someone in our care relies on.

Spotlight on…

Carers Week 2023 in pictures

Last month we celebrated Carers Week, which took place from 5-11 June. Carers Week is a time to celebrate and promote the incredible dedication of unpaid carers. We also took the opportunity to offer information to carers who may be looking for support.

Across our Trust area we hosted a range of events. Some of these were organised by our Carers Working Group while others were arranged by carers, partners, and staff on our wards and in the community.

On these pages you can take a peek at some of the pictures from across our Trust.
We hope you enjoyed our events, if you were able to attend. We really value your commitment to being a carer. The role you play is invaluable.

We know that supporting carers is not just for Carers Week. If you ever need information or support, please visit the Carers’ Hub on our website.

New video about psychosis makes carers’ voices heard

Our Early Intervention In Psychosis team wanted to make the voice of carers heard, partly because they are often absolutely crucial to recovery, but also because carers deserve support and recognition. To do this, they are promoting a video which was created by carers working alongside a professional film maker. We think they’ve done a brilliant job.

You can watch the video on YouTube.

Film shines a light on how it can feel as a carer for someone in secure services

Night Light Theatre Productions and our Trust have been working collaboratively with carers, to produce a new film.

The co-created project brought together carers, colleagues, producers and actors from across the Teesside area. The film is based on the thoughts, feelings and experiences of those whose loved ones are receiving care in secure inpatient facilities. It was created in partnership with Ridgeway, the Trust’s secure inpatient service at Roseberry Park Hospital in Middlesbrough.

The film is currently being shown at screenings at Ridgeway. The team are also hoping to make it available to everyone on the Trust website.

Learning Disability Week

19-25 June was Learning Disability Week – a week to raise awareness of what it’s like to live with a learning disability and an opportunity to showcase the support available for people and their families.
Our learning disability services celebrated in many ways, with some choosing to have garden parties and coffee mornings, and others teaming up with partner organisations to hold information events for local people to learn more about support available.

Aysgarth short-term care unit in Stockton-on-Tees held a double celebration with the unit celebrating a historic 40 years in operation with a fabulous garden party.

Colleagues from services across Teesside held information events at James Cook University Hospital, University Hospital North Tees and The Employment and Training Hub, in Stockton-on-Tees to raise awareness of local support available.

Other colleagues also shared why they loved working in learning disability services.

Members of the Improving Together team in North Yorkshire, York and Selby, came together to support the theme of this year’s campaign ‘Busting Myths’ and shared their view as to what it’s like to live with a learning disability and what they want you to know. This is really powerful and you can watch the short video here.

Jody Buxton, learning disability services, modern matron at Ridgeway secure inpatient services in Middlesbrough, also shared how growing up with a brother with severe learning disabilities inspired her 23-year-career in learning disability services. Jody and her brother Steven are pictured below. You can read Jody’s full story.

Family tragedy inspires Trust worker to help others

The death of her mother to early-onset Alzheimer’s has inspired Trust worker Rebecca O’Keeffe to pen a book to help children understand the illness.

Grant help for group supporting families caring for children with eating disorders

Volunteers offer helping hand to parents and carers looking after children with eating disorders.

“Kindness often goes unnoticed, but it plays a silent and powerful role.”

By Hazel Griffiths, a TEWV governor for the past seven years, carer advisor to the Trust for the last 10 years, family carer, retired emergency department nurse and campaigner.

“It ain’t what you do. It’s the way that you do it”

This lyric helps to me to reflect on how I listen, interact and communicate with others. Alongside my own values:

• personability
• being non-judgemental
• compassion
• a positive can-do attitude
• belief in equity
• teamwork
• kindness.

Kindness often goes unnoticed, but it plays a silent and powerful role. Be kind.

My autistic son is where I get my inspiration, my energy, my tenacity and resilience.

Campaigning to improve the lives of autistic people and their families

I reflect on the report of the independent investigation led by Bill Kirkup on maternity services. He didn’t make recommendations as such, instead he talks of failures of compassion and listening, dismissive and uncaring attitudes, denial and deflection.

I’m a carer for my autistic son and other family members with other conditions. My autistic son is where I get my inspiration, my energy, my tenacity and resilience. He is the reason I’ve campaigned since Winterbourne View, where we saw public and political outcry about the dehumanising of autistic people. I believe standards of care should never be lowered for anyone. Standards we walk past become standards we accept.

Sadly, Winterbourne is not an isolated case. I work to improve the lives of autistic people and their families, after my own son experienced poor care, although not in TEWV.

For decades autistic people faced discrimination and still do

Autism is the only long-term condition that has specific legislation in England, with the introduction of the Autism Act in 2009. For decades autistic people faced discrimination and still do, along with health inequalities. Some autistic people don’t see themselves as disabled and in need of support. Support can be many things, maybe like acceptance, awareness and reasonably adjusted, accessible and welcoming services.

Some autistic people do need some extra support to reduce the impact our society, and world has on them. I’m very much for the strength-based approach – less deficit thinking for autistic people and really challenging that negative narrative, as well as self-reflecting on our own attitudes and behaviours.

We’re there when our loved one is well, in crisis or ill. We’re not very good at looking after ourselves and many, on top of their caring role, campaign and get involved with the trust. So, a huge thanks to them.

Building the right support

I’ve played a huge part in building the right support for autistic people. I was on the original team with Sir Simon Wessely, who was appointed to look at reforming the Mental Health Act. I asked him to remove autism from the Mental Health Act and redefine what we mean by ‘mental disorder’. Autism is neurodevelopmental, not a mental illness. Another important part of the Mental Health Act reform is to have statutory principles, choice, autonomy, the least restriction, and a clear therapeutic benefit.

Autistic people are overrepresented in our criminal justice system. I represent autistic children and young people who are excluded from school, segregated from their peers and play, causing them huge trauma. Often these children need the right support and environment, early intervention and mental health crisis prevention – not punishment.

We pushed for mandatory training in autism

I’m also a good friend of Paula McGowan (Multi Award-winning activist who has dedicated her life to campaigning for equality of Health and Social Care for Intellectually Disabled and or Autistic people). I’ve worked alongside her, after her she lost her son, Oliver, to a preventable death. Together, so many people have helped produce Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training – providing healthcare workers with the right skills and knowledge to give safe, compassionate and informed care to autistic people and people with a learning disability. We pushed for mandatory training in autism and this is now law. The Oliver McGowan draft code of practice is on gov.uk.

My TEWV journey has been rewarding

I’ve worked alongside some fab staff, both in designing services and recruiting, interviewing and training across all job grades and departments.

Earlier in the year, I helped train our new healthcare assistants (HCAs) and some international preceptorship nurses. I said at the end of my talk how rewarding it is to work alongside patients and colleagues and that I am getting on now and passing the baton on to them! I thanked them for choosing to come and work at TEWV. I said we have some issues, which we’re learning and improving on, that I’ve trained thousands of our staff and that we have some amazing staff. I got round of applause!

One of the best bits of feedback I got was from a young HCA. I could see her writing down the resources and notes. At the end when I asked if anyone had any questions or comments, she said: “You have helped me write my essay”. I said: “Here, I want credited in your essay.” We both laughed. I loved her energy. I ask us all to keep curious, compassionate and keep learning.

I have so many teams to thank, including our involvement and engagement team, who do a fabulous job.

Finally, I want to raise awareness around family carers. We’re there when our loved one is well, in crisis or ill. We’re not very good at looking after ourselves and many, on top of their caring role, campaign and get involved with the trust. So, a huge thanks to them.

Commitment to carers acknowledged with Triangle of Care 2-star accreditation

We’re delighted to announce that we have maintained our Triangle of Care accreditation with a 2-star rating. This ongoing recognition is a testament to our commitment to involving and supporting carers.

The Triangle of Care, an initiative from the Carers Trust, aims to improve the quality of care and support for patients and their carers. It highlights the importance of collaboration, communication, and involvement of carers as equal partners in the care and treatment process. Our 2-star accreditation highlights our work to identify carers, having carer experience as one of our overarching goals, and working with partners and other organisations to support carers.

The Carers Trust noted many aspects of our submission including:

• that carer support organisations attend our inpatient wards
• that carers were involved in creating our Carers Hub website.

We acknowledge that carers play an indispensable role in the wellbeing and recovery of people in our care. By maintaining our Triangle of Care 2-star accreditation, we reinforce our commitment to nurturing a compassionate and inclusive care environment that values the contribution of carers and recognises their needs.

We look forward to building upon this achievement. We remain steadfast in our mission to provide a great experience for carers, as well as patients, partners and staff.

NHS75

5 July marked 75 years of the National Health Service, NHS75, a milestone that was celebrated by NHS staff and those that use our services up and down the country.

In 1948, when the NHS was first created, it was the first universal health system to be free to all at the point of entry, and the service’s core values that we hold so close remain as important today as they were then. NHS services continue to evolve and adapt to meet the changing needs of different generations and a growing population, and we are proud to be part of this much-loved institution.

Many of our departments and teams held events to celebrate NHS75, as you can see in our fantastic pics.

Our Journey for Change

Our Journey to Change sets out why we do what we do, the kind of organisation we want to be and the three big goals we’re committing to.

It was co-created with patients, carers, colleagues and partners.

Thank you for reading our Trust’s carer newsletter. You can also view previous carer newsletters, which are listed in our publications webpages.