Taking Care: Essential skills for looking after yourself, your team and your patients
A practical and hands-on Taking Care training course was offered to staff working in three older people’s mental health services wards: Ward 2 at Angelton Clinic, Celyn Ward at Ysbryd y Coed, and Suite 2 at Tonna Hospital The training focused on supporting staff in a variety of ways including their own wellbeing.
Do you ever feel that you are working so hard that you haven't got anything left to give?
Are there moments when you wish that some of your colleagues could see things from your perspective or that the system you work in was more supportive?
Would you like to find ways to feel less stressed by ongoing insecurity and change?
Drawing on the innovative Circle of Care framework, this one day course explored positive ways to revitalise life at work, improve channels of communication, build resilience and begin to create a more supportive working environment. All members of the clinical care team (including nurses and health care support workers, allied health professionals, doctors, hospitality and administrative staff) were invited to investigate practical ways to look after themselves and each other in order to improve patient safety and experience and to feel more connected to their motivations for working in healthcare.
The simulated scenarios used in the training were developed based on interviews with teams working on the wards involved.
Swansea University have contucted an external evaluation Feedback has been very positive. and sickness levels have decreased on all wards involved. Prof Paul Bennett said: “The days were universally acknowledged as highly engaging and successful. Ratings probably could not get any higher. So, the days themselves were highly successful. We now have to determine whether the excitement and engagement of the day translates into changes in behaviour and stress over time.”
A full evaluation report will be available from August.