Community Link Alarm Service
Annual Report April 2017 – March 2018
Welcome to our Annual Report for April 2017 to March 2018
Virtual Reality for health service
A warm welcome to our Annual Report, another year has gone by so fast! As of today, we are enabling 1,676 customers across 205 square miles of the Horsham District and a third of MidSussex to stay safe and independent in their own homes, by providing them with a variety of telecare equipment now known as TEC (Technology Enabled Care). We would also like to welcome the new 278 customers who have joined the service in the last year and thank you all for your continued support! Our main provision remains as the lifeline unit and pendant. However, we supply a variety of TEC to meet our customer’s needs. These include (but are not limited to): fall detectors, bed occupancy sensors, motion detectors, extreme temperature sensors, medication dispensers and the Footprint device. Each one of these sensors are designed to support the individual’s needs, and would be provided after an assessment with one of our advisers. Our customers across Horsham District and a third of Mid-Sussex
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Welcome
Last year we launched our new Virtual reality service. We are delighted to report that in 2017/18 the Virtual Reality experience has been used by over 100 people, including one care home, and three events. We have also supported our neighboring council ‘Mole Valley’ to set up the same service for their residents to experience too. What is it? The service provides a range of relaxing and nostalgic Virtual Reality experiences for healthcare. Initially created to help people living with dementia, we are now broadening the service to encompass a range of patient types. Carers have noticed a big difference in behaviours of the patients involved. In one case a patient with latent phase dementia (generally unable to communicate and mostly unresponsive) changed dramatically when immersed in the underwater scene. His wife explained that they were scuba divers; this experience evoked a response where he was pointing at fish and moving his head to look around which was very unusual behavior for him. Our scenes include a nostalgic beach, a forest full of animals, view of the northern lights by a camp fire a luxury yacht overlooking a coral reef and dolphins playing in the sea, an underwater experience of the coral reef and dolphins, a view of the Earth from the International Space Station to relaxing piano music and a wildlife safari amongst others.
I feel on top of the world.
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295 Horsham District Council | Community Link Annual Report 2017/18
West Sussex Telecare We form part of West Sussex Telecare, which is a group of councils and housing association that are working together to deliver a range of telecare services that enable you to live safely and independently inside and outside the home. Working together makes it easier for professionals and volunteer workers to refer to us, and so our customers can benefit from our joint working ethos.
It was a lovely experience.
Do you know the
Hidden Gems
in Horsham District?
I only have 20% vision in my right eye but I could see everything clearly – magic.
Calendar 2019 Discover the 12 Hidden Gems of Horsham District for the Year of Culture 2019
That’s absolutely beautiful – we’re animal lovers.
I’ve never been to a beach like this. It’s amazing. What an experience.
r H er fo of Ev £1
Would you like to try it? We can come to your home for £30 for a half an hour session, where you can stay in the comfort of your own chair. We can also attend clubs for group sessions. Call 01403 215230 to book now.
f e s of sid raise le ey in sed peop on s cha ble ict M pon ar purlnera Distr u nd l vu am co y caleloca orsh
The responses from users at a “full of life event” organised by Horsham District Age UK, were brilliant. A few of these responses are quoted below:
Horsham District Year of Culture 2019 This year, all of our customers have received a calendar that is themed from the year of cultures “Hidden Gems”.
Beautiful, wonderful, with the animals it’s lovely.
2019 is Horsham District’s Year of Culture. There are events happening all over the District and they are designed so there should be something for everyone. Some of these events have been highlighted in the calendars that have been sent out. There is also a reminder to test your pendant every month and your smoke alarm. The Gems featured in the calendar were voted for by the readers of the West Sussex County Times.
Horsham District Council | Community Link Annual Report 2017/18
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How are we improving? The community link team are passionate about continuous improvement and ensuring the service we provide is exactly what is needed – and more. Every year the team visit several events to view and test new technologies that are available, share good practice and hear examples of how other services are delivered. There are also regular meetings between us and surrounding district and borough councils to do the same. Some of these include: • • • •
TSA Conference Telehealth UK Forums Health Plus Care show West Sussex Telecare manager forums and training • Hoarding Forum • Carers Forums • Falls Prevention workshop
Staff training Our staff have been doing lots of training to help improve your experiences.
We are so proud to have won a bronze award for Innovation in TEC (Technology Enabled Care) at the iESE Awards 2018 for our Immersicare – Virtual Reality for Health service. We were also finalists for the Innovation in TEC Award at the ITEC Awards 2018, organised by TSA (Technology Enabled Care). We were honoured to have been part of the final five who were from both private and public sector.
Lucy Dowsett Community Link Administration Lucy is learning new skills for completing demonstrations and visits. Kerry Killner Community Link Adviser Kerry is completing a Principles of Team Leading Level 2 certificate. Lisa Brown Community Link Adviser Lisa has been studying falls, the effects they have and how to mitigate them. Phil Mockett Community Link Adviser Phil has been studying falls, the effects they have, and how to mitigate them. George Reynhart Communications and Marketing Apprentice George is studying a Level 3 Digital Marketing qualification in order to better understand how to market Community Link and all the work we do. You can see his social media posts on our Horsham Community Link Facebook page and Twitter @HorshamComLink pages. Please help us by liking and sharing it.
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Horsham District Council | Community Link Annual Report 2017/18
You and your carer’s experience
If you would like to talk to us about the service you are receiving, please call us on 01403 215230 or email communitylink@horsham.gov.uk.
Every year we will send you a survey to complete, to gain feedback on our service. It is really important for us to know how you feel and if there are any areas where improvement could be made, to bring you the best quality of Technology Enabled Care. This year gone, 1,024 of you completed the survey and 99.2% felt that you were satisfied with the service overall. A further 98.05% of you said that our service gives you piece of mind.
Alternatively you can write to us: Community Link team, Horsham District Council, Parkside, Chart Way, Horsham, RH12 1RL.
We are always really pleased to hear that you are testing your pendants once a month as it is exceptionally important for us to identify any potential faults before emergencies happen. This year 76% of you have regularly tested your pendant, however we are always aiming for 100%. Testing your pendant helps to extend its lifespan, helps you to understand the process of calling through to the Careline and makes sure the pendant is functioning correctly month to month. Remember to mark your test day on your Community Link 12 Gems calendar.
Your feedback “ Wonderful people who deal with every eventuality that arises in a very calm and professional manner.” “ They show genuine concern and talk to you in a way that makes you feel safe when in pain.” “ Kerry Killner was a charming, helpful young lady who sold your organisation to me.” “ I cannot praise your staff highly enough – quick to respond – always bright and helpful” “ If it wasn’t for my link alarm, I wouldn’t have survived.”
Without complaint As a team we are very proud of the service we provide for our community and have not received any official complaints this year. We are continually looking for ways to improve and value all the feedback that we receive.
A number of comments from the survey highlighted issues that customers wanted addressed, we always directly contact those that make these comments to address their issue. These are listed below: Would like to speak with staff through button / A big improvement would be pendant which we could speak to you from. This is something we are often asked, and feedback to the manufacturers. To date there is none available. The only other option would be for the customer to have a footprint device, however these need to be regularly charged. Reduce monthly cost after two / three years. Unfortunately this is not something that we can accommodate as the costs are such that we try and keep it as low as possible. We have not put our monthly price up for the last six years. The neck cord makes my neck sore and the wrist strap is not very good. Need a better system of attaching it the body. Some customers choose to wear the pendants on a belt clip or on their bra strap. The danger with this is that they are not always worn. If you have any more innovative ideas we would love to hear them. To be able to buy a chain for pendants. We regularly feed this back to our manufacturers however they struggle to find a material that is both water resistant and durable as well as desirable to wear. They have decided function is more important. We are always looking for alternative options. If I fall I can’t get up and have to wait for someone to come and get me up off the floor. Last time it took two-and-a-half hours, wasn’t hurt. At present, in this area only an ambulance can respond to falls, ambulances are not able to meet their desired response times for category three calls due to the demand, this is something that we have highlighted and is under review.
Horsham District Council | Community Link Annual Report 2017/18
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From left to right George Reynhart, Kerry Killner, Lucy Dowsett, Emma Quest, Lisa Brown, Philip Mockett.
How did we do? Every year the independent body TSA (Telecare Services Association) audits us to see how we are doing. We are very proud to say that for the second year in a row we received the highest score possible for our service, with no improvements required:
Our Lifeline units are monitored by Chichester District Council’s Careline, and our Footprints are monitored by Provide Carecall in Essex. Between April 2017 and March 2018:
Red = Does not meet standard Amber = Mostly meets standard requirements – evidence of some gaps Green = Fully meets standard TSA Standards Modules Improvement Module Rating required User and carer experience Green No User safety
Green No
Effectiveness of care
Green No
Information governance
Green No
Partnership working and integrated care
Green No
Workforce
Green No
Business continuity
Green No
Ethics
Green No
Performance and contract management
Green No
Continuous improvement and innovation
Green No
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Response times for emergency calls
Chichester Careline received 12,376 calls from our customers, with 98% of those calls being answered under a minute. Having the ability to make these calls meant we were able to summon help for 1 asthema attack, 507 falls, 3 heart attacks, 7 strokes and much more. Provide Carecall received 471 calls from our customers, with 92% of those calls being answered under a minute.
Horsham District Council | Community Link Annual Report 2017/18
Did you know?
Lost devices
Research indicates that a small improvement in wellbeing can help decrease some mental health problems and help people to flourish and get the most out of life. The Five Ways to Wellbeing are a set of evidence-based actions developed by the New Economics Foundation aimed at improving mental health and wellbeing. The five key actions focus on social relationships, physical activity, awareness, learning, and giving. By focusing on these areas and taking some simple steps it can help us to feel better and enhance our wellbeing.
One of our most regular phone calls is from our customers telling us that they’ve lost their pendants. Most pendants are located shortly after they have been reported, for this reason we only charge our customers for a replacement of a pendant if they have not found it within 30 days.
Connect – With the people around you. With family, friends, colleagues and neighbours. At home, work, school or in your local community. Think of these as the cornerstones of your life and invest time in developing them. Building these connections will support and enrich you every day. Keep Learning – Try something new. Rediscover an old interest. Sign up for that course. Take on a different responsibility at work. Fix a bike. Learn to play an instrument or how to cook your favourite food. Set a challenge you will enjoy achieving. Learning new things will make you more confident as well as being fun. Take Notice – Be curious. Catch sight of the beautiful. Remark on the unusual. Notice the changing seasons. Savour the moment, whether you are walking to work, eating lunch or talking to friends. Be aware of the world around you and what you are feeling. Reflecting on your experiences will help you appreciate what matters to you.
We thought we would list the top 12 unusual and fun places where pendants have been found. Thank you for your stories, we look forward to hearing more. (It’s really important to let us know if you have lost your pendant, we will endeavour to replace your lost pendant on the same day it’s called in). 1. Washing Machine (not to worry – its waterproof) 2. Flushed down the toilet (we were unable to rescue this one!) 3. In a shoe 4. Camouflaged on a mosaic table 5. On the driveway 6. Left in France 7. In the bedsheets 8. Already wearing it 9. In the car 10. In the recycling 11. “Hanging up exactly where I left it” (customers own words!) 12. The dog ate it!
Be Active – Go for a walk or run. Step outside. Cycle. Play a game. Garden. Dance. Exercising makes you feel good. Most importantly, discover a physical activity you enjoy and that suits your level of mobility and fitness. Give – Do something nice for a friend, or a stranger. Thank someone. Smile. Volunteer your time. Join a community group. Look out, as well as in. Seeing yourself, and your happiness, linked to the wider community can be incredibly rewarding and creates connections with the people around you. You can register your interest to become a volunteer on the Horsham District Council website or call 01403 215191 if you would like to find out more information.
IMPORTANT: ALWAYS WEAR YOUR PENDANT AS THIS WILL ENSURE YOU CAN CALL FOR HELP IF YOU NEED TO.
Horsham District Council | Community Link Annual Report 2017/18
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Looking to the future How will we do this? The following points are a few things we know we want to do: • Become paperless • Expand the technology offer we have, ensuring we keep up to date with new technologies as they come to the market, looking at both reactive and preventative offers. • Increase the amount of residents we support by sharing our positive outcomes and raising the profile of the service. We are looking to have another customer forum in April or May. This will be held in Horsham Council Office. We would love as many, stakeholders, users and their carers to attend as possible. If this is of interest please call 01403 215230 to register for an invitation when the details have been confirmed. We will provide tea and cake in exchange for your views and ideas of how we can improved our service.
By 2025, the government have pledged that all analogue phone lines will have switched to digital phone lines. This will affect our lifeline users as they use the phone lines to connect to the control centre. For the next few years BT will be changing phone lines. We are asking users to contact us immediately if informed of a planned change or the equipment stops working. Whilst any work is happening to phone lines that causes them to disconnect, the lifeline will repeat the message “the telephone line has disconnected” so that the user is aware it will not work. We are advising if that message is heard, to press the yellow button which will say ‘away’. This will stop any repeating message. As a result of the changes Community Link are looking at the new lifelines and all the new opportunities they bring with them. A full analysis is being done, and a roll out is likely to start in 2020 or as the lines change.
Telephone: 01403 215230 Email: community.link@horsham.gov.uk
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We are very proud of what we achieve and all the help we have been able to give. However we think we can do more!