News / SIC and NHS eliminate bed blocking
A YEAR of hard work cutting through red tape means Shetland can boast that it has no patients taking up hospital beds while they wait for a place in a care home.
Shetland Islands Council and NHS Shetland have made great strides in helping people stay at home by using new technology, improving access to local care centres and occupational therapy equipment.
A joint working group set up by Shetland Community Health and Care Partnership (CHCP) has met regularly for the past 12 months to eradicate bed blocking in Shetland’s hospitals, putting it at the forefront of care for the elderly in Scotland.
SIC community care spokesman Cecil Smith said: “Delays that have been caused by lack of availability of care settings for elderly patients has been a problem for the partnership for some time.
“Clearly every hospital bed is at a premium and where these are being taken up because of a shortage in another area, it can cause problems. However I’m delighted to note this improvement in performance.”
A major step was taken with the opening of the Montfield care centre in August, with one floor of the former Montfield Hospital being converted into a care home run by the SIC.
However the council has also introduced “telecare” that alerts staff if people are having a problem at home, such as falling and being unable to get up.
The waiting list for an occupational therapy (OT) assessment has also undergone a major efficiency drive that has reduced it from 74 to 0 in the past year.
SIC head of community care Christine Ferguson said: “Waiting for services is one of our customers’ main concerns. It’s fantastic news that we’ve been able to cut the waiting list for an OT assessment. This is really down to the hard work of all the staff involved and is testament to the importance of being able to work together better.”
Mrs Ferguson said there had been a lot of hard work listening to clients and front life staff, and following their advice about how to help people stay at home and live independently.
NHS Shetland chairman Ian Kinniburgh said the workload had been so great that the team were meeting almost every day at some points to try and help people.
“It’s a wonderful example of folk across both organisations with the vision to see how something could be delivered very well by working together,” he said.
Plans for an official opening of the new Montfield care centre that were due to take place next Wednesday have been postponed as Scottish health secretary Nicola Sturgeon has cancelled her visit that day to Shetland.
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