1 in 4 Group

Re-focus Project

As reported below the work of the new user involvement co-ordinator has begun and we have set up the re-focus project in the suite of rooms at the top of Astral House [ see report below ] As part of getting the project started we are offering taster sessions to anyone interested in perhaps taking part in the project and the details are as follows :

The dates and times of the ’Re-Focus Taster Sessions"-

RE-FOCUS IS A PROJECT FOR PEOPLE AGED 18-40 WHO EXPERIENCE EMOTIONAL
OR MENTAL DISTRESS. WE ARE RECONSTRUCTING AND RECYCLING DONATED
FURNITURE, HOMEWARES, AND CLOTHING INTO ... ANYTHING WE CAN SELL!

WEEK1
Monday 12th November
Wednesday 14th November

WEEK 2
Monday 19th November
Wednesday 21st November

WEEK 3
Monday 26th November
Wednesday 28th November

All sessions are 1.30 - 4.00 at Astral House, Great Union Road.

This is an open invite for both staff and service users to come along
and find out about the project.

For more information contact: Lorraine Lewis, User Involvement
Co-ordinator, 07700808888

New Development : User Involvement Co-ordinator post

The Charity has just created a new post that of User Involvement Co-ordinator to help develop new support services for those suffering mental illness. We have been lucky enough to secure the services of Lorraine Lewis who has worked at very senior operational and training levels in this field of work in England. You can contact Lorraine directly at email address :lorrainelewis.focus@googlemail.com

Aims and Objectives of the post : to provide a range of opportunities through which users can become meaningfully involved; in the planning and evaluation of mental health services, their own treatment, care, symptom management, and maintenance.

The main ethos of the work is to:

help service users to integrate effectively into the community
help them to maximise their potential to both manage their particular illness and enjoy a good quality of life
empower them to have a real stake in evaluating and feeding back on current services and influencing service development

The duties and responsibilities of the post include :

Actively promote and support the involvement of younger service users (18-40 years) through the provision of a meaningful and appropriate activity based project.(See Appendix 1 for draft proposal)
Facilitate and support the establishment of symptom management and self maintenance groups, i.e. WRAP (Wellness Recovery Action Plan), Crisis Planning, Bi-Polar Self Management Tools.
Design and deliver a pilot programme that enables service users and service providers to work in partnership in identifying positive ways of further developing the effectiveness and responsiveness of services.(See Appendix 2 for draft proposal)
Provide tailored training and support to service users as required, to aid involvement, i.e. training in meeting skills, assertiveness and confidence building, preparatory training for working alongside service providers,’Train the Trainer’ etc.
Provide information and practical support to service providers, as required, in implementation of the policy of Service User Involvement.

PROGRAMME FOR PARTNERSHIP WORKING

Below are details of a very important piece of work which will be undertaken in partnership with the Mental Health Directorate to begin to develop a real investment for service users in the way in which services are evaluated and designed to meet their needs.

Introduction : The relationship between a user and provider is generally of a therapeutic natureand subsequently is often not viewed as ’equal’ one.In order for users skills, knowledge and experience to be recognized and valued it is necessary to create a structure whereby both users and providers can work together as equals, with a shared remit to identify how services can become more effective and responsive, and therefore mutually beneficial.

’Programme for Partnership Working’

Aims and Objectives:

To identify, through a collaborative, solution focused approach, practical ways of improving the experience of service usage, and in so doing improve the experience of service delivery

Enable users and providers to experience and value a ’non therapeutic’ working relationship.

To produce a document that evaluates and makes recommendations regarding services, from both perspectives, that is jointly owned.

Structure of Programme:

Identify, support and prepare 10 service users who would be willing and able to participate.

Identify 10 service providers (drawn from the varying services within Health and Social Services to provide a multi-disciplinary approach), who are committed to and skilled in person centered working, and prepared to act as an ’agent of change’.

The ’Programme’ would be delivered over a time scale of 12 months, with one Partnership Training day being held each month.Each partnership day would be specifically dedicated to one issue for discussion, evaluation, and formulation of recommendations.

Outcomes:

Produce a collaborative report surmising discussions and recommendations for presentation/dissemination to all mental health stakeholders.

Design and produce guidelines for service user involvement.

Production of leaflets;"Involvement - How and Why".(One tailored for service providers, one tailored for service users)

Selection of Participants:

Service Users:

An ’open invite’ will be given to anyone who is, or has (ideally in the last 5 years), received support for a mental health problem.
Service Users, after attending a short induction and recruitment course, will be selected to either become one of the Programme participants, or to be a member of a ’feeder’ group.This group will meet at intervals with user participants to offer support and information, and receive updates on the progress of the Programme.

Service Providers:

Workers, with a commitment to user centered practice, will be selected by their employing agency in consultation with the Programme Trainer.
Workers should reflect the multi-disciplinary service framework.
Workers will be identified as ’agents of change’; sharing information and recommendations within their own team.
Workers will be required to attend one day per month within a training environment, with a further 6 days being identified for project working.

Verification of Training:

Once approved, the Programme for Partnership Working, will be submitted to the Centre of Excellence in Mental Health, Birmingham University, for endorsement and verification.

DRAFT – for consulation

Programme of Training

Trainer:

Lorraine Lewis, Service User Involvement Co-ordinator, FOCUS.

DAY 1

Introductions and Team Building.
Ground Rules for partnership training
Development of ’site map’ of services.

DAY 2

Services: Role, function, accessibility, effectiveness, ’gaps’.
’Utopia’: What would the ’perfect’ service look like, how do we achieve it? (This exercise will used as a reference tool for future training days)

DAY 3

Hospital in-patient services: Purpose, effectiveness, life on the ward, support for discharge.
Alternatives to hospital: Exploring alternatives; what’s available, what’s needed, what would an alternative service look like.

DAY 4

Day services: What’s wanted and needed, and why?
The interface - From mental health to mainstream. How, who, when and why?

DAY 5

Care and Crisis Planning:
Why have a care/crisis plan?
What are the benefits?
Multi-disciplinary working in crisis management.
The model.

DAY 6

User Centered Services and Practice:
User empowerment.
User involvement.
How to begin, and sustain the process of joint working.

DAY 7

Developing Guidelines for User Involvement:

DAY 8

Review and Reflect:
To invite a representative from the Centre of Excellence in Mental Health to spend the day reviewing the work completed to date.
’Compare and Contrast’ – learning lessons from the UK and International work.

DAYS 9 – 12

Participants to collectively identify themes for discussion.
Production of ’How to, and why" leaflets.
Recommendations.
The future:
Service Users role in research, training, monitoring, service planning.

Lorraine Lewis July 07

Reviewing in-patient provision; accessibility, effectiveness, discharge process.
Review of day service provision.
Access to community services.
Alternatives to hospital admission.
Crisis and Care Planning
Self management and self advocacy.
Designing user centered services.
The production of jointly owned discussion document outlining recommendations for service development.

Two other important developments that Lorraine will be progressing in the first phase of her work are as follows:

Appendix 1

"Actively promote and support the involvement of younger service users (18-40 years) through the provision of a meaningful and appropriate activity based project."

In order to attract younger service users to become more actively and meaningfully involved it is necessary to first establish what exactly an individual wants to get ’involved’ in. For the majority the priority is involvement in their own life; regaining or achieving a greater quality of life, better self management, being able to access and receive appropriate support and ultimately have no involvement with the services.

A project that provides younger people with a purpose to come together, an opportunity to meet and support each other, whilst also gaining/further developing a range of skills can also act as a ’spring board’ for those who then wish to become more actively involved in service planning and evaluation.

Draft Proposal:’Re-focus’ – Recovering and Revaluing

The FOCUS charity shop is staffed by volunteers, only one person having more recently experienced using the mental health services.I would propose inviting younger service users, and those who identify themselves as having a mental health problem, to become actively involved in the running and development of the shop by:

Developing a craft based project where users can gain, or use their existing skills in recycling, re-vamping clothing, home wares etc. for sale in the shop.

Working directly with customers; serving, collecting/receiving donations etc.

Establishing an e-bay shop.

Why:

The shop is the most ’public’ link with the community and can use it’s presence in improving and raising the profile of mental health by providing users with an opportunity to positively and publicly use and demonstrate their skills and abilities.

To enable users to develop a greater sense of confidence, develop greater social skills, provide a purpose, to develop practical craft/recycling skills, team working skills and gain a sense of achievement.

By establishing an e-bay shop the range of activities and potential for skill development (and turnover) increases – computer skills, business management skills etc.

To identify those people who wish to become more ’visibly’ involved, i.e. as a user representative, working in partnership with providers, etc.

To maximize the potential of people gaining employment or entering into further education by developing ’links’ with Jersey Employment Trust and Education.

Once established this project has the potential to become a totally user led and directed self sustaining project.

important news about smoking

Can smoking affect mental health?

Smoking does not just affect physical health. Studies have shown that daily smokingcan make you more likely to experience further episodes of depression and anxiety.

Although smokers generally say they feel more relaxed and less stressed after a cigarette it is this temporary relief that is the problem.

The only time a smoker’s stress and mood levels are similar to that of a non smoker’s is just after smoking a cigarette. At any other time smoker’s stress levels are much higher, probably due to the effects of nicotine leaving the system. This creates a ’yo-yo’ effect on mood which can negatively affect long term mental health.

The only way to escape this vicious circle is to quit smoking and to allow your mood to stabilise. Studies show that smoker’s report that anxiety and stress levels fall significantly after quitting.

Can stopping smoking have a negative impact on mental health?

Nicotine is a highly addictive drug and when you stop smoking you may experience withdrawal symptoms including low mood, irritability, anxiety, difficulty concentrating, restlessness and sleep disturbance. Not everyone experiences such symptoms and they usually last only about 2 – 4 weeks.

If you experience mental health problems it is important to be aware of these possible withdrawal symptoms and to let your doctor or health professional know you are trying to quit so you can both monitor any changes in your mood or how you feel .It is important to remember the significant benefits of stopping smoking compared to the serious dangers of continuing to smoke. Smoking is not an effective way to keep your mental health stable.

Should I be concerned about stopping smoking if I am taking medication?

Smoking can speed up the metabolism of some drugs. If you are currently prescribed medication it is again advisable to discuss with your doctor your intention to stop smoking. In some cases he/she may alter the dosage of your medication.This is particularly important if you are prescribed the drug Clozaril (Clozapine).

If you are prescribed Clozaril (Clozapine) and plan to stop smoking

Clozapine is a medication that can be used for the treatment of Schizophrenia. If you are prescribed this drug it is essential that you discuss with your doctor or mental health nurse your intention to stop smoking or to cut down as smoking can have an effect on the amount of Clozapine you need to stay well.

Stopping smoking can sometimes increase the amount of Clozapine in your body which can lead to more side effects from your medication than usual.

If you stop smoking you may need less Clozapine to stay well.

So if you are thinking of stopping or cutting down it is important that you let your nurse or Doctor know. They will arrange for you to have a blood test to check your Clozapine levels and to continue to monitor your treatment while you are cutting down or giving up to make sure you have the right dose. It is just as important that you tell your nurse or Doctor if you start smoking again as this can also affect your dose.

For free confidential help to stop smoking contact Help2Quit on 0800 735 1155

Or visit the website at www.health.gov.je