The Early Birds: Early Intervention

East London and The City Mental Health Trust staff newsletter

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Inside: New facilities and nostaglia as the Trust leaves St Clements – pages 8 & 9

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2 trusttalk January 2007

NEWS IN BRIEF

Ena Bachan-LawrenceWard Manager, Green Ward, St Clements020 7377 7988 or 5049

David Cooper, Director of HR & CorporateDevelopment, Trust HQ020 7655 4033

Sam Danquah, Capital Projects, Trust HQ020 7655 4197

Guy Davis Mental Health Act Administration, Trust HQ020 7655 4046

Anne Farthing, Project Manager, Trust HQ020 7655 4196

Janet Flaherty, Head of Communication, Trust HQ020 7655 4066

Sandra Frost, Business Manager, Specialist Addiction Service020 8121 5301

Cerdic HallProfessional Development Nurse, Trust HQ020 7655 4025

Ray Hylton, St Clements Medical Records020 7377 7955

Monica Johnson, Support Services managerCentre for Forensic Mental Health020 8510 2410

Michael Kings, Social TherapistCity and Hackney Centre for Mental Health020 8510 8630

Vicky LyonsHead of Learning and Development, Trust HQ020 7655 4010

Rosca Marange, Ward Manager, Conolly wardCity and Hackney Centre for Mental Health020 8510 8615/8605

Denise O’Grady, Hhelp Team, 1 St Mark St, E1020 7702 9202 ext 226

Dr Shamin Ruhi, Consultant PsychiatristEast Ham Memorial Hospital020 8586 5012

Dr Mark Salter, Consultant PsychiatristCity and Hackney Centre for Mental [email protected]

Onneeka Smith-McIntryeAdminstrator, Assertive Outreach – City and Hackney, Tower View House020 8530 7600

Jordan Soondar, Clozapine Clinic ManagerSt Clements Hospital020 8821 2327

Heather Thom,Foundation Trust Membership Manager020 7655 4167

Editorial Team

Design and production by

020 8505 1822

Photos by Janet Flaherty

sabotagegraphics

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO WRITE AN ARTICLE FOR TRUSTTALK, SEND IT TO ONE OF THE PEOPLE LISTED BELOW.

PersonalitydisorderwebsiteTHE Care ServicesImprovementPartnership, theDepartment of Healthand the Home Officehave launched theNational PersonalityDisorder (PD) website. Itis the first dedicatedwebsite to provideinformation, resourcesand learningopportunities onpersonality disorder andsupports thedevelopment of theNational PD Programme.Visit www.personalitydisorder.co.uk

StakeholderdayA stakeholder day to lookat developing a Truststrategy on DomesticViolence is planned forMonday, March 19, 2007.There will be specialist

speakers talking aboutDomestic Abuse, from anational strategicperspective and a local

perspective. Workshopswill take place afterwards.It is hoped that these willassist in identifying

groups of people whocan contribute to thedevelopment of Trustpolicies to support staff

in managing this verydifficult area. For more information,contact Dr CathieO’Driscoll on 020 76554045.

Temporaryhome forHackney NWCMHTAS of the 1st of January2007, the North WestLocality Mental HealthTeam in Hackney, will beclosed forrefurbishment until the31 March 2007. Their temporary addressfor this period will bewith the North EastLocality Mental HealthTeam, Hackney, basedat:176-178 ClaptonCommon, London, E59AG. Their telephonenumber will be 0208919 8999. The NorthWest Locality MentalHealth Team would liketo apologise in advancefor any inconvenience.

SERVICE users and staff got into the swing of it at a World Mental Health event at St Clements Hospitalon Friday 27 October. World Mental Health Day occurred during Ramadam so it was decided to celebrateit later in the month in Tower Hamlets.There was a range of entertainment with music from a range ofsingers, a Chinese string musician, a pianist, a band and some rap poetry from younger attendees. Therewas a comedy mime act, poetry and information stalls set up around the hall. Back and shouldermassages were also available for those feeling a bit stressed. The event was opened by Dr Robert Dolan,Chief Executive. The Mayor of Tower Hamlets came along and joined in the celebrations. A range ofwestern and Indian food was available and fresh fruit smoothies were made to order by the kitchen crew.

NEWS

January 2007 trusttalk 3

Minister for health popsin to pioneering pilot THE Rt Hon Rosie Winterton

MP, Minister of State forHealth Services at the

Department of Health, was warmlywelcomed to the NewhamPsychological Therapy Centre forMental Health at the PassmoreEdwards Building in Plaistow onMonday 6 November 2006.

It was her first visit to the centre tosee how the Newham PsychologicalTherapy Demonstration Pilot is pro-gressing. The new service started inJune 2006.

The Minister spent the morningat the centre and met with the Chairof Newham PCT, Marie Gabriel, ourChair, Baroness Molly Meacher andChief Executive, Dr Robert Dolan.

After being shown round the cen-tre, she met with a number of usersof this service, along with Dr BenWright, the Clinical Lead for theService.

Newham was chosen, withDoncaster PCT, to host a nationalpilot to demonstrate that improvedaccess to psychological therapies candeliver improved well-being to peo-ple experiencing anxiety and depres-sion and broad benefits to the localhealth community.

The Newham Pilot Project is an

enhancement of existing psycholog-ical therapy services and provides aCognitive Behavioural TherapyService. It is a joint project betweenNewham PCT, the London Boroughof Newham, Mental Health Mattersand the Trust. Mental HealthMatters is a national voluntary sec-tor organisation that providesemployment support services.

The project, initially funded for 18months, will cover a third of the

population and will be both deliv-ered through selected GP surgerieswithin the borough and from a ded-icated therapy centre.

The service will provide directrapid access to effective psychologi-cal (talking) treatments as recom-mended by the National Institute forHealth and Clinical Excellence. Theproject will also focus on Newhamresidents who might ordinarily findit difficult to access services.

The Rt Hon Rosie Winterton (second right)

Care recordsserviceWORK continues on theimplementation of theRiO Mental HealthSystem whichcommenced on 2October 2006. The aimis for the system to bein operation in July2007 in Inpatient andOutpatient settings. Itwill replace the threeexisting PatientAdministration Systems(PAS). The SEPIA systemwill co-exist with RiO tosupport communityservices and MentalHealth Act administration.The MAISY andORION/EMIS systems willbe retained for CAMHSand Specialist AddictionServices. A series ofservice and clinicalworkshops have takenplace to discuss whatthe various carepathways should looklike. The pathways willbe designed on the basisof these workshops. Thelead for this is Dr TimLambert. The FullBusiness Case will bepresented to the TrustBoard in January 2007.

CabwiseCABWISE is a way toensure that your personalsecurity is maintained atthe end of a night outsimply by using yourmobile phone. All youhave to do is text theword HOME to 60835and you will receiveinformation and thecontact numbers of onetaxi and two local, licensedminicab companies. Textsare charged at 35p perenquiry plus yourstandard text messagerate. (The service is notavailable on Virgin and 3 Mobile networks.) Formore information, go tohttp://www.london.gov.uk/cabwise/index.jsp

Service users, children and staff had alovely surprise when Santa visited theMother and Baby Unit on 21December. Santa dished out presentsbought with money raised from theannual Christmas Toy Appeal run byEast London Business Alliance (ELBA).Argos also donated presents. TheSun newspaper transported Santaand his helpers to children’s wards inhospitals all around East London onthe Sun Fun Bus.Thanks to Shaun Crowe of ELBA,who never forgets the Mother andBaby Unit, and to Estates Manager,Sheila O’Hara, for negotiatingparking at the bus stop outside thehospital (as the double deckercouldn’t squeeze into the car park.) Thanks also to Dr Liz McDonald andAndrew Walrond and his team, forhot drinks and mince pies.


NEWS IN BRIEF

A home ofyour ownDID you know thatthere’s a schemedesigned to help youbuy your own home onthe open market? It’scalled Open MarketHomeBuy (OMHB) andit’s available to keyworkers throughHousing Options. OMHBworks in the followingway. You choose a home onthe open market andare expected to raise75% of the purchaseprice by getting amortgage from one ofthe mortgage lendersparticipating in thescheme.The mortgage lenderyou choose will give youan additional equityloan to cover 12.5% ofthe purchase price. Thisloan is free for the first5 yearsHousing Options willgive you up to a further12.5% equity loan (theamount you receive willdepend on yoursavings). This loan isfree; you will not haveto make monthlyrepayments.To apply for OMHB youcan visitwww.housingoptions.co.uk to fill in an onlineapplication form or, ifyou prefer a paper copy,you can call HousingOptions on 0845 2308099.If you’ve decided thatOMHB isn’t for you, youcan visit the website tosee details of the otheraffordable homeownership schemesHousing Options isdelivering.

New Build HomeBuy:You can buy a share in abrand new orrefurbished home inLondon and only pay amortgage on the part

that you own (you’dpay a subsidised rent onthe part that you don’t).After one year you canbuy a further share oreven buy the homeoutright.

Intermediate rent: keyworkers can rent abrand new orrefurbished apartmentat a subsidised rent. Therent charged is normally20-30% lower thanwhat you would expectto pay for a similarapartment in the samearea.

First Time BuyersInitiative: You buy aminimum share of 50%in a brand new homebut you make norepayments on the partyou do not own. For further details onany of the above

schemes visitwww.housingoptions.co.uk or call0845 230 8099Details correct at timeof print. Full anddetailed financialinformation will beprovided uponapplication.

Data matchingUNDER Section 6 of theAudit Commission Act1998, the Trust isrequired to participate inthe National FraudInitiative (NFI) datamatching exercise. As part of the exercise,we have provided payrolldata to the AuditCommission for NFI for allour staff for the first 6months of this financialyear.

The information will beused for cross-system andcross authoritycomparison for theprevention and detectionof fraud.For any queries, pleasecontact Steven Course,Financial Controller, on020 7655 4211.

Watch outfor bogusrecruitersPARKHILL Counter FraudService continue toreceive referrals relatingto recruitmentadvertisements for NHSTrusts and agencieswhich have beenscanned by a publishingcompany from otherpublications such as‘Nursing Times’ or otherjournals.

It appears thatrepresentatives of thesecompanies contact theTrust (usually the personnamed as the point ofcontact for jobapplicants in theoriginal advertisement),to gain agreement toreprint the advertisementin their publication. Thisagreement is obtainedby the member of staffsigning and faxing a‘Booking Confirmation’form.On some occasions, thestaff member at theTrust has been given theimpression by therepresentative, thatagreement to re-printthe advert has alreadybeen reached.There have been otherreported incidentswhere orders foradvertising space havebeen secured followingdifferent types ofallegedmisrepresentations.If you receive any callsrelating to recruitmentadvertising, pleasecontact HumanResources at Trust HQand do not sign anydocuments faxedthrough frompublishing companies.Zenda KiffLocal Counter FraudOfficer for the Trust

Clinical psychologists’groupTHE next Newly-QualifiedClinical Psychologists’Group is on Thursday25th January at 15.30 inRoom 1 at East One.Please let all recentlystarted newly-qualifiedClinical Psychologists ortheir potential linemanagers/supervisorsknow about the group.Email [email protected] for moreinformation or to indicateyour plans to attend.

RESIDENTS and staff at TheLodge in Hackney are enjoyingvisits from a furry friend.Chloe, an Alsatian cross, hasbeen visiting along with herowner Debbie, every otherWednesday since June of thisyear. They’re shown hereenjoying some late autumnsun with Liz Richards,Occupational TherapyAssistant at The Lodge, whofacilitates their visits. Chloe was originally a rescuedog from Battersea Dog’sHome and at this time was atrisk of being put downbecause she’s not very good atgetting along with other dogs.What she lacks in dog skillsshe makes up for in peopleskills, though, and whenDebbie became her owner sherecognised this and put herthrough Pets as Therapy’sspecial training.This training involves a seriesof tests to ensure that she isable to cope well withinteractions with people.Having passed with flyingcolours, Chloe becameHackney’s only registered Petsas Therapy dog, and TheLodge has been the first place

where she’s been able to tryout her new abilities. Not everyone likes dogs, ofcourse, but for those who doChloe and Debbie’s visits havebecome a great opportunity forsome canine interaction –usually involving lots of tummytickling, which Chloe certainly

doesn’t mind! Staff and residents would liketo extend their thanks to bothChloe and Debbie for offeringtheir time in this way. Moreinformation on the scheme canbe found on the Pets AsTherapy websitewww.petsastherapy.org

NEWS


Any old toys?PAEDIATRIC Accidentand Emergency atNewham UniversityHospital need your help.If anyone is clearing outtheir children’s toysfollowing the influxfrom Santa, the PaediatricA&E would love toys ingood, working condition.Unfortunately, they areunable to accept cuddlyor cloth toys due toinfection control as theycannot wash them.Contack Janet Flahertyfor more information.

OT workshopA TRUST workshop tookplace on 29 November2006 with the aim ofbringing togetherOccupational Therapistsfrom across the Trust todevelop a network forpractice educators.Occupational Therapistsneeded a forum to advancepractice expertise, enhanceknowledge, share practiceeducation experiences,learn and support eachother. First on theprogramme was a groupdiscussion to deliberateon the positive aspectsand the challenges inproviding placements andtraining for OccupationalTherapy students. Thegroup then consideredsolutions. This was followedby Penny Stewart,Occupational Therapistlecturer at London SouthBank University, whodelivered an interactivetalk on ‘When a student isfailing.’ Anthony Edwards,Allied Health ProfessionalTherapy StudentPlacement Facilitator fromNewham PCT, shared hisexperiences and discussedthe guidelines developedfor practice placementeducators. This is hopefullythe first of many events.Anne GnanapragasamProfessional Head ofOccupational Therapy

Uganda bound!TWO staff from the Trust head-

ed off for a two week exchangetrip to Uganda on 7 November

2006. The trip is part of an educa-tional link established betweenButabika Hospital in Uganda and theTrust.

The focus during this trip was themental health of young people. DrAlyson Hall is a ConsultantPsychiatrist in Child and AdolescentServices in Tower Hamlets andMuhammad Mboowa-Kasajja is apsychiatric nurse working withyoung people in Newham.

Their experience and knowledgewere most welcome. Uganda has hadproblems with children beingremoved from their families andbeing compulsorily recruited aschild soldiers. The experiences of thechild soldiers can be very traumaticand they can sustain permanentphysical injury. Back in their com-munities, they can find it very hardto cope and make sense of their dis-turbing and distressing experiencesand have difficulty settling back intotheir families.

The Trust’s link with ButabikaPsychiatric Hospital in Uganda isgoing from strength to strength.Thanks to the assistance of theTropical Health Education Trust(THET) and the CommonwealthFellowship Scheme, we have beenable to host many staff fromButabika.

Providing Ugandan staff with anopportunity to work withinELCMHT services is a great way tobuild the capacity of Butabika Hospitalto provide specialist services.

Allen Nakibuuka, a nurse fromButabika, is half way through herCommonwealth Fellowship place-ment with the Institute ofPsychotrauma and Topaz Ward atNewham Centre for Mental Health.She has recently been joined by threemore nurses: (Alice Kabakwenuzi,Florence Aliru and Jennipher Birike)who will be on placement withinDrug and Alcohol services, CAMHS,and Adult Community services.Each will be staying for three monthsfrom 1 December. Dr Sam Maling, aPsychiatrist from Mbarara, visitedservices for a three-week stint start-

JETTING OFF: Alyson Hall and Muhammad Mboowa-Kasajja

ing on 27 November. RichardMpango, Butabika’s OccupationalTherapist and Rebecca Wandeeka, aPsychiatric Clinical Officer spentfour weeks with us during Octoberand are now back in Uganda apply-ing their learning. Special thanks toall of those services who are gener-ously supporting these placementsand especially the ‘WelcomingCommittees’ for their efforts to helpthe transition to London life.

The big news is that the LinkCommittee is about to commencerecruiting Trust staff for next year’sexchange visits. Visits are plannedfor May and October 2007. If you

are interested in going to Uganda onexchange, it is important to getinvolved now.

By getting involved in fundraising,welcoming committees, link com-mittee meetings and other events,you not only boost the work that isalready going on but also demon-strate your broader commitment.

Speaking of fundraising, it is noweasy to donate via direct debit. Justgo to the Intranet to the News sec-tion and look for the form titled‘Payroll Giving Authorisation Form– ELCMHT’ or contact Cerdic Hallon [email protected] or0207 655 4025.

Staff newslettersTHE number of copies of Trusttalk and Trust News that we print has been reduced to contribute to the Trust’s savings plan. Teams will therefore have received fewer copies than usual. A pdf version will be available on the Intranet. If you have copies sitting around that are not needed, please return them to Janet Flaherty at Trust HQ to be redistributed.Many thanks.

COVER STORY: NEWHAM EARLY INTERVENTION SERVICE


“We imagine how we mightbe if we were in their shoes”

The Newham Early Intervention Service (EIS) has been up and running for a year. They are part funded by NewhamNeighbourhood Renewal Fund. One of the key reasons for NRF funding support was that the service needed toengage with people, particularly young black men, who do not feel comfortable about mental health services. Bydoing so, the team can help them gain ownership of their health issues at an early stage rather than being very illand arriving “late” into services where often the experience is of a more constraining service model.

TRUSTTALK met up withPsychologist Dr Jay Watts, andJanice Strachan, SeniorPractitioner and interim teamleader (who also works parttime in the Department ofSpiritual and Cultural Care) tofind out how their first yearhas been.

How many are there in theteam?

We have ten members of staff.We established a core team initial-ly and it has built up since then.

How many referrals have youhad over the year?

We have had 124 referrals in thepast 13 months, and have a case-load of 75 clients. We will consultwith any staff member who has apotential referral for us. We acceptreferrals from any source includ-ing self-referrals. We became careco-ordinators in the summer andreferrals have doubled since then.

What is the remit of the team? We work with the 17-35 age

group. Our service has two remits.Firstly, we respond to people whoare in or have had their firstepisode of psychosis. The firstthree years are critical as it is apowerful time to stop long-termproblems and enhance recovery.Secondly, we work with clientswho are at-risk of developing psy-chosis. These clients will haveeither transient experiences suchas suspiciousness, depression,increasing self-isolation or adecline in functioning and familyhistory of psychosis.

Evidence shows that if we get inearly with intensive therapy therewill be a decreased risk of devel-oping full-blown psychosis. Weare an intensive youth-friendly

service, following an assertiveoutreach model. To reduce stig-ma, we see people in an environ-ment of their choosing such as acafé or a park. We tend not towork with diagnosis but ratherformulate clients’ difficultieswithin their life context. We seepeople for 3 years after which theyoung person graduates into atransitional group if they wish.

What have the challenges been?It takes a while to establish lines

of communication and for peopleto understand where a new serv-ice fits in, so we spent time talkingto other teams and agencies.Relationships are very good nowbecause of that investment. Thereare link workers in each CMHT.

What are the situations ofsome of the young people youhave seen?

It varies. One of our clients, aneighteen-year-old British blackmale, had a short admission intohospital with a drug-induced psy-chosis. We worked with him for ayear following that. He was quiteanti mental health services andhad some symptoms of paranoia.He sat with his arms foldedthroughout the first assessmentand was very negative about thewhole process.

We arranged for him to havetherapy in his home and workedusing his terminology. He had hada difficult early life history,smoked drugs and had beenarrested on a number of occa-sions. His recovery is well under-way now. He uses less drugs, is nolonger involved in criminal activi-ty and is about to embark on aleadership programme at a localcollege.

Another of our clients was a

twenty-three-year-old BritishPakistani female who began hear-ing voices a year and a half before,at a time when several familymembers had died. She had com-plex needs – housing, relationshipand family issues. We carried outfamily and individual work withher. They reported that it helpedthem to cope with the bereave-ments they had experienced andhelped her to adapt to the situa-tion and consider her life goals.

Much of the work was under-pinned by the Koran, which wasvery central to her existence. Shefelt supported by the team andsupported by the Koran – she calledthe process Koranic therapy.

What interventions can the EISoffer?

We aim to provide the best pos-itive bio-psycho-social interven-tions available. We do not wantthese young people slippingbehind their peers socially, educa-tionally, in their careers and intheir aspirations.

We provide a range of psycho-logical therapies – including cog-nitive behavioural, cognitive-ana-lytic and narrative therapies. Weprovide family work to all familiesin their own home. This caninclude whoever is important andsignificant to the young person –a family member, friend, neigh-bour, Imam, etc.

We will liase with the youngperson’s employers with theirconsent to prevent them losingtheir jobs, and offer intensivevocational support. We can pro-vide low-dose medication andeducation on recovery. We run arange of groups and we are start-ing up a film-making course inJanuary.

We also have close links with

GMCL – a local supportedaccommodation project specifi-cally for Early Intervention clientsacross the Trust.

We run a teaching programmefor any staff that wish to attend.The aim is to change attitudes tomental distress and reduce stig-ma. These have been very wellattended by staff working in localemployment services, such asConnexions, and housing andprobation services. The populari-ty of these sessions tells us thatthere is a great need for educationand that people want to under-stand and learn more.

What are the strengths of theteam?

In addition to the service thatwe provide, the team culture isthat we do not see people as‘other’ but see them in the contextof their life and imagine how wemight be were we in their shoes.We are a recovery-focused team.We feel that we have a good bal-ance between hope and realismnurtured by regular case consul-tancies, team training and reflec-tive groups.

What has the feedback been? The level of engagement from

clients has been exceptionallyhigh which says a lot. Clients dropin and tell us about college andactivities they are involved in. Wehave run a few special interestgroups.

We had a radio-broadcastinggroup that ran for 16 weeks andwas very well attended. We haveregular outings to the cinema anda group recently attended thefilming of an episode of WhoWants to be a Millionaire.Please feel free to contact uson 0208 5228200.


NEWS

THE Trust played hostto 20 German socialwork students visit-

ing organisations in Lon-don as part of a EuropeanUnion Educational initia-tive – the EU-Delegations-Programme.

The students whoattend the Edith-Stein-Institut, met with IanWilliamson, Head ofSocial Care in TowerHamlets. Ian explained themodel of social work inEngland, typical issuesencountered by socialworkers, information aboutnational guidance avail-able to social workers, theMental Health Act (1983)and other legal frameworksthat social workers workto, and a range of scenar-ios that social workerswould be involved with.

He explained changes inthe approach to social carein England, from the oldmodel of taking oversomeone’s life and doingthings for them to one of

Germany calling!

empowerment: giving theindividual control over thetype of support they wantto enable them to be inde-pendent and have a betterquality of life.

The students work in avariety of settings inGermany: residential carefor people with mentalhealth difficulties, learningdifficulties, older people

centres and kindergartens.They were surprised tolearn that there was onecentral Government body,the Department of Health,which is responsible forhealth and social care. InGermany, such services areindependent organisationswhich have their own poli-cies, strategies, etc.

The students thought

that the German publicand the German mediawere more understandingof people with mentalhealth problems. They feltthere is an acceptance thatpeople could be unwell ina variety of ways and feltthat the stigma of mentalillness that they perceivedin England, did not existin Germany.

The students. Clemens Fischer, lecturer, is on the far right. Ian Williamson is beside him.

Service usersas FT membersINFORMATION aboutjoining the FoundationTrust membership hasbeen sent to all Trustsites. Please ensure thatthis is on display in apublic areas.Staff should take amoment to discuss thepossibility of becomingmembers with serviceusers, carers and otherlocal residents whereverappropriate. Someuseful key points toraise with potentialmembers are that:� Membership is free,and optional � It will only take up asmuch time asindividuals want to give� This is a good way tohelp the Trust becomemore accountable andbetter at listening to theviews of service usersand carers� Members will be ableto elect governors torepresent them on theMembers Council orstand for electionthemselves.Thanks to the teamswho have already hadme along to localmeetings. I’ll beattending meetings atas many sites aspossible over the nextsix weeks to answer anyquestions staff haveabout the foundationtrust application and toenlist staff to help inrecruiting publicmembers. Please let me know ifyou can suggestparticular times when itwould be best for me toattend your servicearea(s). Tel. 020 76554167 or [email protected] ThomFoundation TrustMembership Manager

Ever wondered what a community MentalHealth Rehabilitation Unit is like? Well, staff and the public had a chance tofind out on Friday 3 November 2006 at arehabilitation project in Balaam Street,Plaistow in Newham. The aim of the OpenDay was to promote the work of the serviceusers and staff and to provide informationabout the project to local people. Thisincluded examples of artwork andphotography that service users havecompleted, including an ‘art installation’symbolising what Balaam Street means tothe individuals currently living there. Therewere copies of a newsletter produced byservice users containing some pithy andinsightful articles and features. The serviceusers currently in residence were involved inarranging the event and demonstratedvarious activities during the day, includingrapping, dancing and cooking. Residents are mainly referred to the unitfrom inpatient services at The NewhamCentre for Mental Health, and stay for aroundeight months. After a period of intensiverehabilitation, the aim is for the individual to

move on to more permanent accommodation,equipped with skills and support to copeand enjoy an independent life. The Rehabilitation project represents an

interesting collaboration between the Trustand Heritage Care (a voluntary agency). Theproject is run by Heritage Care Support Staffwith clinical input provided by the Trust.

Heritage Care also run a Crisis House at theunit aimed at preventing hospital admissionby supporting individuals before they reachcrisis point.Sarah Poynter, Occupational Therapist, said:“The event was a great opportunity topromote the value of such collaborationsand the unique service the unit provides.”

TRUST PREPARES TO LEAVE ST CLEMENTS


PLANS have beenfinalised to transferservices at St

Clements Hospital over tothe Tower Hamlets Centrefor Mental Health inBancroft Road.

The building has beenformally handed over to theTrust and wards will movein the week starting 19February 2007. All wardswill have moved off the siteby 23 February.

The remaining supportservices will move off the StClements site by 9 March.Hastings ward, which isalready on the Mile Endsite, will close and the inpa-tient mental health care forolder people service willmove to a new location inthe unit and be calledLeadenhall ward.

The new building has 114beds in seven wards. Nearlyall have single bedrooms

with ensuite bathrooms.The few rooms without anensuite bathroom have abathroom close by.

� All wards will have a‘quiet’ room and afemale-only lounge. � There is a multi-faithprayer room. � There is a familyvisiting room with softfurnishing and toys forchildren when they cometo visit family members. � All wards have akitchen area with all-dayaccess to hot and colddrinks.� All wards have accessto an internal courtyard.These have beenlandscaped initially butstaff and service userscan plan and develop thegardens to their owndesign.

Many will recall the huge

canvases which adornedmany of the walls of StClements Hospital. Six ofthese have been selected tobe displayed in the newunit. The remaining oneswill be auctioned at a laterdate. Additional artworkshave been commissionedfrom local artist and exservice user, Saffique Udin,whose work has been dis-played at Tate Liverpool andTate Britain.

Moving Plans

DURING the week ofthe move, arrange-ments will be made

for service users who arewell enough to go on homeleave during the move day.

Staff will visit individualsat home and bring them totheir new ward later in theday. Other service users willbe based in the Occu-

New contact detailsTHE new contact details for the unit at Mile Endwill be updated on the Trust website and Intranetat the time of the move so if you are in doubt,you can check there. Details of the move and newcontact details will be published in local papers inTower Hamlets. Posters and flyers at St Clementswill inform service users and visitors of the moveand new details and service users who are usingor have used services in the past year will bewritten to. The Trust is working with the PrimaryCare Trust to develop ‘Way Finding Signs’ on thenew site so that visitors know which way to go.

The address of the new unit is:The Tower Hamlets Centre for Mental Health Bancroft Road, London E1 4DGReception Switchboard 020 8121 5001 Reception Fax 020 8121 5002

Ward NamesROSEBANK WARD formerly Dorothy Watkins wardLEADENHALL WARD formerly Hastings wardLEA WARD formerly Ansell wardBRICK LANE WARD formerly Green wardROMAN WARD formerly Monro wardWARD NAME TO BE DECIDED – new ward GLOBE WARD formerly Lansbury ward

The ward names were arrived at following a competitionrun in the Trust and publicised in the local papers.The names are based on market places and local areasin East London. The competition was won by amember of staff in Hackney and a service user.

New Phone NumbersRosebank ward (PICU) 020 8121 5048Globe ward 020 8121 5060Leadenhall ward 020 8121 5070Lea ward 020 8121 5075Roman ward 020 8121 5090Brick Lane ward 020 8121 5080New ward 020 8121 5055

Mental Health Administration 020 8121 5040Medical Secretaries 020 8121 5055/6/7/8Early Intervention Service

020 8121 5530/1/2/3/4/5/6/7Outpatients Reception 020 8121 5540Home Treatment Team 020 8121 5550Occupational Therapy 020 8121 5022Performance Management 020 8121 5460Medical Records 020 8121 5470Management Team Administration 020 8121 5480CAMHS Manager 020 8121 5506Estates and Facilities 020 8121 5510MIND 020 8121 5508Safeguarding Children Team 020 8121 5513/4Spiritual and Cultural Care office 020 8121 5006/7Post Graduate Education Centre

020 8121 5016/7/8/9

New Yea

WHEN GeorgeMichael of Whamtwittered on

about the virtue of ‘LastChristmas’ in 1984, the planwas already in motion toclose St Clements. Twodecades later, it is now cer-tain that I’ve had my lastChristmas there. We are allout of that red gate byFebruary.

Proudly renamed StClements since 1936, thebell tower, a distinguishablefeature, which was builtmuch earlier, has held

proud. Soon though, thewhole of the East End willbe talking of the closure ofan institution engraved inlocal cockney rhyme.

The original building waserected in 1848 and 1849 asa workhouse for the Boardof Guardians of the City ofLondon Union. The site wasconverted to an infirmaryin 1874. It was closed in1909 with the reconstruc-tion of the HomertonWorkhouse, but given areprieve in 1912 andbecame the Bow institution

to treat the chronically sick.With the abolition of the

Board of Guardians in 1930,the London County Counciltook over. Amazingly, thenumber of beds was 786.Seven times what it is today!

With the introduction ofthe NHS, the BowManagement Committeemanaged the hospital in1960, followed by theThames Group HospitalManagers Community,then the Governors of theLondon Hospital in 1968.We have been part of the

Now it’s time to make some No one is in any doubt that the positive impact on service users and staff of beingin a modern purpose-built unit will be phenomenal. St Clements is old and hasbeen past its sell-by date for some time. Service users deserve to be cared for in asafe and therapeutic environment and staff deserve to work in a modern areadesigned to support them in caring for service users. However, the move has beena long time coming and there is some sadness and nostalgia about leaving StClements. Staff Nurse Jaques Kooseenlin shares his thoughts:


TRUST PREPARES TO LEAVE ST CLEMENTS

ar, new future

Tower Hamlets HealthDistrict since 1974.

With the site of the 2012Olympics in the near vicin-ity, I can envisage pent-house flats adorning the sitelong before that. Will theold derelict Mortuary by thesouth building be trans-formed into an executive 2-bedded detached house?What will be the fate ofthose tall majestic lime treesgracing the grounds? I won-der if they are for the chop.What will happen to theMulberry tree standingproudly in the front carpark – known to be a sea-sonal nuisance, soiling carsparked underneath it withits berries?

In 1944 during the war,Clemmies took a direct hit

from German bombers andpart of the north wing wasdestroyed forever. But lifesprouted again with thesemi- permanent portacab-in, which has seen life asoffices for nurses, domesticservices, corporate servicesand assertive outreachteams in succession. The airraid shelter underneath theold tennis court will beredundant forever now andkeep all its secrets andlabyrinths.

I can still smell the heavyair of smoke and strong cof-fee emanating from thenearby Wentworth StanleyHall – a meeting place forpatients and ex-patients.

I will miss the noise ofcutlery and laughter.

If only walls could talk.

pational Therapy depart-ment until their room/wardis ready. A special celebrato-ry supper will be served inthe evening.

Psychology services andpsychotherapy services movedinto Burdett House on theMile End site earlier thisyear. The Specialist Addic-tion Service moved intotheir new building in April2006. The Coborn Adole-scent Service moved to theirpurpose-built building inNewham in April 2006.

Staff and some serviceusers will be able to visit thebuilding in January to seethe interior of the building.Staff Orientation andInduction sessions will takeplace for all hospital staffprior to the move.

A Closing Down party isplanned at St Clementswhen all services havemoved off at the site. The Tower Hamlets Centre for Mental Health

new memories... TravelFOR some staff, the move will mean acomplete change to their travelroutine as there is no staff parking atMile End. (Provision has been madefor pool cars.) Tower Hamlets PCT islooking to make the site a car-free area.However, there are excellent localtransport links, with Stepney Greenunderground station just 5 minutesaway. The 25 bus route is virtually onthe doorstep so the transport linksare similar to those serving StClements Hospital. The new hospitalis in travel Zone 2 which is the sameas it is for staff currently travelling toMile End station or Bow Road.There are Residential Parkingrestrictions from 8.30 to 17.30 on thestreets surrounding Mile End Hospital

as with the rest of the borough, andsome Pay-and-Display provision. Thereis space for staff to park motorisedbikes and bicycles on the site.Staff who need to drive to collecttheir children from nurseries orchildminders will have to considerPark and Ride options or parkingprovided at underground stations.Transport for London tells us there isday-rate parking at the followingunderground stations: Redbridge,Woodford, South Woodford,Wanstead, Snaresbrook, NewburyPark, Leytonstone, Barkingside andBlack Horse Road for those staff whowish to drive in part of the way andtravel by tube to complete theirjourney. There is parking at Plaistowstation too.

The wards, which over theyears have seen so muchtransformation, will ceaseto be. Did you know thatWatkins unit used to be

John Windoor ward, andPinhey ward was Greenward prior to being Dundeeward, and Monro ward usedto be Green ward and Green

ward used to be Pinhey.But it’s time to make

some new memories at theTower Hamlets Centre forMental Health.

NEWS


Trusttalk asked another Foundation Trust how foundation status is working for them. Oxleas NHSFoundation Trust in South East London was among the first mental health trusts to gain foundation status in May this year. Rosie Shrimpton is a Public Governor on the Members’ Council for Oxleas.

TT: Rosie, can you tell us a bitabout why you stood forelection to the OxleasMembers’ Council?

I had my own business in med-ical PR, working for hospitals andIVF Clinics. During five years as alistening volunteer with Samari-tans, I became increasingly awareof the importance of good careand support for people with men-tal health problems. I hope mycommunication skills will be use-ful to the new Foundation Trust.

TT: Any thoughts onwhether/why staff and thepublic in East London and theCity should support the Trust’sapplication for FoundationTrust status?

One of the benefits of havingFoundation Trust status is theability to include a MembersCouncil made up of service users,staff and local representatives,who are interested in the way thatthe Trust is run and organised. Aconsultation document was pro-duced by Oxleas prior to theirapplication to become aFoundation Trust and sent tomembers of the Trust, staff, localvoluntary groups, libraries, bor-ough councils and police, for theirviews. Feedback shows that oneof the main reasons that themajority of people supported theplan was because they felt thatinput from a Members Councilwould increase the opportunitieswithin the local community for

people using the trust services.

TT: How much of your timedoes your role as a governortake?

There are 4 meetings of theMembers Council every year. Iam also now Chair of theMembership Group which meetsabout once a month. I think thatit will take up more of my time asmy involvement is growing.However, the amount of time isup to the individual and whatthey are able to give.

TT: What’s been the mostsurprising thing about yournew role?

I have realised how much thereis to learn about Oxleas’ services.My elected period as a Governoris two years, but I think it will takeme all of that time to get to knowthe workings of the FoundationTrust.

TT: Any advice for peopleconsidering standing as publicgovernors?

I attended an information dayrun by Oxleas before I decided togo ahead with my application tobecome a Governor. I found thisvery useful because it gave me aconsiderable amount of informa-tion about the Trust and whatbeing a member of the MembersCouncil would mean. I wanted tobe sure that it was a commitmentthat I could fulfil.

TT: What kind ofsupport/training/inductionhave you had as a newgovernor, and can you think ofanything else that has/wouldhave helped you in gettingestablished in your new role?

Once elected, we were invited tomeet the Board and hear aboutOxleas’ services and the futurerole of the Members Council. Wehave also had a couple ofInduction Sessions on topics such

as governance, reading an audi-tor’s report and forward planning– not as difficult as it sounds.

We were invited to join variousgroups, such as Social Inclusion,Membership, Patient Safety,Service User and CarerExperience. It was up to us asindividuals to select an area to beinvolved in. In addition toMembership, I selected PatientSafety and received training inthat area.

TT: How are you findingworking with the other publicand staff members and withthe Trust Board/other Trust staff?

The governors all seem to beunited by a common interest inthe future wellbeing of theFoundation Trust. The Boardasks the opinions of the governorsat the Members Council’ meetingsand we have plenty of opportuni-ty to put questions and voice anydoubts that we may have. This isimportant, as we have to feel thatour opinions are being sought,respected and acted upon.

Trust staff keep us wellinformed with papers in advanceof meetings and have been sup-portive of the Governors from thebeginning.

TT: Can you give any examplesof the ways in which havingpublic membership is changingthings in your Trust at thisearly stage (e.g. developmentsthat governors/members havebeen involved with)?

Oxleas Foundation Trust nowhas a publication called‘Exchange’ that goes out to allmembers. Articles are about allaspects of the Trust, includingstaff news, interviews withGovernors on their own interestsin the field of mental health,information on relevant medicaltopics and stories of excellencewithin the Oxleas organisation. Itis for all members and hopefully

in the future will become a goodcommunication tool for the Trust.

TT: Do you think that there aredifferent issues for mentalhealth trusts to consider (asopposed to acute trusts) inapplying for Foundation Truststatus?

The stigma attached to mentalhealth problems is something weare all very much aware of.Hopefully the involvement oflocal organisations in the newFoundation Trust will lead togreater employment opportuni-ties and raise awareness of theneeds of people with mentalhealth problems.

TT: Do you think that serviceusers and their carers arebetter represented within theTrust now that you havebecome a Foundation Trust?

Yes, there are 12 Service Userand Carer Governors on theCouncil who represent differentareas of interest. They play animportant role and have a hugecontribution to make.

TT: How much influence do youfeel the Oxleas members’council has/will have on theTrust’s future?

It is early days and time will tell.We have been invited to be part ofthe future of the Trust and it is alearning curve for all of us. I feelencouraged by what I have seen sofar and am pleased to be part ofsomething that I believe is funda-mentally a good opportunity togive all members a chance tomake a contribution.

Are you thinking of standingfor election as a staffGovernor? See the next editionof Trusttalk or the TrustIntranet for more informationon how to stand as aGovernor, make a nominationor vote in the elections.

Firm foundations...


NEWS

THE awards ceremony for theCare Services ImprovementProgramme (CSIP) Positive

Practice Awards 2006 was held atChelsea Football Club on 23November 2006.

The awards were set up to recog-nise and reward people committedto improving mental health services.There were 400 applicants for 16awards categories. East London wasthe winner in two categories.

St ClementsPatients Council

THE St Clements PatientsCouncil was awarded thePositive Practice Team Award

for Voluntary Sector Partnerships.The Patients Council is a user

managed and run voluntary organi-sation whose aim is to ensure thatthe voices and experiences ofpatients on the acute wards at StClements Hospital are heard andacted upon.

The Patients Council is commit-ted to developing effective userinvolvement and all of its workreflects the values and principles ofthe East London User InvolvementFramework. User involvementcomes from the grass roots and userslead in such activity.

Over a year, patient ward forumswere held and facilitated by individ-uals who have also experiencedmental distress and have been incontact with services.

These forums enabled patients toraise their concerns and to highlightareas where they wished to seeimprovements in their care andtreatment.

Areas of common concern weredeveloped into Patient Led QualityStandards which were subsequentlyadopted by the Trust. The standardswere formally launched in May 2006with the first phase of implementa-tion of 10 priority standards startingin June 2006.

Together, the Patients Council andthe patients, developed a monitoringand evaluation process using a sim-ple traffic light scoring system tomeasure the performance of these

Practicing the positive

standards. Over the last 3months, the patients have seensignificant improvements in thequality of the service that theyreceive including more individu-als being involved in developingtheir own care plans, increasedamounts of time to be able toengage with nurses as well asmore opportunities to participatein meaningful activity during theday. The work in developing andmonitoring the patient-led quali-ty standards is part of the TowerHamlets User InvolvementStrategy.

The Patients Council will bepromoting the development ofpatient-led quality standards in arange of services across the Trust.

HackneyFootball Club

HACKNEY Football Club,led by coach Janette Hynes,won the Promoting Positive

Health Through Sport award.They received their award from

former Arsenal and England cap-tain Tony Adams. Janette is aSenior Occupational Therapist inRehabilitation services at the Cityand Hackney Centre for MentalHealth, and an ex-professionalfootballer, who has developed ateam of service users and staff.Hackney FC beat staff teams fromacross the Trust at the Five-a-Sidefootball tournament in September.

Janette has been committed tonot only meeting all the players’needs but opening new doors,breaking down barriers and tak-ing the players to a new profes-sional level. She established acommunity football team in thecommunity where there wasnothing before.

She is behind the birth of the‘Positive Mental Attitude’ (ThePMA League). Janette officiallyaffiliated the PMA league withthe London Football Association(FA). This helped each individualteam from mental health organi-sations to officially affiliate theirteam to the newly establishedMental Health League. This inturn, enabled each team to applyfor a Football Foundation Grantto support their club and helpmaintain long term sustainabilitywith, in some cases, financialsupport for at least 3 years.

Hackney FC secured regularfunding from City & HackneyTeaching Primary Care Trust.Nicholas Garforth, JointCommissioning Manager forMental Health for the C&HTPCT, has been of particularsupport, understanding the ben-efits to individuals of playing andbeing part of something. Thefunding has enabled Janette tohire football facilities at LeytonOrient FC, training equipmentand football kit. Also, it hasenabled three members of theteam to engage in a Level 1 foot-ball coaching course and in Mayall three were successful in gain-ing the qualification.

The impact of the success ofthe team and the accolades theyhave amassed, has had a pro-found effect on the self esteem ofthe team members. Hackney FCis successful because it promoteshealthy lifestyles, encouragessocial inclusion, development oflife-skills and positive well beingwhilst also addressing issues ofstigma in the wider community.If you have a City and Hackneyclient interested in joining theteam, contact Janette [email protected]

Janette Hynes and team with Tony Adams

St Clements Patients Council


NEWS

AVERY inspiring event tookplace at at Oxford House on24 November (a small Tower

Hamlets theatre venue in BethnalGreen Rd with a bar, cafe andgallery.)

Side FX was an initiative by theteam at Pritchards Road Day Centre.It came together originally to recog-nise World Mental Health day butthe date was changed as it clashedwith lots of Eid activities.

The theme of all the work wasSocial Inclusion (or exclusion.)Rehearsals ran over the course ofabout 3 months at Pritchards RoadDay Centre (and weekly throughoutthe last month). I worked with inand out patients mainly doing poet-ry writing in O.T sessions and thenescorted clients to the rehearsal.

I had valuable support frommusic therapist Simon Proctor whohas provided years of superb serviceto in-patient service at St ClementsHospital.

He worked on voice projectionwith some of the more nervousclients and replaced the tiny cd play-er we had, with live music, writtenand improvised by clients. He playeda violin and piano duet with a client

in the intermission! We alsohadgreat support and involvement fromthe spiritual and cultural service atSt Clements Hospital. ( SteveCordes) Below is an account of theevent from someone who attended.Elsa MerliniOccupational Therapist

BEING a computer program-mer, I have not had a hugeamount of exposure to the

world of mental health.I was invited to “Side FX” by a

friend who works for the trust, and itwas with a certain amount of trepi-dation that I attended the Fridaynight performance. The eveningbegan with the compere ripping alabel from her forehead, andexclaiming “Tonight, we are gettingrid of all labels!”

This set the scene for a vibrantand professional evening of enter-tainment. As someone who has littleexperience of mental health issues, itwas both entertaining and enlight-ening. The eclectic set includeddancing, music, poetry, drama andeven yoga. It explored issues such asemployment (or difficulty in gainingthis), the side effects of medication,

the stigma of mental illness and day-to-day problems faced by manymental health service users.

It was at times funny, sad and crit-ical, whilst never losing its poignan-cy. It went down very well with theaudience, who clearly appreciatedthe effort that went into producingsuch a polished and innovative pro-duction. I left reflecting on a showthat was far more interesting thanmany ‘professional’ performances Ihave seen in my lifetime. In particu-lar, it has given me a much deeperinsight into how mental illness canseriously and consistently impactpeople. I will remember it for a verylong time to come.Jonny Cavell

A night with no labelsSad newsIT was with greatsadness that staff inCity and Hackney learntof that Kevin Cheesemansadly died in December.Kevin was a staff nursewho worked in theSpecialist Addiction Unitat the City and HackneyCentre for MentalHealth. Kevin trained inthe Trust so had workedacross all boroughs andservices. A privatefamily funeral has takenplace. His wife askedthat anyone wishing tomake donation, shoulddirect it to their localbranch of MIND or alocal kite association. Inthe new year, a kitedisplay will be organisedon Hackney Marshes forcolleagues to rememberKevin as this was one ofhis favourite pastimes.

New Trustnon-executiveROBIN Callender Smithhas been appointed bythe AppointmentsCommission to serve as aNon-Executive director tothe Trust Board. Hecommenced in his role on1 December. Robin is adeputy District Judge, anImmigration Judge andPresident of MentalHealth Review Tribunals.He has spent eight yearsas the Youth Justices Clerkin Thames Magistrates’Court in East London.After working for fouryears as a journalist, hestudied law at QueenMary, University of London(QMUL) before qualifyingand working as a barrister.He has been a presslawyer for editors of theSunday Express and DailyExpress for over 25 years.He is Vice Chairman ofthe Bar Council’s DisabilityCommittee, a member ofthe Bar Council’s LawReform Committee.

Thousands better off, youngerskin... isn’t it time you quit?THE start of a new

year is a good timeto consider giving

up smoking or discusswith service users the ben-efits of giving up. It won’tbe long before most publicareas are smokefree and itwill be increasingly diffi-cult to smoke at all. Nowmight be just the righttime to take action.

If you want to remindyourself of the benefits ofgiving up, go to: http://www.gosmokefree.co.uk/They have an online cal-culator for you to workout just how much moneyyou spend on cigarettesand how much you willspend in the future.

For example, at today’sprices, a 20-a-day smokerwill spend more than 37THOUSAND POUNDSover the next 20 years.

And that’s before youlook at the effect on yourskin, breath, smell, repro-duction and fertility, cir-culation, heart, and thehealth of others aroundyou.

There are lots of organ-isations and websites tosupport people trying toquit, in the process ofquitting or trying to stayoff cigartettes. www.GetUnhooked.co.uk tells youhow to support friendswho are trying to give up.

QUIT (http://www.quit.

org.uk/) is an independentcharity whose aim is tosave lives by helpingsmokers to stop. They pro-vide same day advice tocallers from 9am-9pm.0800 00 22 00

NHS Smoking Helplineadvisers can give youexpert advice and encour-agement.

Call the NHS SmokingHelpline on 0800 169 0169 and speak to a special-ist adviser. Lines are openeveryday from 7am to11pm.

For specialist pregnancyadvice call 0800 169 9 169Speak to someone whounderstands the issues ofpregnancy and smoking. If

you are too busy for a chatyou can arrange a call backat a more convenient time.The lines are open everyday from 12 noon - 9pm.This service is only avail-able to smokers living inEngland at the moment.

NHS Asian TobaccoHelpline. Please choose ahelpline number from thefollowing options to speakto an expert in your pre-ferred language. Lines areopen from 1pm - 9pmevery Tuesday.Urdu 0800 169 0 881 Punjabi 0800 169 0 882 Hindi 0800 169 0 883 Gujarati 0800 169 0 884 Bengali 0800 169 0 885

Make it happen!


NEWS

Red carpet premiere foryoung people’s filmA film made by

young service usersfrom Tower Hamlets

sets out young people’smental health needs in theform of a charter.

The film had its pre-miere at the RichmixCinema in Bethnal Greenas part of the ‘MentalHealth and EmotionalWell-Being’ themed TowerHamlets Youth WorkWeek. Following drinksand nibbles, young peoplefrom Tower Hamlets, andstaff from the Trust andthe local authority viewedthe film together andenjoyed cinema goody bagsof popcorn and sweets.

The film was research-ed, written and directed byyoung people from TowerHamlets with experienceof mental illness. A ques-tionnaire completed by agroup of young peopleusing Child and Adole-scent Mental HealthServices (CAMHS) inTower Hamlets formedthe basis of the charter putforward in the film.CAMHS clinical andfrontline staff had a tasteof stardom when theywere interviewed on cam-era for the project.

Ismail Ali, the principalcontributor to the filmproject, said, ‘I’ve usedCAMHS services in TowerHamlets for four years andI made the transition toadult mental health serv-ices a year. My experiencesand what I have learntthrough CAMHS havemade me understand howimportant it is for youngpeople and the widercommunity to understandmental illness.’

The film screening,organised by the TowerHamlets Youth and

Community Services YouthParticipation Team, wasfollowed by a group activ-ity, which asked attendeesto talk about what theyhad learnt from the filmand how ideas from thefilm might be put intopractice. One young Bangla-deshi man said: ‘youthclubs and schools need toprovide more informationabout mental health … itshould be taught in schoollike physical health is.’Another said that, ‘sharingstories about how [mentalhealth] services have helpedpeople is important.’

CAMHS General Mana-

ger Martin Green said:‘This film identifies prior-ities for young peopleusing CAMHS services. Itpinpoints some thingsthat CAMHS already doeswell and other things thatwe’re not so good at. Thechallenge now is to involveyoung people and theircarers and families inthinking with us abouthow best we can take thesethings forward.’

The film was led byCAMHS and the TowerHamlets local authorityYouth Participation Team,who worked with MouthThat Roars, a charitable,

not-for-profit film pro-duction company basednear Old Street who spe-cialise in training margin-alised young people invideo production. Thefilm was funded using agrant from the Depart-ment for Education andSkills.

It will be distributed toother CAMHS and YouthParticipation Services andformed part of the presen-tation at the press launchof the new Departmentfor Education and SkillsYouth Media Fund held inCovent Garden inDecember.

ResearchfindingsYOU may be aware ofwidespread presscoverage on thefindings of a studycarried out in Newhamexploring the impact ofgiving individuals cashincentives to complywith taking prescribedmedication. (Money formedication: financialincentives to improvemedication in assertiveoutreach. Claassen D,Fakhoury WK, Ford Rand Priebe S (2007))The study certainlystimulated debate.Mental healthcampaigningorganisations notedthat it was the sideeffects of medicationwhich deterredindividuals fromcomplying.The Trust issued astatement to say thatthe researchers havewell establishedreputations in the fieldof mental healthresearch and wereinterested to explorethis idea and see whateffect such an approachwould have. The reportfocused on a small cohortof only five service users.It stated that research isdesigned to pushboundaries and testtheories and hypothesesbut was not the practicein our clinical services.However, as with allclinical surveys, the Trustwill consider the findingsof this publishedresearch but furtherdiscussion needed totake place about theethics of such anapproach.You can access thereport via the RoyalCollege of Psychiatristswebsite on http://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/publications/journals/pbinfo/currentissue.aspx

A warm welcome to all staff who joined the Trust in November and December.

STAFF MATTERS


ESR is the single,national system thatenables a consistent

approach, across all NHSorganisations, to allaspects of staff adminis-tration: HR, payroll,recruitment, work struc-tures, absence, learningmanagement and talentmanagement. It will con-nect to external agenciessuch as BACS and theInland Revenue, as well asto other NHS systems likeNHS Jobs, e-KSF and thePensions Agency.

Implementationof ESR in the Trust

ESR is being rolled outnationally in 12 waves ofaround 50 Trusts every 2months between March2006 and early 2008.Implementation is basedon Payroll Groups andinvolves an 11-monthengagement, commencedby ESR Account Managers,each allocated to aStrategic Health Authority.

The Trust is implement-ing ESR, as part of a con-sortium with 8 otherTrusts within North EastLondon (all those hostedby the North East LondonPay Consortium). We arein ‘Wave 9’ and are due to‘go live’ on 1 August 2007.

Four Readiness Assess-ments take place at eachcritical stage of the proj-ect. Each one represents aquality gateway that has tobe passed in order for thenext stage of activities toproceed.

The first three monthsof this activity is referredto as the ‘Prerequisites’phase.

Examples of tasksundertaken during thisphase include establishinga local project board (gov-ernance) and project teamand developing a visionfor day 1 and beyond.

This phase has nowbeen completed and theTrust has been successfulin passing its first readi-ness assessment.

Following our success-ful completion ofReadiness Assessment 1,the Trust is now into the‘Implementation’ phase.Key activities in this peri-od include data develop-ment (a central teamdevelops and tests soft-ware to migrate data intoESR), together with usertesting, education and‘cutover’ to ESR.

Successful implementa-tion of ESR requires theinvolvement of staff fromvarious departments,including HR, Training,Finance and IT and repre-sentatives from thesedepartments are on theESR Project Board and aremembers of the ESRProject Team.

Validation ofStaff Data

The data on our currentHR/Payroll system will betransferred onto ESRwhen we ‘go live’. It is,therefore, essential that weensure that, prior to theTrust ‘going live’, all elec-tronic staff data held onour existing system is cor-rect and up to date.

In order to ensure thatwe have the correct datafor staff on our existingHR/Payroll system, we willbe sending all staff a formshowing the personaldetails that are currentlyheld on them on the exist-ing system.

Staff must indicate onthe form any changes tothese details and completeany sections that are cur-rently blank.

Staff must also ensurethat the Human ResourcesDepartment are informed

of any changes to theirpersonal details followingvalidation of their person-al details.Failure to complete andreturn the validationform, and ensurepersonal details are keptup to date, could havean impact on pay oncethe Trust is live on ESR.

ESR – the impact on staff

The main change thatstaff will notice when theTrust goes live on ESR isthat payslips will change.Staff will see an exampleof the new payslip prior to‘go-live.’

The other key changethat will impact staff willbe when the Trust imple-ments self-service. ESR’sself-service capabilities

will allow staff membersto access the system.Employees will have theability to view and updatepersonal information suchas emergency contacts andbank details. Staff willalso be able to view pastpayslips on the system.Managers will have addi-tional facilities such asbeing able to approveemployee requests andmake some changes, suchas hours of work.

Self Service is currentlynot in use but is in theprocess of being piloted atsome Trusts who havealready gone live. TheTrust’s vision for ESR isthat self-service will beimplemented within 12months of ‘go-live.’For more information,contact [email protected]

Electronic staff recordsto go live in August

CONGRATULATIONS to the above staff who hve successfully completed the Advanced Nurse Development Programme. Pictured with JudithEtheridge, Associate Director of Nursing for Local Services.

STAFF MATTERS


ON Monday 20 November atthe Barbican, five successfulstudents received their awardsfrom Lord Rix, the Chancellorof the University of EastLondon. This is the fourth yearof this unique collaborationbetween the Trust and our localuniversity. The Certificate is a jointprogramme delivered with thePsychology Department of theuniversity. The programme isthe only one of its kind in theUK and was recently highly

EVER felt the need totalk to someone abouthow a colleague,

patient or manager is treatingyou, without worrying thatpeople will think you are ‘los-ing it’ and not coping? Doyou feel you are underminedat work? Do you dread goingto work because of howsomeone treats you?

Trust Harassment SupportAdvisers provide a listening spaceand offer support in helpingmembers of staff decide how torespond to concerns about howthey are being treated at work.

In the five years since thescheme has existed, HarassmentSupport Advisers have provided aconfidential informal supportiveservice to a number of staff, maleand female, from different servic-es and areas in the Trust. Staffhave been helped to understand,deal with concerns and review

their next steps about:

� being excluded� verbal and writtenharassment� victimisation� malicious gossip� lack of communication.

Staff who have contacted anAdviser at a point of crisis havesaid it was helpful to have theopportunity to talk about theirconcerns confidentially.

At first contact, the Adviserswill either have a telephone con-sultation or make an arrangement

to see staff in a mutually conven-ient and neutral setting.

Advisers are located in clinics,inpatient wards and offices acrossthe Trust and can be contacted bytelephone. They are:

Sadique Boampong 020 8981 8050

Janet Flaherty 020 7655 4066Sandra Frost 020 8121 5346Rachel Joyce 020 7377 7968Vicky Lyons 020 7655 4010Martine Morrison

020 8510 2005Melanie White 020 7033 8029

The Trust is looking to expandthe numbers of Advisors and willbe holding further training fornew recruits.

Advisers are from differentservice areas in the Trust. You donot need to be a nurse or manag-er. You do need to be a good listener and have an awareness ofequality of opportunity and fair-ness.

If you are interested in becom-ing an Adviser, contact RachelBarratt on 020 7655 4164 or speakto one of the Advisers listedabove.

Problems at work?Talk to us about it!

commended by the externalexaminer Professor KateLoewenthal of LondonUniversity. She wrote: ‘ I congratulate theuniversity and the PsychologyDepartment for supporting thisinnovative and valuableprogramme.’ She alsocommented on the very highstandard of work. Theprogramme is unique in thatadmission is on an open accessbasis. This means that students can

have backgrounds with degreesor no formal education. Themethod of learning is throughexperience. The aim is to learn from eachother and to be able tounderstand the complexity ofthe spiritual and culturaltraditions across East London. As well as members of stafffrom the Trust, participants aredrawn from all the differentcommunities. In the current group there are anumber of nurses from Hackney

and Newham. Participants areexpected to value and celebratethe differences in each other.Each student creates a projectover the year which makes animpact on either mental healthservices or the community. The students pictured at thisyears graduation focussed on:Martin Dring: Developing thespiritual Needs Assessment inHackneyMalcolm Williamson:Community Support for serviceusers once they had left the

Newham Centre for MentalHealth.Patricia Johnson: Day provisionin Hackney and the role of thechurches.Zoraida Cepeda: A supportgroup for womenMaria Palacio: A DVD onworking with homeless peopleOther projects this yearincluded: Support Groups forUsers, A Gay and LesbianWebsite, Muslim Prayers at StClements and Research into theeffectiveness of Spiritual Care

Malcolm, Patricia, Martin, Maria and Zoraida.

EEAASSTT EENNDDEEAARRTTHH

MMOOTTHHEERR

Offers forNHS StaffTHERE are some greatoffers for NHS staff onthe Red Guava website.Staff can access offerson hotels in Europe,cases of wine, travel andmuch more. Go to www.redguava.co.uk. The Trust’s username is: ELCMHT. The password isREWARDS.

Free comedyNightsFREE Comedy Nights takeplace at the TheatreRoyal, Stratford, everyMonday from 8pm. You are advised to comeearly and secure a seatbefore the show getsunder way, or you couldbe left standing.

Walk in theOlympic parkIF you need to walk offall the food you ateover the Christmasperiod and all thechocolates and mincepies now settling onyour midriff, why notkick-start you new yearfitness plan with a walkaround the OlympicPark. Walkers can walkaround the sites orpotential sites of the2012 Olympics. The walkstarts outside ThreeMills, Three Mill Lane,Bromley by Bow (byTesco). [email protected] or call020 8430 2012 toreceive a map.Don’t forget that staffcan take advantage ofsome reduced rate dealsat gyms. See the StaffNotices page on theIntranet for moredetails.

OFF DUTY


Veggie Xmas leaves mefeeling like a turkey...Dear EEEM,I love Christmas with apassion. I love thedecorations, familyspirit, food, drinks,presents and theweather. Every year Istart getting into thefestive mood fromOctober. I startshopping for presents,choosing the rightcards, planning themenu, inviting friends.This year I will bespending Christmaswith my prospective inlaws; my partner insistswe spend the celebrationswith his family. They arenot the least bit excitedabout the festivities. To

make matters worse,they are vegetarians.They don’t believe inpresents and all ‘thegood will to all men’.They will try to be polite,civil and hospitable. I donot know how I amgoing to stomach a turkeyfree Christmas. I dreadwhat goodies are instore for me. I tried totalk my partner into notgoing but he is insistent.Any words of wisdom?Deflated

Dear Deflated, You need much morethan words of wisdom!You need to be honestwith yourself and your

hosts. Share some of yourexcitement; offer to helpwith the cooking andentertaining. Let themknow you are not strictlyvegetarian. You can gowith an open mind andenjoy somethingdifferent. Christmas iswhat you make it. I amsure they are just asapprehensive having toentertain you. Yourpartner would have toldthem all they need toknow about your likesand dislikes. I suggest yougo and be yourself. Sharesome of your excitementand enthusiasm. If thingsdon’t work out then Isuggest you start

WELL, Christmas has comeand gone. All over thecountry, parents have

fibbed to their children about anobese, red-cheeked, airborne pen-sioner who brings gifts to good chil-dren.

Now, most kids quickly suss thatSanta has such an unrealistic deliv-ery rate that he must be a myth. Butthis doesn’t really matter becauseChristmas is a time for myths. It isthe season of virgin births, guidingstars, murderous kings, and mysteri-ous nocturnal visits from arch-angels. It’s pretty amazing stuff.

There’s nothing particularlyunusual about this either.

Humans have always told eachother stories and the more amazing,the better. In fact, the urge to tell sto-ries, to embellish them and believein them seems to be buried deep inour nature.

And it doesn’t matter if the storiesare true – the tales we tell each otherhelp us to make sense of the world.This explains why so much of the

population of America believes inGeorge Bush and abduction byaliens.

Now, some people’s stories arewhackier than others. Again, thisdoesn’t usually lead to any botherunless people start telling them topeople who don’t want to hear themat, say, four o clock in the morning,from the balcony of their local coun-cil, amplified via a powerful loud-speaker system.

That is often the point at whichpsychiatrists get involved. Which ishow I met young Barry.

Barry told me that Barry was justhis earth name and that, in fact, hewas an Archangel called Michael,whose mission was to bring an endto wars on earth.

He explained his mission state-ment in some detail and in the wayof archangels, smiled beatifically ashe did so.

He grinned serenely as his uncle,who had accompanied him in thepolice van, explained that he was infact a crack-addicted street worker

who had experienced all manner ofghastly abuse as a child.

And so we set to treating him, inthe way of psychiatrists, with a com-bination of drugs and CognitiveBehavioural Therapy.

I remember the assessment letterfrom the treating psychologist, whoat the outset, had rated his mood asvery good, and the fixity of his beliefthat he was an Archangel at around95%. Pretty high.

Last week, I saw his dischargesummary: a tale of success. By thetime our Barry had completed histreatment, his belief that he was anArchangel had dropped to a mere10%. He was also profoundlydepressed and telling anyone whowould listen that he had spent mostof his life as a crack-addicted childprostitute on a council estate. Notsuch an amazing story.

So some food for thought whenyou hear all those stories going onaround you. Maybe we do need tobelieve if we want to live happilyever after.

The words and wisdom of Dr Roger P’Seud

channelling your energiesin to planning yourwedding… on your terms.

The Early Birds: Early Intervention

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