Moving forward with a purpose

We've progressed some big stuff over the last couple of weeks, including a board session at which we heard feedback from the engagement work we have been doing on our mixed sex accommodation.

We emailed about this on Wednesday, and I want to thank you again for your invaluable input. It's brilliant how engaged everyone has been and your views have helpfully raised issues beyond how we address mixed sex accommodation, for example, how staff are supported and the wider safety issues on our wards. We're looking further at this feedback alongside other information we have about safety, and will of course keep you updated as we move to making decisions.

We've also been doing some more work on our new strategy, which I know I said I'd talk more about in my last blog.

I believe we have a bright future and a real opportunity to build on our core mental health and learning disability services, especially in areas where we excel, to make a positive impact on people's lives.

Earlier this week, we held a workshop to talk about what sort of organisation we want to be going forward. The idea was to have some time and space to think creatively about our future. There was a mixed group of about 30 people, which included clinical and professional leaders from our mental health and learning disability services, operational and corporate managers, as well as board members.

We talked about the opportunities we think we have and what philosophy should underpin our service models. We also considered what sort of partnerships we want to build, and how we could make our organisation a really great place to work.

The group discussed how we could build on our existing services with an enhanced offer around the whole family, supporting people in primary and community settings with a greater focus on prevention, early intervention and recovery. 

There was general agreement that we need to have a braver approach to risk, described by one attendee as 'safe experimentation'. It's not about doing things that create unsafe situations, but having a culture that means we don’t automatically default to the least risky approach, but support people to make the decisions and improvements they believe are right, knowing the organisation will ‘have your back’. 

In terms of being a great place to work - where you trust the people you work for, have pride in what you do and enjoy the people you work with - we said that it would be brilliant to truly excel in how we look after staff.

The better we support your wellbeing, the better you can care for others. It's common sense AND it's our line of work. We really need to get this right as an organisation providing mental health services. If we don't, it’s like a security firm not making sure their staff are safe!! 

And I think we are well placed to do this as we already have a fantastic staff wellbeing service which I visited recently. This small but perfectly formed team are already doing a great job but the service has huge potential to expand. I was so impressed to hear about the range of psychological support they provide, which now includes mindfulness programmes and a new mental health first aid course.

Having a strong staff wellbeing service is critical. You do an amazing job, day in and day out, often in difficult circumstances. However, we always need to recognise and remember the pressures that come with that and show in actions, as well as words, how much you are valued. It can be tough, and it’s ok to not feel ok.

The first sentence of the book The Road Less Travelled is; 'Life is difficult'. The author goes on to explain that this can either be ignored or handled, but that it will remain difficult if its ignored and easier if it’s handled.

The point I'm making is that it's normal to feel stressed at different times in both our personal and working lives. I've certainly experienced that, and it’s not just incredibly helpful to acknowledge and be open about it, it's also essential to get support; in whatever way works best for each individual.

There's nothing wrong with us if we struggle at points. We're human. That's what makes each of us so unique and special.