Laura Magahy, Executive Director, Sláintecare has recorded a video message to provide an update on the progress made during 2020 to implement Sláintecare and a look ahead to 2021.
Patients with falls accounted for 20% of ambulance calls in the Wicklow area and almost all were being transported to their local Emergency Department. The Wicklow Frailty Project set out to flip the traditional system, by providing a skilled team to respond to calls involving older adults, they are bringing the expertise to the patients in their own homes.
Caredoc, in partnership with NetwellCASALA at Dundalk IT and the Trinity Centre for Practice and Healthcare Innovation (TCPHI) at Trinity College Dublin are delivering the SMILE project funded by Sláintecare.
Sláintecare established a learning network in 2019 for the +100 Integration Fund projects. Sláintecare is working with IFIC Ireland and the HSE to develop a series of learning webinars to share stories of how initiatives and services supported by the Sláintecare Integration Fund have contributed to delivery of care to help vulnerable people stay well in their communities.
This learning will be of particular relevance for services provided for those most at risk of developing COVID-19. Many of the integration-funded projects adapted to delivering their care in innovative ways as a result of infection-control measures, introduced to avoid social contact.
Ahead of World No Tobacco Day 2020 the “Supporting Pregnant Women to Quit and Stay Quit” initiative has had its 100th referral since the Sláintecare supported integrated care programme was launched three months ago.
Expectant mums are this week endorsing the success of the “Supporting Pregnant Women to Quit and Stay Quit” programme as being an illustration of Sláintecare’s aim to deliver the right care, in the right place and at the right time.
AgeWell is an award-winning innovative new model of integrated care, supporting older people to remain safer and healthier in their own homes. It does this by building a relationship with each older person at home, realising that one size does not fit all, and that trusting, effective relationships are built slowly and with sincerity and care.
In the 18 months since its inception, 75% of its clients have reported a decrease in feelings of loneliness, and of the 25% deemed to be at risk in March 2018, today no client is regarded at risk. Since 2018, 255 clients have received a total of 5,500 visits. AgeWell won a Social Innovative Award in 2018.
“Beating Breathlessness”, an Integration Fund project funded by Sláintecare and delivered by the Asthma Society, is providing easily accessible support, education and information to people with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and asthma.
Beating Breathlessness is a six-week self-management support programme delivered through text as well as a personalised nurse-led instant messaging service delivered through the WhatsApp platform. Beating Breathlessness will help people better understand and manage their condition.
At present all patients attended to by the National Ambulance Service are transported to
the Emergency Department (ED), unless the patient refuses transport to an emergency department.
An emergency department stay of more than 12 hours increases an inpatient’s length of stay by 2.35 days. In 2018, 9,861 patients aged 75 years and over presented to Beaumont Hospital’s ED, and approximately 50% of those patients were admitted, with an average length of stay of 17 days.
Presentation to emergency departments for elderly people increases the risk for elderly patients of experiencing an adverse event, such as pressure ulcer, infection, adverse drug event, functional decline, delirium or a fall. It can result in patient dissatisfaction, increased hospital length of stay, increased confusion and increased mortality.
More than 180 people gathered over three days from 2-4 March in the Department of Health to meet for the second get together of the Sláintecare Integration Fund Learning Network. This engagement took place over 3 days in order to meet with projects on a thematic basis, based on feedback from December’s event.
The themes of each of the days were as follows:
Monday 2 March: “Innovations in shifting care to the community or providing hospital avoidance measures”.
Tuesday 3 March: “Best practice and processes for chronic disease management and care of older people”.
Wednesday 4 March: “Promote the engagement and empowerment of citizens in the care of their own health”.
The first half of each day was focussed on projects getting updates on evaluation, communications, and supports available to them through the Network such as International Foundation for Integrated Care (IFIC) resources and the HSE’s Change Management Guide.
The second half of each day was then dedicated to networking among projects, and building resilience as “change-makers”.
Many Integration Fund projects presented over the three days, including those working on pain management education, care pathways, multi-morbidity self-care, “living well”, student sexual health, community mental health, and inclusion health with homelessness.
