Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust’s Supported Integrated Discharge team has received industry-wide recognition by being shortlisted in the Health Service Journal (HSJ) value in healthcare awards 2014.
The awards, which will be held on 23 September at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London, seek to recognise and reward outstanding efficiency and improvement by the NHS.
The Trust have been nominated in the Value and Improvement in Acute Service Redesign category for the innovative Supported Integrated Discharge service, which through a pioneering partnership with Birmingham City Council, helps ease the transition from hospital back into the home for frail elderly patients seeking treatment for acute illnesses.
Introduced in November 2012 at Birmingham Heartlands Hospital, the team of hospital therapists and social workers and carers from the Council work together collaboratively to ensure patients regain their independence and health as quickly as possible. Once it has been decided that a patient is well enough to return home, the team will discuss any on-going care needs with the patient and ensure the right level of support is arranged. Physiotherapy and occupational therapy assessment and treatment are offered to promote recovery in the home, rather than on the hospital wards.
As a result of introducing the programme, patients return home sooner and have a better overall experience through a more streamlined discharge and reablement process. The benefits have been so positive that the team has now extended it to the Trust’s Solihull Hospital site and are working in partnership with Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council to also facilitate improved discharge pathways for patients.
Mary Ross, Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust clinical director for therapies, aid: “We are very proud of the contribution the Supported Integrated Discharge team are making to ensuring patients regain their independence as quickly as possible after treatment. This has resulted in proven benefits, with patients recovering at a significantly faster rate, and for the Heartlands site, the partnership is one factor contributing to a 13 percent reduction in patients aged over 65 staying in hospital over 14 days and an improved patient journey.
“I’m thrilled the team have made the shortlist for the HSJ Value in Healthcare Awards, whether they win or not, it is a great achievement to be recognised as leading the way in providing high quality services.”
For more information on the HSJ Awards go to http://www.hsjvalueawards.co.uk
