This week, we are highlighting the work being done by two of our customers, with a focus on how they’ve adapted their services in the face of Covid-19, and how using digital enhanced their ability to do this remotely.
United Welsh: Wellbeing4u
Wellbeing4U have adapted their services by coordinators being homebased to reduce the footfall of people in GP surgeries and to carry out telephone consultations rather than face to face appointments.
The social prescribing service have adapted their way of working to meet the needs of the current climate and the lifestyle/behaviour changes people are being forced to make. They have created a wellbeing plan to help them have a conversation with patients around what matters most to them in the current situation, connect them with available help with shopping, collecting prescriptions and to connect with other people during this period of isolation.
Wellbeing4u are also offering our patients the option of having a weekly telephone call from the co-ordinator not only as a way of checking in with them but to be a person they can have a conversation with which many people are really appreciating right now. The service has also adapted to only receiving digital referrals through Elemental where COVID19 advice and guidance has been added as a referral reason, or through email. They have also adapted their Healthful Network courses to be delivered online.
“Using Elemental has helped Wellbeing4u to create a Cohort of patients referred specifically for COVID-19 which will assist us to provide data to the Health Board how we have responded to the current situation and will assist massively in our reporting over the next few months.” – Emma South, Health and Well-being lead
Patient feedback – anxieties quelled by communication
Feedback received from patients is showing how helpful the weekly check in calls are. The opportunity to talk through anxieties and worries around Covid-19 is clearly benefiting patients during this time.
“I think the online class is a great idea, giving us a change not only to exercise in the comfort of our own home – which otherwise we would not do ourselves, but also to communicate live with the people who are in the same boat – thanks to you all.”
“I am extremely grateful that Rhian has been keeping in touch with me. It’s so reassuring to know that she actually cares enough about my well-being in these very unprecedented times. Rhian is totally natural in all our interactions. She shows me such empathy and I can fully relate to everything she has said and done to help me. WB4U has suggested so many positive activities for me to try to quell my anxieties in these extraordinary times. I really want to praise their persistence in thinking of so many ideas to keep me calm. I appreciate their value and time spent in contacting me.”
Tandridge District Council
In response to the Covid-19 Pandemic, Tandridge District Council had to quickly adapt their Wellbeing Prescription Service, which has now been operating remotely for over 3 weeks.
Although the team understood the necessity, they were apprehensive about temporarily pulling their service from GP Practices and pausing home visits. They were concerned about what this would mean for the service and if we would be able to adequately support our clients. However, they have been pleasantly surprised by the positive response from established clients, new clients and our key partners.
A lot of the services Tandridge would usually signpost clients to have temporarily closed, so to ensure they can continue to offer a high level of support, they have utilised Elemental’s social prescribing platform. Elemental has allowed the council to quickly collate a category of support specifically related to COVID-19 which allows their advisors to easily browse the support on offer in the client’s local area or online and signpost them to services such as:
– A local mutual aid group that can offer prescription or food parcel delivery,
– A telephone befriending service,
– NHS IAPT telephone
– Online therapies – how to remain active at home
– And so much more.
In the last month Tandridge District Council have made over 105 signposts to COVID-19 specific support.
Although the service temporarily doesn’t have a physical presence in GP Practices, they are in regular contact with them, receiving new referrals daily and they are pleased to be able to confidently direct their worried patients to Wellbeing Prescription who can offer advice, support, be a listening ear or signpost onto other services.
In addition, Wellbeing Prescription has been supporting the wider Tandridge District Council COVID-19 response. As a team of Social Prescribers, they are well equipped to support the most vulnerable residents and are therefore assisting the outbound calls to residents on vulnerable people lists. As a result of the call, some residents are becoming permanent Wellbeing Prescription clients and will continue to be supported by the team over the phone and then face to face once our usual service resumes.
“Elemental has enabled Wellbeing Prescription to make a seamless transition from face to face to telephone support. We are pleased we’ve been able to continue the vital work of social prescribing both to our current clients as well as to new clients. Elemental has allowed us to keep track of the ever-increasing list of COVID-19 specific services as well as ensuring we can accurately record the support we are offering while demonstrating how our service has benefited the local community.” – Nicola Boreham, Wellbeing Prescription Manager
