Neighbourhood teams could transform healthcare - if they have the right tech
By Jo Garland, Clinical Director, Infinity Health
Healthcare professionals are working harder than ever. Chronic staff shortages, an ageing population, and limited time for patient interactions means, wherever you work in healthcare, the pressure is immense. Add into the mix, the siloed way of working and disparate teams, and it’s not surprising it is taking its toll on healthcare professionals’ mental health.
A recent BMJ study raised concerns over the welfare and pressure on doctors, given the extensive evidence that many are experiencing stress and exhaustion. The latest NHS Staff Survey also showed that only 43% of staff feel they are able to meet all the conflicting demands on their time and just 57% feel they have adequate materials, supplies and equipment to do their work.
As the NHS looks to find more efficiencies, healthcare professionals are being asked to do more with less. Many don’t feel valued or supported and are leaving the profession; changing careers or taking early retirement. Simply carrying on with existing ways of working is not a sustainable solution.
Implementation of Neighbourhood Teams
During the pandemic, remote monitoring and care for patients transformed healthcare. One of the key focuses for integrated care systems (ICSs) is to maintain the benefits of remote care and bring teams together through delivering ‘Neighbourhood Teams’.
Neighbourhood Teams comprise of health and social care professionals; including nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, pharmacists and mental health professionals, who work closely with a GP and include the council’s housing and benefits services, and the voluntary sector. They generally work with people with long term conditions or multiple morbidities and the elderly. The aim is to support people to remain in their own homes and live as independently as possible, and to avoid unnecessary hospital admissions.
The Neighbourhood Team can provide hospital discharge support and admission prevention, support with palliative care, rapid support for those with long term conditions, and mental health and wellbeing support. They can also offer wound care, manage medication, take bloods, help with continence control and many other services. The patient has a single point of access through a case worker, and medical records are usually shared between the members of the team.
Neighbourhood Teams help the patient to be connected with and supported by their multidisciplinary team with knowledge of who to call if they require help. If patients have mobility or other issues, they don’t have to travel, ask family or carers to go with them, or wait for their appointment - and it reduces the risk of picking up an infection from the care setting.
It sounds like a win-win. But how can we provide our already overworked NHS staff with the tools to make this new way of working work for them?
The right tech for the job
The best way to bring teams together, make their working lives better, and allow them the time to spend with patients, is through the right technology. It is no longer a question of “should we do digital or not?” but, “which is the best technology for our needs and how do we bring everyone on board?”
The Infinity Health task management platform has already been used by rapid response and early supported discharge teams, and allows multidisciplinary teams to work together, to know what each other is doing, and find the right information for each patient in one place.
As Neighbourhood Teams are scaled nationally, the Infinity tool can help:
Make workload easier - Infinity provides instant access to each team member’s tasks for the day, including patient details and management plans, providing a clear picture of what they need to do, without spreadsheets and bits of paper.
Aid collaboration - It brings all parts of the team together and, via integration, links information from different systems. It prevents siloed working, allowing team members to see who has done which tasks. Tasks are accessible from anywhere, and their status, notes, and other information can be updated in real-time, directly from visit locations.
Make patient care safer - Tasks are not missed or duplicated; preset searches can allow clinicians to easily see any completed, cancelled, unallocated or incomplete tasks. Decisions about care or treatment can be made knowing information and input from other colleagues. It helps the right person to do the right thing, at the right time, in the right order.
Improves efficiency - It reduces unnecessary administrative burden and opens up time for more patient care. Team members don’t need to spend time looking up information on different systems, trying to call busy colleagues, or returning to base to relay the results of their visits.
Increase staff satisfaction - Team members are equipped with the right information, enabling them to have more informed conversations with patients. It is easier for senior staff to guide their junior colleagues and the whole team will feel less pressure, by being better supported.
It is clear to me that Neighbourhood Teams are an effective way of supporting patients to manage their conditions or recover at home. We just need to provide the right tools from the start to make it a success for patients and staff.
To understand more about our tool that allows teams to manage their work, access the information they need, and easily collaborate with one another, get in touch for a demo.