NHS England and the UK Health Security Agency have created a toolkit of resources to raise awareness of Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) prevention, symptom recognition and treatment which includes advice on how and when to seek help.
This is for all workers in the social care sector and includes information, advice and tools for employers to support staff. It also includes guidance for individuals to manage their personal mental health and wellbeing.
The Workforce Wellbeing Resource Finder is for all social care workers and employers.
Here you’ll find wellbeing resources that have been selected as particularly relevant for the social care sector. All the resources are from trusted, national partners and have been grouped into topics. You can filter your results to reduce time and energy searching for resources for yourself and others.
This website, curated by Mind, includes a series of toolkits to support social care workers, a helpline and other resources.
This MindEd resource is designed to help frontline staff to manage their mental health and wellbeing. Topics include:
A support group has been set up for BAME staff working in care homes, nursing homes and domiciliary care– this is being run with support from Brighton and Hove County Council, but open to any care provider in Sussex. Sussex Partnership Foundation Trust are also providing support to this group. A WhatsApp group has been set up for this support group and anyone interested can email azharjuri@mpch.co.uk for the link.
For home care workers, personal assistants and those working in isolated services, the nature of their work may mean that they already feel isolated. Skills for Care has published guidance on how to support staff who regularly work alone. It includes a section on supporting mental health and wellbeing and on communication and support.
This is in addition to Skills for Care’s existing guidance for people who employ their own staff and personal assistants, available on the Information hub, which includes where to find information about local support.
The LGA has produced a comprehensive pack of wellbeing information and resources to help managers support the wellbeing of staff.
The society has produced a guide for leaders and managers which offers practical advice on supporting staff during difficult phases of working and living through the pandemic.
Mind has a number of resources on their website including Wellness Action Plans (WAPs). These are a simple, practical way of helping staff to support their mental health at work, and for managers to support the mental health of team members. A WAP can be completed by any individual, whether or not they have a mental health problem. It provides practical steps to ensure they are supported when they are not feeling at their best.
PHE has published a review of data on disparities in the risk and outcome of COVID-19 and found a disproportionate effect on people with certain characteristics. These include age (people aged 70+), sex (male), ethnicity (some BAME groups), deprivation and people with certain underlying health conditions.
Employers have a responsibility to undertake risk assessments in relation to the workplace. The Health and Safety Executive has produced a guide to workplace risk assessments which you may find helpful.
The Department of Health and Social Care’s COVID-19 Adult Social Care risk reduction framework emphasises that risks in the workplace should be reduced for all workers and that additional mitigation measures should be put in place for workers identified at higher risk.
We strongly encourage all providers to review the guidance included within the above links and use these to build on your existing risk assessment processes.
The Council has produced this best practice document, which offers guidance for care providers when considering workers who are deemed to be at high risk of infection or adverse outcomes from COVID-19. Please note this document might not be suitable for users with assistive technology. If you need this information in another format, please contact aopcontracts@westsussex.gov.uk
This scheme removes a potential obstacle to those considering – or wanting to continue - lives and careers in the communities and health and care services.
From 1st October, health and care staff can claim immigration health surcharge reimbursement. The IHS allows non-European Economic Area nationals to access the NHS on broadly the same basis as UK residents if they are seeking to work, study, or join family members for more than 6 months. The government’s Tier 2 health and care visa, launched in August, exempted eligible staff from paying the IHS.
The new reimbursement scheme goes further to ensure that staff not covered by the visa, but who have worked in the NHS or care sector since 31 March, are able to claim reimbursement for themselves and their dependents, even if they paid the surcharge before this date.
Sussex Health and Care partnership has an online resource for sharing health and social care training: SPECS (Sussex Platform for Education, Careers and Skills). This includes the Sussex Palliative and End of Life Care Education and Training page; RESTORE2 Training as provided by Hampshire and Isle of Wight ICB and Stop Look Care 2023 update booklet and Stop Look Care & Learning Disabilities.
Building your own resilience, health and wellbeing is a guide for anyone working in adult social care and includes personal strategies and techniques to manage pressure and stress.
Skills for Care operate an advice line to provide managers with support and answers to COVID-19 related questions.
The Skills for Care Facebook group is open to all registered managers and front-line managers in similar roles. It can support people to stay connected with other managers, share advice, experiences and guidance.
A local WhatsApp group for managers has also been set up by Karen Stevens (Skills for Care Locality Manager - London and South East) to enable managers to share information, ideas and resources with each other. Email karen.stevens@skillsforcare.org.uk for details.
Effective Supervision – these resources can help you to continue to deliver virtual supervisions and detail how to delegate the supervisor role to other staff.
Sussex Mental Healthline (0300 5000 101) offers crisis care for people in urgent need of help who are experiencing mental health problems including stress, anxiety and depression. It is also available to carers and healthcare professionals.
The Healthline operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week and no appointment is needed.
The Queens Nursing Institute has launched a new listening service for registered nurses.
The service is available to all nurses working in the community and social care.
Hospice UK has launched an Adult Social Care Bereavement and Trauma line, which can be accessed by phone on 0300 303 4434.
Specialist counsellors are available between 8am and 8pm to support people who have experienced a bereavement, witnessed traumatic deaths as part of their work, or to discuss any other anxiety or emotional issues experienced as a result of COVID-19.
Cruse Bereavement Care has developed resources on how bereavement and grief may be affected by COVID-19. It also provides advice and support on bereavement at work.
AtaLoss.org has developed information and advice to support people who are bereaved during COVID-19. This includes ideas to help people feel less alone, how to help someone who has been bereaved, advice on funerals and memorials, supporting children, and useful contacts.
There are a number of useful bereavement resources for social care workers available on the gov.uk website.
Top Tips for Tricky Times, a resource from the National Institute for Health Research has published advice on how to support staff following multiple deaths in care home environments.
The Department of Health and Social Care has issued guidance for local authorities and social care providers on steps to take following the death of a person who worked in adult social care in England. The guidance covers employees and volunteers
For the latest information on schools, visit the West Sussex County Council website
The West Sussex County Council website has information on local services that support people who are being abused.
The Department of Health and Social Care has an online platform for registered care providers seeking new candidates looking to work in social care.
Proud to Care offers support and guidance to care providers wanting to recruit new staff in West Sussex. The Proud to Care website features a dedicated hub where employers can advertise job vacancies free of charge and access useful resources on recruiting and retaining staff.
There is also a bespoke service offering 1:1 support to any West Sussex care provider who may be struggling with recruitment and retention or who would like to improve interview success and advertising investment.
If you would like to find out more, or book a 1:1 bespoke support session please email the Proud to Care team.
Email: proudtocare@westsussex.gov.uk
The ‘Proud to Care West Sussex’ recruitment campaign has created remote interview guidance, which provides advice on ways to conduct meaningful interviews with candidates over the phone or via skype.
Government information, including factsheets, updated guidelines and news stories related to DBS is available online.
When supporting people in their own homes during COVID-19 (such as domiciliary care and supported living providers) staff may wish to consider dividing people who receive care into ‘care groups’ and reducing contact between staff. For more information see government guidance about the provision of home care.
For information about safe staffing in care homes, see government guidance about admission and care of residents during COVID-19.
Safe staffing is also about having enough staff, who have the right values and skills to deliver high quality care and support. Without it, services may struggle to provide people with the safe and effective care they need and deserve.
Skills for Care's safe staffing guide will help you identify the right quantity and quality of staff to meet the needs of your service. It includes tips about deciding how many staff you need to provide a safe service, contingency planning for short-term staff shortages, carrying out the correct and necessary recruitment checks, and how to effectively use bank and agency staff.
If you are struggling to deliver the service safely as a result of diminished or unsafe staffing levels please consider using your business continuity plan to prioritise service delivery and contact the County Council's contracts team, as follows.
email: aopcontracts@westsussex.gov.uk
phone: 0330 22 25553 (during normal office hours.)
During evenings, weekends and bank holidays please contact the County Council's out of hours service by phone on 0330 2227007
Remember providers are responsible for notifying the CQC.
The visa offers a fast-track visa route for eligible health and care professionals and includes an exemption to the surcharge, making it cheaper, quicker and easier for people with the right skills from around the world to come to the UK.
The Department of Health and Social Care's Coronavirus (Covid-19): Care Home Support Package Guidance strongly recommends that care homes do all they can to restrict staff movement where possible.
It is suggested that this restriction should be extended to agency staff. The guidance includes a checklist of actions that providers of care homes should consider taking if they have not already done so.
The West Sussex Community Hub helps to connect people to local volunteers and support that they need. Four support options are currently available depending on the individual’s medical circumstances, location and needs.
Although there is no specific guidance for using volunteers in care homes during the COVID-19 pandemic, the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) guide on volunteering may be of interest.
During COVID-19 you will need to ensure that you also take into consideration guidance around infection control and PPE any volunteers require. Please go to the Infection control section for more information.
There are further volunteering resources on the NCVO website.
