Learning from Mistakes30th April 2007

Philippa ThompsonICAS Director, South of England Advocacy Projects

Kirstie BlencoweICAS Director, POhWER

Alicia RaymondICAS Director, Carers Federation

The Role of the Independent Complaints Advocacy Service

ICAS update:

Tendering process

Award of three new contracts by DH from 1st April 2006

5 year contracts for the delivery of service

Based on 9 English regions

Carers Federation – NE, NW, Yorkshire and Humberside and East Midlands

POhWER – East of England, London and West Midlands

SEAP – South East and South West

What is independent advocacy?

Advocacy is a way of empowering people to:
articulate their views, wishes and feelings themselves, or through a competent and independent voice
safeguard their rights

In order to:
ensure that services are accessible and appropriate, and identify gaps in service provision
ensure that the voice of the person is heard, and influences decisions made about him/her by those in a position of power

ADVOCACY PRINCIPLES

Independence:
Service providers (Statutory, Private & Voluntary)?

Best Interests:
Advocate does not influence/take view
Act as impartial conduit for client’s views regardless of own opinion

Empowerment:
Self-advocacy
Client-led
Client in control of advocacy process
Nothing without consent of client

Service Provision

Generic service – accessible to all

Self advocacy and supported advocacy

Balance between remote support – telephone and email - and specialist support

Community and office based

National complaints statistics2006/07 (draft figures)

7,561 new cases (supported or specialist advocacy

17,944 client contact (self advocating or signposting)?

6,437 cases closed

5,876 live cases at 31 March 2007

Complaint level

• Local Resolution 86%
• Healthcare Commission 10%
• P. H. S. Ombudsman 4%
  

Practitioner Area

• Medical 71%
• Nursing, Midwifery, Health Visitor 7%
• Dentistry 5%

Cause of grievance

• Multiple Aspects Clinical Treatment 12.8%
• Misdiagnosis 12.6%
• Attitude of staff 10.2%

Client age

• 0 -16 6%
• 17 - 59 52%
• 60+ 27%
• not stated 15%
  

Clients who disclosed a disability (1500+)

• Physical Disability 49%
• Mental Illness 25%
• Learning Difficulty 4%
• Other Disability 21%

Prison Clients

• Initial contacts 92
• Ongoing support 76

ICAS Focus on harder to reach groups:

Prisons
Mental Health
People with learning disabilities
People with physical disabilities
Travellers
Children and young people
Black and ethnic minority groups

Case study

Care of patient with breast cancer
Palliative care issues
Short staffing
Communication breakdown
Compounded by time of year

Outcomes

Matron shared experience and now sits on palliative care team
Two side wards dedicated to terminally ill patients
Extra staff training
Specialist equipment
Renamed the suite in memory of the patient

Working in partnership

With
NHS providers
PALS and Patient Forums
With community and voluntary sector service providers
With other advocacy services

Through:
Networking plans
Shared knowledge, information and understanding
Referral protocols

ICAS providers working in partnership

Through:

Joint publications and promotional materials
Common branding
Shared knowledge, information and understanding
Referral protocols

Revised Self Help Information Pack

Website development

Multi-media DVD

Posters

Leaflets in ethnic minority languages and Braille

Sharing information for effective service
improvement

Networking plans to build relationships

Seamless transition for ICAS

ICAS… 5 years on

last updated 22/05/07