OPPORTUNITIES TO GET INVOLVED

OUR WORKING GROUPS

Helping Professionals Learn from Carers
This group continues to thrive with all members of the group working hard to facilitate carer involvement on relevant courses at universities they have agreed to support. Some 15 degree and postgraduate courses across the region (including social work, nursing, psychiatry and interdisciplinary mental health) now have some carer involvement content due to the efforts of the group members but there is still a long way to go. More carers are needed to help with the work of this group.

BME Carers
Following a major event in October, this group is actively involved in developing actions and guidance notes for commissioners, service providers, clinicians and voluntary organisations on strategies to involve BME carers in the planning and delivering of services.

Carers of Older People
The group has agreed that its meetings are ‘facilitated’ so as to help create ‘outcomes’ useful to both carers and the service.  The next meeting will include a presentation on self-directed care and direct payments by Sue Williams and a work-session led by Mike Rochfort of CSIP on the development of a national dementia strategy.  Members may be interested in an event “Mental Health Needs of Older People” at Staffordshire University to be held on 12 March 2008—to register contact Elaine Stanway: 01785 353742.

Young Carers
This is a developing portfolio of work related to helping the needs of Young Carers to be given a higher profile by commissioners and providers and also to try and influence the improvement of family facilities in acute care settings. The Barnado’s project ‘Keeping the Family in Mind’ is very relevant to this topic. There is scope for very significant work to be done in this area but key to this is obtaining funding in the next financial year. Work is being done on this topic in conjunction with The Meriden Parental Mental Health group. Any members interested in developing this programme (if funding becomes available) should contact us