What's New Bulletin 178 - 04 January 2024
This is edition 178 of the provider bulletin, containing information on guidance, procedures and new initiatives. Very urgent or high priority communications may still be issued on an ad hoc basis, but we will try to keep these to a minimum
1. Care Homes Market Intelligence Questionnaire (MIQ) – January 2024 – DEADLINE 19 January 2024 (information for all Birmingham and contracted care homes)
2. Digital Care Hub: Free data security and protection eLearning course for social care staff (information for all providers)
3. Care Quality Commission (CQC) New guidance on alcohol in care homes (information for care homes)
4. Care Quality Commission (CQC) New blog: Bringing humanity into action – our revised human rights approach to regulation (information for all providers)
5. REMINDER Junior doctors' industrial action: what this means for the care sector (information for all providers)
6. REMINDER CONSULTATION Non-Statutory Budget Consultation 2024/25 17 January 2024 (information for all providers employing Birmingham residents)
7. REMINDER Department of Health and Social Care Made with Care campaign 2023/2024 (information for all providers)
8. REMINDER Help in Brum – Help for vulnerable people in short-term crisis with food and essential items (information for all providers)
9. REMINDER CareFind: Public Facing Website from Capacity Tracker - Training Dates for Care Home Providers (information for all care homes)
10. REMINDER NHS England funded Resilience Based Clinical Supervision programme (RBCS) (information for all nurses within social care settings)
11. REMINDER Communicate 2U and Birmingham and Solihull Integrated Care Board (BSol ICB) Rethink communication event - 18 January 2024 (information for providers supporting citizens with learning disabilities)
12. REMINDER NHE England Health Literate Organisation programme: upcoming events January and February 2024 (information for all providers)
13. Personalised care training 2024 (information for all West Midlands providers)
14. Shared decision making 2024 (information for all West Midlands providers)
15. Bladder and Bowel Training for carers 2nd February 2024 (information for all West Midlands providers)
16. LeDeR Report (information for all providers)
17. Launch of UKHSA reporting tool and response process for Acute Respiratory Infections in adult social care (information for all West Midlands providers)
1. Care Homes Market Intelligence Questionnaire (MIQ) – January 2024 – DEADLINE 19 January 2024 (information for all Birmingham and contracted care homes)
This is the first quarterly version of the questionnaire, with some additional questions added to the monthly question set. Further information about this subject has been circulated to providers. To request a copy, email marketintelligence@birmingham.gov.uk
Completion of the questionnaire is part of the terms of our current contracts for contracted providers, but we ask all Birmingham providers to take part in the process to help us meet our responsibilities to all Birmingham citizens.
Many thanks to staff at the care homes who completed the previous questionnaires. If this did not include your care home, make sure that you complete the October and subsequent editions.
The purpose of the questionnaire is to collect information to assist our market shaping and development role, the production of our Market Position Statements, fulfil our Care Act duties around ensuring a quality and sustainable market, to help us direct resources, identify areas of risk, and monitor progress towards our strategic aims. It has been co-produced with health colleagues to reduce duplication in data collection, and has been streamlined so that we are only collecting information that is not available to us from elsewhere e.g. the Capacity Tracker.
We will only be collecting data that we will use and at the frequency we need it. There is a shorter monthly questionnaire, a slightly longer quarterly questionnaire with some additional questions, and a slightly longer still annual questionnaire.
Further information about this subject has been circulated to providers. To request a copy, email marketintelligence@birmingham.gov.uk
2. Digital Care Hub: Free data security and protection eLearning course for social care staff (information for all providers)
Care providers can now improve and assess their staff’s knowledge of data security and protection using a new elearning resource specifically designed for the care sector.
The link above is the national and local programme supporting adult care providers with data security - has developed the course in response to a gap in the market. It’s free, short, and packed with relevant scenarios to help all staff in adult social care services understand how to keep information safe.
The course also enables care providers to meet the training requirements within the DSPT, see link below, collate information about how many staff have successfully completed the course, and use that as evidence against the DSPT requirement to train at least 95% of staff every year.
Data Security and Protection Toolkit
3. Care Quality Commission (CQC) New guidance on alcohol in care homes (information for care homes)
The CQC have worked with the University of Bedfordshire to produce guidance for members of the public and care home managers on the availability and management of alcohol in care homes. The guidance is based on a study on alcohol use in care homes which found that residents, families, staff and inspectors felt strongly that people living in care homes should be able to continue drinking alcohol when they move into a home.
The research findings and new guidance can be downloaded:
the University of Bedfordshire's Substance Misuse and Ageing Research Team's web pages
News story: Guidance on the management of alcohol in care settings
4. Care Quality Commission (CQC) New blog: Bringing humanity into action – our revised human rights approach to regulation (information for all providers)
Lucy Wilkinson, interim head of equality, health inequalities and human rights, has written a blog looking at the fundamental link between human rights and delivering safe, good quality care. The blog discusses the CQCs refreshed human rights approach, based on the FREDA principles of fairness, respect, equality, dignity and autonomy, and how this works with their new assessment framework.
The CQCs human rights approach recognises that rights-based care is intrinsically linked with the quality of care.
Blog: Bringing humanity into action — our revised human rights approach to regulation
Our updated human rights approach
5. REMINDER Junior doctors' industrial action: what this means for the care sector (information for all providers)
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has written to the care sector about preparations to cope with industrial action by junior doctors. Action will start again 3-9 January 2024. These new rounds of industrial action come at an already challenging time for the health and care system, alongside winter pressures including flu, COVID-19 and norovirus.
The letter asks Directors of Adult Social Care Services to help care providers coordinate with the NHS, local authorities and other partners to prevent avoidable hospital admission and accelerate patient discharge processes. Your support is hugely appreciated.
Read the full letter from the DHSC here;
Letter to DASS - Forthcoming Industrial Action by Junior Doctors
6. REMINDER CONSULTATION Non-Statutory Budget Consultation 2024/25 17 January 2024 (information for all providers employing Birmingham residents)
As has been widely publicised, Birmingham City Council is in a difficult financial situation and has some challenging budget savings to achieve over the coming years.
We want to hear from you, your staff and service users on what is important to you. The survey will take approximately 10-15 minutes and include questions about which services matter to you and any suggestions you may have. You can choose whether to comment on all questions or just those you select.
To take part in the consultation, visit;
Non-Statutory Budget Consultation 2024/25
7. REMINDER Department of Health and Social Care Made with Care campaign 2023/2024 (information for all providers)
The next phase of the national recruitment campaign has now gone live and your brand-new campaign resources are now ready to download and use.
These resources enable you to use the national advertising to signpost potential applicants to your job vacancies. Following feedback from care providers, they feature new imagery designed to reflect more accurately the typical daily routines for care workers in both care homes and domiciliary settings.
You can add your logo and details to the assets – visit the centre below or campaign page to get started.
New for this year, there’s also a Skills for Care webinar available to download and watch. This provides useful background on the campaign, how to get involved with it and how it can support your recruitment.
8. REMINDER Help in Brum – Help for vulnerable people in short-term crisis with food and essential items (information for all providers)
Please share the below information with staff and service users as appropriate.
Help in Brum is the council’s support for people in Birmingham who are in need of help due to cost of living crisis. The council has information and support offers around a number of areas with full information on the Council's website using the link below. It can help people who want help accessing grants and debt advice, support getting all the money they are entitled to or simply wanting to know more about the government’s support measures.
Cost of living support | Birmingham City Council
9. REMINDER CareFind: Public Facing Website from Capacity Tracker - Training Dates for Care Home Providers (information for all care homes)
The Capacity Tracker team, have been developing a new tool to help members of the public search for Care Home vacancies via a new public facing website, CareFind. Capacity Tracker will provide this as a free service for Providers on an opt-out basis, with some conditions in place.
The concept of CareFind has been developed with the support of the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England. CareFind aims to give benefits to both providers and people looking for care services, building on the information and resource of Capacity Tracker.
In the New Year they will be running training sessions on how to create your public profile that will be visible on CareFind. To register for a session, please click on one of the links below.
For later dates, visit the Resource Centre.
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3 January 2024 |
2:00pm to 3:30pm |
Provider Training |
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4 January 2024 |
Midday to 1:30 pm |
Provider Training |
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5 January 2024 |
1:00pm to 2:30 pm |
Provider Training |
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10 January 2024 |
11:00am am to 12:30pm |
Provider Training |
The Capacity Tracker team recommend providers review and refresh your current provider details.
If you have any queries when updating your information, don’t hesitate to contact the Capacity Tracker Support Centre on 0191 691 3729 or necsu.capacitytracker@nhs.net
10.REMINDER NHS England funded Resilience Based Clinical Supervision programme (RBCS) (information for all nurses within social care settings)
The Foundation of Nursing Studies (FoNS) are delighted to be launching a RBCS programme specifically for nurses across England in all social care settings. The programme will be delivered virtually to a group of participants (Champions), using MS Teams, by FoNS facilitators.
The programme involves:
Recommended pre-work (up to 1 hour)
Sessions 1-3 (3 hours each) – around one week apart. These sessions will focus on both the principles underpinning RBCS and the practice of RBCS
Sessions 4-5 (2 hours each) – around one month apart. These sessions will focus on the practice of RBCS and the cascade of RBCS within your organisation
The total commitment is approximately 15 hours per participant, including pre-work, group work, reflection and evaluation
Want to find out more?
Contactrbcs.socialcare@fons.orgfor an informal discussion and to find out more about the programme
Download flyer below
To sign up, complete the online booking form below and ask your manager to complete the Managers form below and email torbcs.socialcare@fons.org. Following this, the FoNS will be intouch to arrange suitable dates with you.
11. REMINDER Communicate 2U and Birmingham and Solihull Integrated Care Board (BSol ICB) Rethink communication event - 18 January 2024 (information for providers supporting citizens with learning disabilities)
Accessible and inclusive communication is an integral part of the 20 LeDeR priorities to improve the experiences of people with a learning disability (PWLD), their families and carers when accessing health and social care.
You are invited to a service-user led, free interactive workshop to help staff to identify the cultural patterns of communication with people with a learning disability within their settings. The event is scheduled for Thursday 18 January 2024 at 9:30am – 1:00pm at The Auditorium, 10 Woodcock Street, Aston, Birmingham, B7 4BL.
12. REMINDER NHE England Health Literate Organisation programme: upcoming events January and February 2024 (information for all providers)
The Health Literate Organisation Programme provides health and care professionals with health literacy awareness supported by tools, techniques and expert advice. It supports “Health Literacy Champions” to guide their team or services on the health literacy journey. It follows an evidence-based approach to helping organisations become health literate by wrapping the health literacy work in a change management approach to give it the best chance of succeeding and enduring. It consists of:
- Health Literacy Awareness Training
- Health Literate Organisation Workshops
- Access to the Health Literacy Group on the Knowledge Hub
- Guidance from a health literacy expert
- Community of Practice Workshops
These free events, brought to you on behalf of NHS England for health and care organisations across the Midlands will take place on Zoom.
Please book via Eventbrite below. Please note that you must have attended a Health Literacy Awareness session (as part of this programme or elsewhere) to attend a Health Literate Organisation workshop.
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Event |
Eventbrite link |
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Health Literacy Awareness training: Wednesday 31st January, 2024, 9:00am to 11:00am |
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Health Literate Organisation workshop: Tuesday 27th February, 2024, 12th 9:00am to midday |
13. Personalised care training 2024 (information for all West Midlands providers)
PCSP is targeted at staff who develop and/or update care and support plans with patients. Getting personalised care and support planning right is essential for people to gain more
choice and control over their life and the support they are receiving to manage their health. This Trainer-LED, interactive session will cover:
- Benefits of PCSP and the key elements
- High-quality vs sub-optimal conversations
- Quality standards and distorted perceptions
- Conversation frameworks with structured stages
- Developing personalised outcomes
- Challenges of goal setting
- Application to practice
14. Shared decision making 2024 (information for all West Midlands providers)
Shared Decision Making (SDM) is an essential component of personalised care, enabling patients to participate in shared decision making conversations, improving their motivation
and health outcomes, whilst reducing health inequalities, risk and cost. This Trainer-LED, interactive session will cover:
- Benefits of SDM
- Key elements of a SDM Conversations
- Processes, preferences and risk management
- The role of health literacy
- Creating the right conditions for success
- Application to practice
15. Bladder and Bowel Training for carers 2nd February 2024 (information for all West Midlands providers)
The Association for Continence professionals is providing an education day for care home staff on Bladder and Bowel Care, Infection Prevention, Continence Management, Catheter Care, Continence assessment.
Further information about this subject has been circulated to providers. If you don’t have a copy, please email marketintelligence@birmingham.gov.uk
16. LeDeR Report (information for all providers)
We are pleased to inform you that the seventh annual ‘Learning from lives and deaths – People with a learning disability and autistic people’ (LeDeR) report has been published by King’s College London. Please be aware an easy read versions in text and video formats are also available via this link .
Here at the LeDeR team we anticipate that this will be available shortly via the BSol website page.
May we take this opportunity to thank you all once again for your support for the LeDeR process and your role in challenging the inequalities that individuals across Birmingham and Solihull with a Learning Disability and Autism face.
The link holds access to the following:
17. Launch of UKHSA reporting tool and response process for Acute Respiratory Infections in adult social care (information for all West Midlands providers)
A new online Outbreak Risk Assessment Tool for Care Settings (Care OBRA Tool) is being piloted by UKHSA WM HPT (West Midlands Health Protection Team) from December 2023.
It is for use by Adult Social Care (ASC) settings for reporting new outbreaks of Acute Respiratory Infections (ARIs) including COVID-19, and unidentified ARI (e.g. chest infections)
- It will also be used for reporting BOTH single cases AND outbreaks of Influenza
- It will not be used for: Single COVID-19 and single ARI (unknown micro- organism) cases (these do not need reporting), nor updates of existing outbreaks, nor reporting of non-ARI outbreaks e.g. norovirus
- It will not be used by: Children’s Care Homes, any healthcare setting that is not ASC (including Hospitals, Hospices, Dental surgeries, GP surgeries)
This new web based tool enables care settings to report ARI outbreaks directly to UKHSA via the following web-link without the need to call or email the UKHSA HPT;
Care Outbreak Risk Assessment (Care OBRA) Tool: (ukhsa.gov.uk)
Further information about this subject has been circulated to providers. If you do not have a copy, email marketintelligence@birmingham.gov.uk