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Complex Care Service, West Midlands Rehabilitation Centre

Complex Care is a unique service, which has been designed to work closely with District Nurses, Community Health Care Coordinators and Discharge Liaison Nurses, to provide care to patients within their own home. The service is Birmingham city wide. Our patients vary from people with long term illnesses e.g. Multiple Sclerosis, Motor Neurone Disease to those with severe disability e.g. Cerebral Palsy to terminal patients.

The service provides care which can be from one hour visits daily to 24 hour care, for patients with complex care needs. We also operate a fast track discharge system for terminally ill patients. Patients can be children, adults or older adults. In order to be eligible for care patients must require nursing care and meet the Continuing Health Care Criteria or require a joint Social/Health package of care. The patient and relatives must agree to have care provided at home and care at home must be deemed appropriate from a medical and nursing viewpoint. Appropriate facilities for care in the home must be available prior to discharge. The service is delivered by care coordinators, senior support nurses and support nurses as well as bank staff which include trained nurses, children’s nurses and support nurses.

The service has recently piloted a new recruitment process within one of its care packages. This two phase recruitment process includes the initial short listing via usual Trust recruitment procedures followed by a second phase in which the patient is involved in the interview stage. The patient themselves select their own questions and carry out part of the interview using a scoring system. The questions are designed to reflect the personal and social care requirements that the patient may have and ensure that a suitable candidate is selected from both an organisational and patient perspective, therefore empowering the patient to be involved in how their care is delivered. Information on the recruitment process is available on request, including example questions.

Personal involvement in the recruitment process has helped the patient and his carers feel important to Complex Care and enhanced team working for the staff. The patient feels more in control of their own life, choosing staff with similar interests for his care package.

For more information about the project please contact: Brenda Mason-Baker, Complex Care Manager, Complex Care Service, West Midlands Rehabilitation Centre, Unit 7/8 Selly Oak Industrial Estate, Selly Wharf, Selly Oak, B29 6LR
Tel: (0121) 415 2048
Email:

• Brenda.mason-baker@sbpct.nhs.uk (opens new window)