Assessment
3.1 Each child or young person must have a holistic health assessment on entering the care system. This first assessment should not be an isolated event but part of a continuous process to ensure the provision of high quality healthcare.
3.2 The first health assessment must be undertaken by a suitably qualified medical practitioner but subsequent reviews may now be undertaken by a registered nurse or midwife under the supervision of a registered medical practitioner.
3.3 The first health assessment should result in a health plan by the time of the child's first review, four weeks after becoming looked after. Where a child has already been assessed as a child in need under the Assessment Framework, this assessment should be updated to take account of the change in the child's circumstances. A new assessment may not always be required.
3.4 Before the assessment, it is vital to collate as much background information as possible. All health services staff with information about the child's health should ensure this is disclosed to the person undertaking the assessment without delay. Information held by social services should also be made available particularly any information derived from an assessment undertaken in accordance with the Assessment Framework, including the child's personal and family history if this is known.
3.5 The aim of the health assessment is to enable the child to have their health needs assessed holistically and to develop a plan to meet those needs. Successful health assessments will be appropriate to the child's age, stage of development and personal circumstances. Attention should also be paid to the child's behavioural or emotional development including evidence of health risk taking behaviours.
Health plans, care plans
3.6 The health plan should be developed from the health assessment. It should clearly set out the objectives, actions, time- scales and responsibilities arising from the assessment. Each child's health plan should follow a broadly similar structure - a brief description of identified health issues should be followed by clearly headed actions points, with a time-scale by when they will be actioned, and by whom. It will form part of the child's care plan.
3.7 Implementation of the health plan requires a systematic check through the action list to ensure things happen when they should. It is the responsibility of the designated doctor or nurse to ensure that there is a local system in place to deliver this responsibility. The health plan will be reviewed as part of the child's statutory review.
3.8 The "lead"
health record for the looked after child or young person should be the GP held record. A copy of the health assessment and health plan should form part of this. The health plan should be continued as appropriate when the child returns home. Every effort should be made to ensure the child does not end up with a series of "temporary records"
.
