Children's Care Co-ordinator

Hours: 37.5 hours per week, Mon - Fri, 12 months fixed term

Salary: Up to £30,000 depending on experience

Care co-ordinators support patients and carers to navigate services across the health and care system, helping people make the right connections and get the right support at the right time. They can support people to be more active and involved in their own health and care and to recognise when their needs are changing. Care co-ordinators are effective at supporting a multi-disciplinary approach for patients with complex needs.

Main duties of the job

This project will seek to understand any gaps in service provision and improve co-ordination and support between existing groups and services in the NHS and across the system.

1. Take referrals from anyone in the GP Practice team and from the emergency departments. Suitable referrals include:

• Young people referred to specialist mental health services

• Level 1 phone call(s) and signposting to support/information
• Level 2 one face-to-face assessment and personalised plan

About us

This role requires a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check due to the nature of the work and the need to safeguard patients.

This position offers an opportunity to make a meaningful impact in healthcare delivery within a supportive and dynamic team.

Job responsibilities

Organisations across South Warwickshire are working together to respond to the increase in children experiencing poor mental health and reduce the number of children in crisis. There is an increase in the number of children seeking support for mental health conditions from their GP and local A&E departments. This project, put together using a partnership approach with representation from the NHS, local authority and community and voluntary sector, looks to provide care co-ordinator support to young people, already referred to mental health services, who are experiencing ongoing challenges with accessing support and help. The care co-ordinators will support the identification of the most appropriate services to help and support their care while they are waiting for specialist services and help co-ordinate services and support across health, social care and the voluntary sector. The main aim is to prevent escalation to a crisis point which often leads young people to attending emergency departments. This should improve the quality of life for these children, young people and their carers and improve outcomes for this vulnerable group in our population.

1. Referrals

• Take referrals from a wide range of agencies, initially working with GP practices within primary care networks, ED departments, hospital discharge teams, allied health professionals, and mental health services
• Promoting social prescribing, its role in self-management, and the wider determinants of health.
• Build relationships with key staff in GP practices within the local Primary Care Network (PCN), attending relevant meetings, becoming part of the wider network team, giving information and feedback on this care co-ordinator role
• Be proactive in developing strong links with all local agencies to encourage referrals, recognising what they need to be confident in the service to make appropriate referrals.
• Work in partnership with all local agencies to raise awareness of the project and how partnership working can reduce pressure on statutory services, improve health outcomes and enable a holistic approach to care.
• Provide referral agencies with regular updates about the care co-ordinator service, including training for their staff and how to access information to encourage appropriate referrals.
• Be proactive in connecting with all local communities, particularly those communities that statutory agencies may find hard to reach.
• Have a clear escalation plan for patients whose needs change and require more specialised support
• Provide personalised support to individuals, their families and carers to take control of their wellbeing, live independently and improve their health outcomes while waiting for specialist services
• Develop trusting relationships by giving people time and focus on what matters to me. Take a holistic approach, based on the persons priorities and the wider determinants of health. Co-produce a personalised support plan to improve health and wellbeing, introducing or reconnecting people to community groups and statutory services to support while waiting for specialist care.
• Manage and prioritise caseload, in accordance with the needs, priorities and any urgent support required by individuals.
• Meet people on a one-to-one basis, making home visits where appropriate within organisations policies and procedures. Give people time to tell their stories and focus on what matters to me
• Build trust with the person providing non-judgmental support, respecting diversity and lifestyle choices
• Work with the young person, their families and carers and consider how they can all be supported
• Where appropriate, physically introduce/reconnect people to community groups, activities and statutory services ensuring they are comfortable. This may involve working evenings
• Follow up to ensure specialist service review occurs and they are supported in the interim

Forge strong links with local VCSE organisations, community and neighborhood level groups, utilising their networks and building on what’s already available to contribute to a menu of community groups and assets.

Develop supportive relationships with local VCSE organisations, community groups and statutory services, to make timely, appropriate and supported referrals for the person being introduced.

Identify any gaps in service/activity provision and highlight these to the relevant staff.

Work sensitively with people, their families and carers to capture key information, enabling tracking of the impact of care co-ordinator on their health and wellbeing.

Input data onto the GP Practice clinical system using appropriate clinical coding.

All members of staff must ensure that information security is maintained at all times, taking personal responsibility to be aware of and ensure that their actions and behaviors are in line with information governance policies.

Encourage people, their families and carers to provide feedback and to share their stories about the impact of care co-ordinator on their lives.

Support referral agencies to provide appropriate information about the person they are referring.

Provide appropriate feedback to referral agencies about people they referred.

Provide data and reports as required.

Partake in audit as directed by the PCN or SWGP

Undertake continual personal and professional development.

Adhere to organisational policies and procedures, including confidentiality, safeguarding, lone working, information governance, and health and safety.

Engage in regular clinical supervision, to enable you to deal effectively with the difficult issues that people present.

Person Specification

Qualifications

• Work as part of the team to seek feedback, continually improve the service and contribute to business planning.
• Undertake any tasks consistent with the level of the post and the scope of the role, ensuring that work is delivered in a timely and effective manner.
• Abide by and behave according to South Warwickshire GP Federations policies and procedures which may be amended from time to time.
• Duties may vary from time to time, without changing the general character of the post or the level of responsibility.
• The post will involve working from home as well as in GP Practices and other community venues. GP practice usually open until 6.30pm and evening work may be requirements.

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.