Nottinghamshire County Council adapts its social care workforce to combat coronavirus pandemic

A council has adapted its social care workforce in a wide variety of ways to respond to the coronavirus crisis.

It is expected there will be an increasing numbers of people who may need additional support when they are discharged from hospital.

To be ready for this, Nottinghamshire County Council has worked in partnership with community health services and hospital staff in the three Urgent Care Systems across the county to simplify discharge processes and rapidly create two community health and social care discharge hubs.

This means that that individual community support can now quickly be put in place for people who need it and we will continue to be able to free up hospital beds for people who need them.

Here are some of the other ways the county council has adapted its working practices to prepare for the expected increase in patients being discharged from hospital:

• Fifty staff have so far been redeployed from other teams to boost the Council’s internal home care team, with more set to move over the coming weeks if required. The home care team provides the initial care and support for people who are discharged from hospital such as help with getting dressed and showering
• Bishops Court care home in Boughton has been reopened and is able to provide short term support for people who have been discharged from hospital but are not yet fit enough to return home.
• The council continues to run a recruitment campaign for temporary relief social care staff and has so far attracted 250 applicants. These will be used in a range of roles including home care, Bishops Court care home and short breaks for carers.
• A pool of council staff have completed training in key aspects of care and are ready to be redeployed to support care providers who may be struggling with capacity.

Amanda Lucas has been redeployed from the council’s day services team to work at Bishops Court.

She said: “It is a place where staff and managers are supporting each other and being united in delivering critical social care in a fast-paced changing environment.

"A new team has been formed, different staff levels and skills have joined together with two main priorities - one to support vulnerable customers and the other to maintain the health and safety of everyone.

"Without staff like myself who are flexible and have a positive attitude it would not be possible to run such services to support customers in such a critical time.”

Mick Roberts has also been redeployed to Bishops Court from the day services team and said: “I did not know a great deal about Bishops Court but knew I wished to help in any way I could by transferring some of my working skills I had developed over the years working for the Council.

"I was welcomed right away by the staff team and the manager Ginny, who introduced me to the team. I was given an induction that outlined my role, the building and service users. Staff were very welcoming, all with the goal of delivering a positive safe service.”