Headway Somerset Neurology Matters Presentation January 2014

Language Challenges facing people when they are trying to be heard or to explain what is going on for them are compounded by the language like to Comply make Progress Jargon Words that are laden with subjectivity and can feel punitive when applied in therapeutic settings.

Definitions from Collins Dictionary comply (kəm ˈ pla ɪ ) vb (intr), -plies, -plying or -plied 1. (usually foll by with) to act in accordance with rules, wishes, etc; be obedient (to) 2. to be obedient or complaisant

Definition progress n 1. movement forwards, esp towards a place or objective 2. satisfactory development, growth, or advance: she is making progress in maths.

What is a Support Plan It is very difficult to comply with expectations and to live up to assumptions about the amount of progress you should be making if you have no memory of when and how these agreements were made and/or there was an awful lot of information and activity going on at the same time when you apparently agreed to this.

When the Crisis is Over Then come the “Assessments” At first you feel OK about this, after all these Assessors know what it's all about don't they? Oh dear, apparently it doesn't necessarily mean that the end result will be an offer of help at all, in fact it can mean for some that because of our failure to “comply” or to be able to “make progress” there is nothing on offer at all. Am I eligible?

Assessment But what does assessment actually mean? assessment noun 1. judgment, analysis, determination, evaluation, valuation, appraisal, estimation, rating, opinion, e stimate, computation He was remanded to a mental hospital for assessment. judgment analysis determination evaluation valuation appraisal estimation rating opinion e stimate computation

Partnership I would like to invite you to hear directly from some of our service users and their carers about what their experiences are and have been on their recovery journey. This was part of a project called Shaping Our Lives. The result of which has been the setting up of a Service User reference group which now influences the way we deliver our services at Headway Somerset.

Shaping Our Lives GATvLghttp:// GATvLg This DVD was made possible by the support of our local school, assistance from the Princes Trust and funding from Somerset Skills and Learning.

Partnership benefits Also on the partnership theme, when you have time please do read the report compiled by the Somerset LINk, which has now evolved into Healthwatch I believe, which has built on these stories and provided advice to Health and Social Care commissioners about how to improve servies to people with brain injuries. The link to this document is way_report_march_2013.pdf way_report_march_2013.pdf

Patients views about brain injury services in Somerset Somerset Report and Recommendations

Continued Benefits There are many benefits to working in partnership with others. There is a general buzz about the place, people open up and start to share their experiences and to listen to each other. We all learn something new. In this room today there will be many shared issues and some differences but what we will all gain from is the pooling of all that knowledge and knowing that we are all united in wanting to make sure that people who need to access health and social care services get what they need.

Personal Perspective Ann Marie FINE Discussion about service provision and accessibility