September 2009 - Fighting Monsters

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Free Personal Care?!

Image by lukemontague via Flickr One of the surprises in Gordon Brown’s speech to the Labour Party Conference yesterday (to me, anyway!) was his proposal that from the middle of 2010 (election result nonewithstanding.. ) he would oversee a change to the...

Published 30 Sep 2009 6:34 AM by Fighting Monsters

Filed under: british policy, carer, carers, dementia, discrimination, domiciliary care, elderly, eligibility for free services over 65, fair access to care services, free personal care for over 65s, Gordon Brown, gordon brown's speech 29/9/09, health, labour party conference, local authority, long-term care, old age, older people, personal, politics, social care, social issues, social work, social worker, socialcare, support in the community, uk, work
Anti-Social Behaviour

The tragic faces of Fiona Pilkington and Francecca (Frankie) Harding look out from a number of newspapers this morning. Fiona and her 18 year old daughter, Frankie died when Fiona set lit to a car they were both travelling in. It is well-documented that...

Published 29 Sep 2009 7:33 AM by Fighting Monsters

Filed under: anti-social behaviour, asbo, Disability, discrimination, elderly, fiona pilkington, francecca harding, frankie harding, health, hooliganism, inquest, local authority, low level crime, mental health, personal, politics, self-advocacy, social care, social issues, social work, work
Changing IT Systems

We migrated to a new IT system a short time ago. Much angst – gnashing of teeth. The move to electronic records makes sense though. For one, I’m glad to be rid of piles of paper that linger around my general desk area – occasionally creeping onto my Read...

Published 28 Sep 2009 6:47 AM by Fighting Monsters

Filed under: IT, local authority, migrating systems, nhs, social work, work
Petition

Before I forget, a petition has been started by a user, Roberts, on Community Care’s CareSpace forum for social workers who are opposed to Deirdre Saunders’ invitation to the GSCC annual conference to sign. I was happy to sign as I think it shows both...

Published 26 Sep 2009 11:15 PM by Fighting Monsters

Filed under: deirdre saunders, gscc conference, gscc., social work taskforce, work
Blergh

Ok, not very professional. But I make no excuses on a Saturday! I’ve spent the last few days trying to figure out WordPress and all sorts of wondrously technical things that I am beginning to half-understand. One thing I have understood is that migrating...

Published 26 Sep 2009 10:20 PM by Fighting Monsters

Filed under: blog, blogging, personal, technology, wordpress, wordpress. struggles to self-host, work
Pause for Thought

I am considering some ‘back-end’ changes to my blog including moving the hosting away from wordpress.com and doing some work on the links and resources pages. I might be quiet for a few days while I try to sort in all out alongside work stuff.. So, if...

Published 23 Sep 2009 6:59 AM by Fighting Monsters

Filed under: work
Revisiting Best Interests Assessments

Last week, I carried out a Best Interests Assessment for a man whom I had first assessed six months ago. In fact, he was the first person I had assessed under the new Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards. I had, at that point, recommended that the Deprivation...

Published 22 Sep 2009 6:43 AM by Fighting Monsters

Filed under: AMHP, best interests assessment, Best Interests Assessor, dementia, deprivation of liberties, deprivation of liberties safeguards, dols, elderly, health, local authority, MCA, mental capacity act, mental health, mental health act, old age, old people, older people, section 117, section 117 aftercare, social care, social issues, social work, uk, work
World Alzheimer’s Day 2009

Today is World Alzheimer’s Day. The theme of the day this year is ‘Diagnosing Dementia : Seeing it Sooner’. Alzheimer’s Disease International explains the theme by saying that the focus is to ensure and emphasise the importance of getting a diagnosis...

Published 21 Sep 2009 5:38 AM by Fighting Monsters

Filed under: dementia, elderly, mental health, old age, older people, personal, social issues, work
Students

wonderlane at flickr Over the past week, I have submitted an application to a practice teaching programme. It was always a part of my long-term plan – for many years, I’ve mentioned my interest in taking a student within the service that I work, in fact...

Published 17 Sep 2009 6:47 AM by Fighting Monsters

Filed under: confidentiality at work, local authority, personal, practice teaching, social care, social work, social work students, uk social work, work
Sick

The Independent reports that the average social worker in the UK takes almost 60% more sick leave in any given year than the ‘average employee’. The figures were put together by MP Annette Brooke and they show that Social workers’ annual absence...

Published 16 Sep 2009 6:43 AM by Fighting Monsters

Filed under: annette brooke, average sick days, local authority, personal, politics, public sector sick leave, social care, social work, social worker sick leave, training managers, training social care managers, work
Choice

We have been taught and trained to regard choice and individuality, quite rightly, very highly. Choice is fundamental and giving people choice is a key task in developing strengths. Without allowing choice, we float around in a moral vacuum. Without choice...

Published 14 Sep 2009 6:56 AM by Fighting Monsters

Filed under: AMHP, autonomy, health, local authority, mental health act 1983, mental capacity act, Mental Capacity Act 2005, mental health, mental health act, old age, older people, personal, social issues, social work, social worker, work
Advocates

Currently I’m working with a man who has no family or friends who have been able to speak up for him or support him. Initially, as a decision about where he was going to be living was being made, I was obliged to access an IMCA (Independent Mental Capacity...

Published 11 Sep 2009 7:13 AM by Fighting Monsters

Filed under: advocacy, health, i'd rather be an advocate, imca, imha, independent mental capacity advocate, independent mental health advocate, MCA, mental health, personal, social work, social worker, socialcare, uk, work
World Suicide Prevention Day

With thanks to my sister who pointed it out, today is World Suicide Prevention Day The World Health Organisation analyse some of the figures which make a startling read – along with displaying a map of suicide precedence throughout the world. The International...

Published 10 Sep 2009 6:51 AM by Fighting Monsters

Filed under: health, mental health, personal, social issues, suicide, suicide awareness, work, world health organisation, world suicide prevention day
Hopes and Balls

Oh dear. I suppose he’s trying to claw back any credibility he might once of had. Ed Balls, the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families writes a blatheringly sympathetic piece in the Guardian about how much he supports social workers. Nice...

Published 9 Sep 2009 6:12 AM by Fighting Monsters

Filed under: deirdre saunders, Ed Balls, General Social Care Council, gscc., health, local authority, mental health, old age, older people, social care, social issues, social services, social work, social work taskforce, social worker, the guardian, uk, work
Drawing a close

I went out with all the best intentions on my visits last week. I was going to see a couple of people I hadn’t seen for a while but about whom I wasn’t overly concerned, to discuss the end of my involvement with a view to working towards discharging them...

Published 8 Sep 2009 6:47 AM by Fighting Monsters

Filed under: care programme approach, closing cases, cpa, elderly, goodbye, health, local authority, mental health, old age, older people, older peoples services, saying goodbye, social care, social work, socialcare, work
Research and Tests

It has been widely reported over the last day, at any rate, that there has been a new breakthrough in research into the causes of Alzheimer’s and that three specific gene mutations have been identified as being present in almost 100,000 of Alzheimer’s...

Published 7 Sep 2009 6:54 AM by Fighting Monsters

Filed under: alzheimers, Alzheimer's disease, bang goes the theory, BBC, dementia, elderly, health, health care, mental health, old age, older people, Research, research into alzheimer's, tv experiments, work
Safeguarding

I was drawn, somewhat by chance (because I happened to be the only social worker at the CMHT meeting in question, I think) into a Safeguarding Adults investigation which has been cause for a lot of thought and strategic planning recently. Without any...

Published 4 Sep 2009 6:28 AM by Fighting Monsters

Filed under: Abuse, abuse within families, adult protection, elderly, family dynamics, local authority, mental health, old age, older people, safeguarding adults, social care, social work, work
Have a Drink

Another day, another research study. I shouldn’t be over-cynical because Research is Science but sometimes it seems you can find a study to tell you just about whatever you want to know.. anyway.. The New York Times published a story earlier in the week...

Published 2 Sep 2009 6:55 AM by Fighting Monsters

Filed under: alcohol, dementia, elderly, healthy drinking, mental health, New York Times, old age, older people, personal, preventing alzheimer's, preventing dementia, work
Help Give Them a Voice

I haven’t mentioned the ‘Give Them a Voice’ campaign that has been trickling out videos to promote social work as a career over the past few weeks– and as it is due to launch the beginning of September – and looking at my calendar, that seems to be about...

Published 1 Sep 2009 6:53 AM by Fighting Monsters

Filed under: british social workers, campaign, emilia fox, give them a voice, give them voice, goldie, help give them a voice, local authority, media campaign, michelle ryan, positive images of social work, recruitment campaign, samantha morton, social care, social issues, social work, social work in the uk, social work recruitment, their voice, uk, work

September 2009 - Fighting Monsters

Syndication

Recent Posts

Tags

Archives

Free Personal Care?!

Anti-Social Behaviour

Changing IT Systems

Petition

Blergh

Pause for Thought

Revisiting Best Interests Assessments

World Alzheimer’s Day 2009

Students

Sick

Choice

Advocates

World Suicide Prevention Day

Hopes and Balls

Drawing a close

Research and Tests

Safeguarding

Have a Drink

Help Give Them a Voice