News

Many congratulations to both Lynne Barbone and Chris Sirman, who have recently completed the ACM in-house Professional Development Programme.   All Case Managers take part in the PDP which incorporates taught sessions with follow up study.  Among the topics included are sessions on goal setting and client engagement, working with other professionals, working with deputies, and safeguarding.

Both Lynne and Chris work with adult clients, and have enjoyed and benefitted from the PDP.

When asked about her experience at ACM,  Lynne said “Moving to ACM 3 years ago was a very positive move for me, I am able to give the time to each client to really focus on what they want to achieve and how to live the kind of life they want to live.  The 2 year PDP cycle has given me time to reflect on my existing skills as a social worker and strengthen areas I am less familiar with.

I’m looking forward to 2022 and supporting clients with a variety of holidays, community based activities, house moves and at least one wedding!”

Chris said “On completion of the excellent PDP programme at ACM I can honestly say that I feel it is programmes like this that that are the difference between having a staff team that care and a staff team that are empowered with the best knowledge, support and guidance out there to not just care but to excel.

It is one of many reasons why ACM has achieved an Outstanding CQC rating and has genuinely benefitted me and my professional practice with clients and others under our case management and rehabilitation services.”

 

 

 

 

We are pleased to support National Safeguarding Adults Week.   The focus is on Creating Safer Cultures by minimising the risk of harm occurring, whilst at the same time ensuring policies and procedures are in place so that if any concerns raised, they are dealt with appropriately and effectively.

At ACM we have a Safeguarding Team, and provide mandatory Safeguarding training regularly to all staff, including our Support Workers.   We also operate in a no-blame culture, have a Speaking Up policy, and offer Duty and On-call Case Managers.

The week has highlighted to us the importance of language, and Jo Mills, one of our Case Managers has written the following article on how empowering language should be.

The Power of Language – Why Words Matter

This year National Safeguarding Adults week takes place from 15-21 November. It offers all of us, organisations, and individuals that opportunity to come together to raise awareness of safeguarding, highlight key issues and think about best practice so we can take steps to minimise harm occurring. This year the focus is on the theme of ‘Creating Safer Cultures’ which includes encouraging organisations and individuals to think about the power of language in safeguarding practice.  

At ACM we are passionate about supporting the people we care for to lead the life they want to. Through verbal and written communication, language is embedded within our daily work with our clients. Yet our language is not neutral. Through our use of language, whether consciously or unconsciously we can exacerbate existing inequalities. It is important that we take the time to reflect on the language we use and the impact this might have on those around us.

When we choose respectful language that focuses on people’s unique abilities rather than their disabilities, we are emphasising the person first rather than their illness, injury or disability. There are some easy ways we can do this. Everyone is different and it is important we ask clients how they would like to be referred to and described. For example, research by the National Autistic Society and Mind found that some people preferred the use of identity first language (i.e. being referred to as an autistic person), while others preferred the term ‘a person with autism’ as they felt autism made up only one part of their identity. The charity Scope also have developed suggestions for appropriate language we can use. For example, encouraging people to use terms such wheelchair user as opposed to describing someone as wheelchair bound.

When report writing, or writing clinical notes, we can use empowering and person-centred language, i.e. assist to eat and drink rather than saying ‘feeding’ or, assisting to shower and dress rather than ‘showering and dressing’.  Subtle changes which change the power imbalance from being a passive recipient of care to someone who is actively involved.

Another practical way that we can de-stigmatise language is to make our writing more descriptive. Instead of commonly used language such as ‘challenging behaviour’ or ‘acting out’ we can, for example, say someone appears upset, frustrated or restless. By being as specific as possible and giving examples our language becomes more empowering and respectful. By choosing language that focuses on people’s abilities rather than disabilities and avoiding the use of jargon which can be confusing and leave people feeling excluded we can be more inclusive.

Taking the time to reflect on the language we use is important because the words we choose can enable us to build more positive person-centred practice.

 

We’re very proud to have shared our story with NRTimes , looking back at our history, development, ethos and values, and looking forward to a bright future.

Our amazing teams enable us to achieve the impossible for our clients and we are justifiably proud of every single colleague.

Click the link to read the article.

 

Anglia Case Management continues to expand and develop

This is our client T, whose interest in astronomy has been inspired by Gary, one of his support workers.   Gary and T’s team, managed to set up a telescope and mobile phone so that T could star gaze and see the moon.

Gary said “As usual ‘thinking out of the box’ for covid safe activities I’d shown T some of my astrophotography pics and had shown him the moon while on shift and he really got into it!  So I asked him if he’d like me to bring in a telescope so he could have a closer look and he indicated yes instantly.  I have a smartphone adapter which allows a view without having to look down the eyepiece (not something that T could manage safely) and gives a bigger clearer image and real-time movement. When I connected it all up and showed T the full moon he was actually beside himself and really enjoyed the fact that he could see the moon moving across the screen.  Only a simple thing but it definitely opens a whole new vista for T to enjoy 👍👍.”

T’s favourite picture was of the moon and its now printed and hanging in his bedroom.

 

At the recent BABICM annual conference, we were delighted to celebrate Caroline Ferber and Pam Bunting’s Honorary BABICM Fellowships.

Pictured alongside Caroline and Pam, from left to right, are Jackie Dean, Jackie Parker,  Caroline, Mark Holloway, Cathy Johnson, Angela Kerr, Vicki Gilman, Pam and Jo Clarke Wilson.

Sue Stoten said, “I am thrilled that Caroline and Pam’s contributions to BABICM and Case Management have been formally acknowledged. They were both instrumental in establishing Case Management in the UK and for ensuring that it is a well regulated and reputable industry, working for the best interests of all clients.  It was a joy to celebrate with them, and others from the ACM team.”

Caroline established Anglia Case Management in 1998, and was Managing Director until she stepped back in 2018.  She also worked as a Case Manager and Care Expert.  Pam Bunting joined ACM in 2004, working as a Case Manager and Care Expert until her retirement in 2019.

Congratulations to our team of specialist neuro Occupational Therapists, who have been named as finalists in the category Rehab Provider of the Year at the 2021 Personal Injury Awards.  We look forward to attending the finals which will be held in Leeds, in November.

Sue Stoten, Managing Director said

“I’m thrilled that once again ACM have been shortlisted as finalists in the PI Awards as Rehab Provider of the Year. Our team of dedicated occupational therapists, working alongside our case managers, have really excelled during this last year in the most difficult of circumstances, to ensure that clients continued to receive high quality rehabilitation and achieve their goals.”

The ACM Rehabilitation team are led by Pam Foreman, and works with clients with complex brain and spinal cord injuries throughout East Anglia.  The team includes Wendy Wilcock, Ellie Harvey, Laura Jepson, Lauren Mitchell. Sophie Hare, Jo Featherstone and Sarah Mills.