Ruth Williams talks to Joe Tibbetts about iCares the Sandwell integrated health and social care system.

iCares is a service and an approach to "managing adults with long term conditions irrespective of their diagnosis, location or age".

A couple of years ago I interviewed Ruth Williams the Clinical Directorate Lead, for the iCare integrated care services programme for Sandwell and the West Midlands.  iCares brings together a wide range of staff including nurses and therapists providing specialist community interventions desigtned to

• avoid unnecessary admissions to hospital
• help maintain health and well being through care management
• improve independence and function with community rehabilitation

The service is open 8am–8pm, seven days a week. Anyone 16 years or over with a long term condition who has a Sandwell GP or who lives in Sandwell is covered by the service. There is open access to iCares, anyone can refer at any time, it is not necessary to be refered by a professional or even fill in a form, the person seeking care or someone who cares for them can phone or email a request. The referral is triaged by a clinician who rings the patient and works with them to find out what help they need.  A clinical decision is then made with the patient, as to when a response will be provided. This will be based on the conversation and other information gathered from case notes and the referral.

Urgent referrals, where it may be possible to avoid an admission, are seen within 3 hours. Patients who have complex needs and who are at risk of becoming urgent are seen within 72 hours. Those requiring rehabilitation are seen within 15 days. The aim is to match the patients clinical needs to the clinician with the most appropriate skills for their need at that time.

Talking to Mark Golledge and Michael Francis in Working Lunch No6 prompted me to take another look at this interview. I am embarrased that it has taken me so long to dig it out of the archive and republish it. If you are interested in health and social care integration here is 20 well spent minutes of pragmatism and inspiration.

Joe Tibbetts
March 11 2018

Follow us on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/11481352/ or on Twitter @CLGdotTV to find out about other CLGdotTV programmes

Back to homepage