Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board launches the All Wales Dementia Friendly Hospital Charter
Today April 6, 2022, Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board, along with all Health Boards in Wales, launches the All Wales Dementia Friendly Hospital Charter.
The All Wales Dementia Friendly Hospital Charter is part of the dementia aspect of Improvement Cymru’s work plan. The aim of the Charter is to support and drive quality improvement across hospitals to support better care and experience for people living with dementia and their carer/partners. It also ensures that we can improve on being a dementia friendly Health Board, providing the best possible care for patients with dementia and their families.
Lauren Edwards, Executive Director of Therapies and Health Sciences at CTM said: “I am thrilled to represent CTM at today’s Charter launch. As an organisation, we have been actively involved in shaping its content and we are fully committed to delivering the best possible outcomes and experiences for people with dementia and their families. The Charter clearly outlines the standards against which we can measure our improvement journey.
“Being admitted to hospital can be an incredibly stressful time, and this can be particularly true for people with dementia and their loved ones. Signing this Charter reflects our commitment to support all of our colleagues to meet the needs and expectations of people with dementia across all of our hospital sites. As a newcomer to the organisation, I have been overwhelmed to learn of the significant contributions and commitment of our clinicians to the development of this co-produced Charter.”
Supported by Improvement Cymru a charter was produced for Wales and a Care Fit for VIP’s platform is being introduced. Wards and departments throughout CTM will be nominated for the Care Fit for VIP’s platform trial.
VIPS is an assessment tool to ensure that person-centred care is in place for people with dementia and helps staff and organisations to rate progress.
VIPS stands for:
V = Values people
I = Individual’s needs
P = Perspective of service user
S = Supportive social psychology.
Improvement Cymru describes VIPS indicators as: “Staff know each person’s life story and use it positively in their daily interactions.”
Ana Llewellyn, Nurse Director and Chair of the CTM Regional Steering Group said: “I’m absolutely delighted that the launch of the Hospital Charter signals to the people in our communities that we are committed to ensuring that, when a person living with dementia is admitted to one of our hospitals, that we will ensure that they receive optimum care during their admission right through to their discharge. We have a dedicated group of people across organisations and communities in CTM who will ensure that we deliver on the intentions of the Hospital Charter.”
