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Street drinkers
helped to change their lives
A project which targeted
street drinkers in Liverpool is helping many of them change their
lives. The project was aimed at all street drinkers including those
for whom it is an entrenched lifestyle. Outreach workers contacted
more than 180 people in the City Centre and Kensington offering
advice and support about reducing drinking levels and, where
appropriate, helped them with accommodation and medical needs. The 3
month long Assertive Street Outreach initiative; which was funded by
Citysafe, the community safety partnership; was led by the
Whitechapel Centre working in partnership with the Basement Advisory
Centre. Unlike existing outreach work, which takes place during
weekdays, this initiative took place in the evenings and at
weekends, which are peak time for street drinkers. 6 outreach
workers, in teams, contacted street drinkers during these times.
The project aimed to:-
► Identify street drinkers and their needs
while building working relationships and trust.
► Encourage street drinkers to think about
changing their lives and make them aware of the solutions and
options available.
► Provide advice on safer drinking and,
where needed, help in accessing medical treatment through walk-in
centres and or a GP.
► Support people to change by providing
practical and emotional support. This involved, among other issues,
resolving crises, medical interventions, accessing accommodation or
supporting people to remain in accommodation. It also encouraged
people to think about longer term change.
► Encourage community awareness by, for
example, clearing up litter created by street drinkers.
► Advice about reducing harmful drinking
levels and behaviour was given to 172 people and 29 were supported
into accommodation by the team. Five street drinkers who had
tenancies but were struggling to cope took up offers of support.
2 of the most prolific street drinkers were helped to break down the
barriers which were preventing them from changing their lives. Both
are now indoors and alcohol free.
In a case study; David, a 46 year old man with a long history of
rough sleeping and street drinking. He had slept rough sporadically
between 2008 and 2011 before moving into accommodation which he
abandoned in 2012. During the course of the project David was seen
by the 'Out of Hours' street drinker team on 67
occasions in addition to contacts with the existing Rough Sleeper
and Street Drinker Outreach teams. David was reluctant to engage
with the Street Drinker Outreach Workers. At that point he was rough
sleeping behind Central Station, drinking two litres of sherry per
day and using heroin. He had a cast on his leg which needed
attention and was not in receipt of benefits. Initially he refused
all offers of help but gradually David began to build up a
relationship with the workers as they were seeing him on a daily
basis. Eventually he agreed to think about coming indoors and David
was accommodated in a hostel but continued his street drinking
lifestyle. Workers continued to engage and support him and it was
agreed to fast track him into detox and he went to Hafen Wen in
Wales for drug detox. David was then supported into Transforming
Choice (Solna) rehabilitation centre for alcohol detox residential
rehabilitation where he has remained alcohol free since 16 December
2013. Transforming Choice said:- "David is a joy to work with
and will join our peer mentor programme to help others in a similar
situation."
Councillor Peter Brennan, Mayoral Lead on Community Safety and
Citysafe Board Chair, said:- "The value of this project can be
seen in the effect it has had on the lives of people like David.
Many other people have been supported in reducing the levels of
their drinking. This project was very successful in both identifying
the scale of the problem and the needs of the individuals involved.
It has helped very many people to start to change their lives and
making them aware of the support which is available."
David Carter, Chief Executive of The Whitechapel Centre said:-
"David's story demonstrates that targeted, intensive work can make a
difference to street drinkers and lead to lasting change. Assertive
outreach is one of a range of tools agencies can use to reduce harm
for individuals and reduce the impact of their anti-social behaviour
for the wider public."
Charlotte Mansbridge, Strategic Director of The Basement Advisory
Centre said:- "It was a fantastic opportunity to add value to
our existing Street Drinking outreach, so we were able to offer a
joined up service with our partners to achieve outcomes for those
who are entrenched, whilst aiming to reduce harm to the individuals
and Anti-Social Behaviour and the fear of crime for the community."
Councillor Roz Gladden, Deputy Mayor and cabinet member for Adult
Social Care, said:- "This project shows what can be achieved
when agencies work together along with the work carried out by
organisations like Transforming Choice- they are making a real
difference to the lives of very many people."
The results of the project are now being evaluated to consider the
best way forward in engaging with and supporting street drinkers to
change their lives for the better. If you need support, know someone
who does or if you want to report street drinking in your area;
please contact the Whitechapel Centre on:- 0151 207 7617 or The
Basement on:- 0151 707 1515. Issues about rough sleeping can be
reported to No Second Night Out on:- 0300 123 2041.
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Vision to
improve health care in Liverpool
A radical blueprint to
improve health and social care services in Liverpool produced by the
Mayor's Health Commission is being launched.
The Mayoral Health Commission, set up by Mayor Joe Anderson and
chaired by Professor Sir Ian Gilmore, the former President of the
Royal College of Physicians, has been meeting for the past year and
has taken evidence from 77 witnesses.
It has concluded that, despite many successes in improving public
health, the challenges around poverty, health conditions, an over
reliance on hospital care and cuts in funding means that a radical
shift is required to tackle the issues.
It recommends reducing duplication of services or unnecessary
competition, shifting more care out of hospitals and into the
community, and reducing demand through both improved health and
increasing personal responsibility for managing conditions.
It makes 3 over arching recommendations:-
► For key partners to formally sign up to
the principle of creating an integrated health and social care
system.
► Services including GPs, hospitals,
community health, specialist care, mental health and social care
integrated into a unified out of hours service.
► Making it a priority to improve the
health of younger and older people, with an emphasis on prevention
and managing conditions through self-care.
A single unifying strategic plan would be created, bringing together
the commissioning plans of Liverpool Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG),
the City Council, the Health and Wellbeing Board and NHS England
(Merseyside).
Health and social care would be delivered in the community, with
staff based locally rather than centrally through the development of
a neighbourhood model. It would build upon the primary care (GPs)
structure, and enable staff to get to know the locality and their
patients.
The report also recommends having leadership based on research and
shared information, with technology used to improve data sharing
between organisations. It would mean patients' details are passed
seamlessly without people having to fill out endless forms if they
transfer from one part of the care system to another.
Services would be restructured to improve the treatment and quality
of care that patients receive, for example by clustering a
specialism in one location rather than across the City.
To drive forward closer working and overcome barriers, organisations
would be given support to help them 'act as one' through research
based input from the North West Coast Academic Science Network.
The document also advocates creating the NHS workforce of the future
by developing new qualifications in partnership with education
institutions, staff with broader skills able to span both health and
social care, and creating NHS cadetships.
Professor Gilmore said:- "I am delighted to be able to present
this timely report, which comes at a pivotal moment when all public
services are having to look at new ways of working due to budget
pressures. I believe the document has the potential to deliver
better health and wellbeing for the people of Liverpool for decades
to come. It will require some new partnerships and a fresh start for
some existing ones, which is always a challenge, but with the new
Royal Liverpool Hospital and bio science campus on the way, I firmly
believe this is a once in a generation chance to seize the moment.
If the City can mobilise the enthusiasm that the Commission has
experienced while compiling its evidence, I am confident it can
bring about practical change."
Other plans include having a pupil to act as a 'health champion' in
every secondary school to encourage healthy lifestyles
The document will be handed over to Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson
at a specially convened conference of health and social care
professionals in the City at the Town Hall.
Mayor of Liverpool, Joe Anderson, said:- "We have a fantastic
health and social care system in Liverpool with outstanding staff
who are doing an absolutely amazing job every single day of the
year. We are facing severe pressures on our funding and that means
we have simply got to redouble our efforts to do things differently.
But the real driving force behind this report was to look at ways we
could improve services and work in a seamless way. We need to focus
on services rather than buildings, and more collaboratively where
the driver is the care of patients, rather than who is responsible
for delivering the care. It also needs to be responsive to the local
population, because the health needs of people in Anfield are not
the same as those living in Woolton. Liverpool has always been best
when it has been bold, and in health we introduced the first public
health officer in the Country, pioneered washhouses and more
recently led the way on a smoking ban in workplaces. This is another
bold plan which has the potential to transform health and social
care in the City."
The findings will now be the subject of consultation with interested
parties including health providers, organisations and stakeholders.
The City Council and the Mayor will consider its contents, and a
special panel; chaired by Professor Sir Ian Gilmore and former
Liverpool PCT Chair Gideon Ben Tovim; will monitor the
implementation of the findings. |
