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BOURNEMOUTH & POOLE MENTAL HEALTH ADVOCACY SERVICE

BOURNEMOUTH & POOLE MENTAL HEALTH ADVOCACY SERVICE
CONSULTATION 2010


INTRODUCTION

In January 2003 a service was commissioned to supply Advocacy Services to People with Mental Health Needs following a tendering exercise the contract was awarded to Rethink. The contract is currently jointly funded by Bournemouth and Poole NHS, Bournemouth Borough Council, Dorset Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and Borough of Poole.

This contract is up for renewal on 1 April 2011 and this affords us the opportunity to consult with those who may wish to use a mental health advocacy service as well as those who support people with a serious and enduring mental illness.

The consultation period will take place from 21 June 2010 and close on 15 August 2010. This will then give us time to look at the service we wish to tender for.

The Independent Mental Health Advocacy service ( IMHA service) described below is a statutory service and its delivery is mandatory and that element of the service will remain the same, although it may be from a different provider dependant on who receives the contract through the tendering process.

CURRENT ADVOCACY SERVICES

The Mental Health Advocacy Service provides a regular weekly accessible, confidential advocacy service to Service Users. Trained and skilled Advocacy Workers deliver non-judgemental advocacy by providing essential one-to-one independent advocacy support to vulnerable individuals, information, advice, representation and empower people to exercise choice and express their needs.

The service is delivered to referred and self-referred service users who receive a service under the integrated care programme approach and individuals subject to enhanced care programme approach are treated as a priority target group. An advice and signposting service to individuals who are not on the care programme approach is also offered.

Carers can access information and be signposted to other sources of support, i.e. Carers Support Workers.

The Mental Health Advocacy Service can assist in the following ways:-

• Help individuals to decide what to do
• Help to find out information and who to contact
• Inform people of their rights
• Go to significant meetings and appointments with Service Users
• Represent at reviews, hearings and tribunals and speak out on the behalf of individual clients
• Ensure that rights are respected and discriminatory practices challenged.

In addition, and line with the amendments to the Mental Health Act in 2007, the role of the Independent Mental Health Advocacy (IMHA) Service has been in place for those patients who qualify from 1 July 2009.

Qualifying patients are those:
• Detained under the Mental health Act (even if they are currently on leave of absence from hospital) apart from those patients detained under sections 4, 5(2), 5(4), 135 or 136;
• Conditionally discharged restricted patients;
• Subject to Guardianship under the Act; or
• On supervised Community Treatment (SCT)

As well as patients not covered by any of the above but who are:
• Being considered for a treatment to which section 57 applies (“a section 57 treatment”);
• Under 18 and being considered for electro-convulsive therapy or any other treatment to which section 58A applies (“ a section 58A treatment)


COMMISSIONING AND TENDERING PROCESS

The commissioning of this service will be carried out, jointly, by:
• NHS Bournemouth and Poole (Primary Care Trust)
• Bournemouth Borough Council
• Borough of Poole
• Dorset HealthCare University NHS Foundation Trust

As part of our market assessment to determine the most appropriate way to commission this service, a formal tendering may be required. A tendering process would include the following key milestones:

• Advertise nationally- we would do this via Supply2Health (http//nww.supply2health.nhs.uk)
• Receive expressions of interest
• Pre-Qualify/Shortlist bidders
• Invite bidders to tender
• Evaluate and shortlist preferred bidder
• Award contract

Following the consultation period, this procurement process would be undertaken by the Procurement and market Management team within NHS Bournemouth and Poole with support from the joint commissioners and local authorities.

CONSULTATION PROCESS

The ‘Quality Standards for Advocacy Schemes' (May 2006), was published by Action for Advocacy and sets out 10 standards with a code of practice. These standards have formed the basis of the consultation for local mental health advocacy services.

We would be grateful for any thoughts or feedback you can provide about a Mental Health Advocacy Service, so that we can use your ideas to help review it and develop it for the future.

Clarity of Purpose: clearly stated aims and objectives; information of their role.
Do you know what Advocacy is and how you can use it?
Can you suggest ways this could be made clearer?






Independence: advocates act on behalf of and stay loyal to service users.
Do you find the Advocates to be independent (i.e. not part of the health or social care services)? How can they be more independent?






Putting People First: Advocates work is directed by those they are advocating for.
How can the Advocacy Service ensure it always follows the direction of those people it is advocating for?






Empowerment: Advocacy can empower people by helping them speak for themselves.
What can the Advocacy Service change to help people take control of their own situations?






Equal Opportunity: advocates need to tackle all forms of inequality.
How can the Advocacy scheme improve to increase the equality of opportunities for service users?





Accessibility: it is essential to be accessible to the widest range of service users.
What needs to change to make the Advocacy Service more accessible?






Accountability: systems for effective monitoring and evaluation.
How would you expect the Advocacy Service to publicise what it is doing so that it can be held to account?






Supporting Advocates: Advocates must be prepared, trained and supported.
How do you expect to see Advocates trained and supported?






Confidentiality:
Can any improvement be made? What means should be in place of ensuring confidentiality (and limits of) are clear and openly shared?






Complaints: people who use Advocacy can access external independent support to make a complaint.
How can the service be improved to make it easier for people to complain when they need to about the Advocacy Service?







Any other comments!:




































Thank you very much for taking the time to share your thoughts. All help in providing feedback or ideas is appreciated and will contribute to reviewing the Advocacy Service provision. This will help ensure that people who use the service in the future have the best possible chance of receiving it in a safe, effective and helpful way.


Rosemary Shaylor Debbie Stevenson Lindsey White


Sign: R Shaylor D Stevenson L White

Title: Joint Commissioning Integrated service Business & performance
Manager Manager Manager


If you wish to respond to this consultation please do so:

In writing to:
Rosemary Shaylor
NHS Bournemouth and Poole
Canford House
551-553 Wallisdown Road
Poole
Dorset BH12 5AG

Or alternatively by:
email-

Link: amanda.brebner@bp-pct.nhs.uk

Date posted: Wednesday, 30 June 2010