NHS GRAMPIAN

Minute of the Spiritual Care Committee

Wednesday 06 May 2015 from 14:00 to 15:30

Seminar Room, Summerfield House

Present:

Rhona Atkinson (RA)(Chair)- Non Executive Board Member

Laura Gray(LG) - Director Corporate Communications andBoard Secretary, NHSGrampian

Irene Cormack (IC) – NE Scotland Humanist representative

Stuart Hannabuss (SH) – University of Aberdeen

George Hutcheon (GH) – Roman Catholic representative

Dave MacFarlane (DM) – NE Buddhists representative

Judith McLennan (JM) – Business Manager, Mental Health and Learning Disabilities services

Mark Rodgers(MR) –Head of Spiritual Care, NHS Grampian

Jim Simpson (JS) – Chaplain, RoyalCornhillHospital

Liz Tait (LT) - Moray Representative and Lead for Clinical Governance

Nigel Firth (NF)Manager Equality and Diversity

Ian Groves (IG)Community Hospital Chaplain

Richard Hines (RH) Scottish Episcopal representative

Linda Oldroyd (LO) Consultant Nurse Patient Safety and Experience

In Attendance:

Sheila Mitchell, Programme Director for Health & Social Care Chaplaincy & Spiritual Care(NES)

Karan Taylor, Clinical Quality Facilitator

Jill Purves, Minute

Item / Subject / Action
1.0 / Welcome
Rhona extended a warm welcome to Richard Hines to his first Committee meeting. She also thanked Sheila for coming to address the Committee today.
Apologies were received from Caroline Cormack, Colin Dempster, Sandy Reid, Angie Wood, Sue Kinsey, Sharon Duncan and Yvonne Wright
2.0 / Minute of Meeting held on 24 February 2015
The minute wasadopted as a correct minute of the meeting
Matters Arising not already on the agenda
None
3.0 / Matters Arising
3.1 / ForesterhillMosque
  • LG advised that there was little to report. She is actively trying to reconvene the working group, which included representatives of the Mosque Committee, to take forward the plans.
  • With regard to planning permission, rather than renewing the existing permission, the intention is to go straight to a new application for extension.
  • Funding has been agreed on the basis of a 50/50 split between NHSGrampian and Aberdeen University.

3.2 / Information Governance(LG)
Patient Admission Documentation Section 12
  • Section 12 of the Patient Admission and Assessment Document (PAAD) had been circulated with the minutes in response to the request at the last meeting.
  • MR clarified that this wording had not yet gone to reprint but had been agreed at the beginning of January with Chris Morrice, Information Governance Manager. There was then discussion about changing the wording when the opportunity arises again, in particular, that the wording “Faith Group” should be expanded and read Faith/Belief Group.
  • LG indicated that when the process moves from paper to electronic,the transmission of datato Chaplaincy will improve significantly.
  • MR and LG will continue to address these issues. MR is speaking at the Senior Charge Nurse Forum on the 3rd June. LG has requested that there should be some Chaplaincy input to the “huddles” that are starting in the Acute Sector on 11th May.
/ MR/LG
3.3 / Baby Ashes
LT advised that because of the full agenda today, it was decided not to bring a presentation on this subject until a later date. This will therefore be put on a future agenda as a substantive item.
4.0 / Presentation by Sheila Mitchell - Programme Director for Health & Social Care Chaplaincy & Spiritual Care(NES).
The focus of Sheila’s presentation was the forthcoming Spiritual Care Delivery Plan.
Sheila started her post in NES after working for 13 years in NHS Ayrshire and Arran. Before she took up her present post in NES she was involved in rewriting the Government Guidance for Spiritual Care. The first Guidance was in 2002 and it was a Health Department letter (HDL). Six years later a Chief Executive’s letter (CEL) was issued. This really was a minor revision of the previous Guidance.
In the current revision the format of the Guidance will largely consist of a Spiritual Care Delivery Plan. There has been a consultation process throughout the country involving both Chaplaincy teams and the Spiritual Care Committees. Sheila circulated the Outline of the Delivery Plan as follows:-
Outcome 1: To promote an assets–based approaches to resilience and wellbeing in all areas of practice: to further develop spiritual care services in which all work with service users and staff is assets-based and to ensure that services in all Board areas expand their remit to engage fully with primary care and community settings as well as with the acute sector.
Outcome 2: To enable and support Health and Social Care staff to enhance spiritual wellbeing: to provide spiritual support to staff members in order to help them to better manage their own wellbeing and resilience and to provide training opportunities for staff to further develop reflexivity in their practice.
Outcome 3: To further develop evidence-based practice: to strengthen evidence about the impact of spiritual care interventions across acute and primary care settings; to further develop the theory that undergirds the practice of spiritual care and to continue and expand Scotland’s contribution to the international field of evidence-based practice in Spiritual Care.
Outcome 4: To build and sustain a flexible workforce whose primary resource is the intentional use of self: to ensure that sufficient provision is made for chaplains to maintain their fitness to practice; to ensure that the standards, which govern Spiritual Care are consonant with assets-based practice in acute and primary care settings and to establish a recognised training pathway for entry into the Spiritual Care profession.
Outcome 5: To develop service-wide consistency of practice and accountability: to address inconsistencies in practice with regard to lines of accountability and conditions of service; to put in place opportunities for leadership training and mentoring for all chaplains at Board and national level and to continue to seek registration as a healthcare profession.
Sheila stressed that the emphasis in Scotland on Chaplainsnot being employed for their faith/belief background but generically would continue. Spiritual care is the overarching principle whilst religion is an expression of someone’s spirituality.
It is hoped that as a result of the Delivery Plan, although each Board will still be different in geography and ethos, there will be more consistency in terms of how teams operate. It is hoped the Delivery Plan will address issues such as differences in bandings, differences in how staff are provided with supervision, career progression and entry into the profession. Each Board will need to report on the Delivery Plan, but as many of the key deliverables will be areas that each Board is already addressing, it is not anticipated that this will be burdensome.
IC asked for some explanation with regards to assets-based approaches – SM responded it is about working with people’s strengths and also ensuring the service wasn’t entirely focussed on the Acute Sector.
SH asked how this impacted with current faith/belief groups. SM responded that there is nothing in the document that would in anyway devalue what faith groups within any given geographical areas provide.
LG asked about the delivery plans and the outcomes. How will we know what difference this is making? Is there some other reporting method being put in place. SM advises this will be monitored and reported on a regular basis by the Government. LG says that if this acts as a catalyst to enable those things to happen then this will be useful.
RA asked what difference this will make to this group of people. SM responded that this was about accountability. It will allow teams to continue to do what they are doing well and what works for them.
5.0 / Sector Reports
5.1 / Aberdeenshire CHP
  • David Ross, Fraserburgh Chaplain, is currently reviewing Sunday Services in Fraserburgh.

5.2 / Mental Health
  • No updates – all covered previously.

5.3 / Moray
  • LT advised that they are reviewing the staffing situation in Moray. Various interim measures will be put in place in anticipation of a full time post in the future.
  • Disposal of ashes will be covered at a future meeting.
  • Death certification will be covered in Karan’s talk.

5.4 / Aberdeen City CHP
  • No updates – all covered previously

5.5 / Acute Sector
  • MR has already talked about much of the report
  • The Chaplaincy Department is now back in the pink zone
  • The roof garden is now being installed. This will continue over the course of the next few months.
  • Sources of referrals – Daily Contact List continues

6.0 / Presentation by Karan Taylor - Clinical Quality Facilitator
New Death Certification Procedures
A presentation and discussion followed. Electronic copies of the Guidelines will be forwarded with the minutes.
Following the presentation the following questions were asked and comments made:
  • RA asked what would happen if doctors don’t get back within 4 hours. LT is responsible and is the Government contact.
  • LO asked if there is a new leaflet to go into the booklet “When Someone Has Died” and LT advises that this leaflet should hopefully come later this week.
  • KT advised that the reason for the change is due to concerns of accuracy.
  • KT advised families now need to make an appointment with Registrars in Aberdeen and that 13 daily appointments are available in Marischal College. Registrars are aware and have a dedicated team to manage the change. She also stated that probably the frequency of a Level 1 review will be one a day at Marischal College.

7.0 / AOCB
There was no other business.
8.0 / Date of next meeting
Thursday 10 September, 2015 at 14.00 – MacGillivray Conference Room, Aberdeen Maternity Hospital, Ground Floor.

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