Getting Connected

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New scheme aims to create joined-up services

A social care organisation has set up a programme to try and improve health care, social care and housing services in the local area.

Turning Point are calling on residents of the Wormholt, White City and Edward Woods Estates to let them know what services their local communities need, as part of a 16-month 'Connected Care' development project.

Funded by NHS Hammersmith and Fulham, the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham and the Department of Health, the scheme aims to:

• Understand the needs of the local population so that the council, primary care trust and partner agencies can individually and collectively assess their own particular strengths and weakness and work across services
  
• Provide local people with the opportunity to contribute to problem-solving to bring services more in line with local people's needs
  
• Help the most marginalised members of the community by focusing on solving complex problems
  
• Focus on providing early interventions with a greater focus on prevention, moving people from unplanned to planned care, tackling health and social care inequalities
  
• Identify areas for service development based on the needs of that community– both individually and collectively and from within the NHS, social care and independent sector alike.

Senior Research Advisor at Connected Care, Sara Elias said: "Connected Care is finding out from local people what's really going on: the gaps in services, who is missing out on much-needed care and why, how other important factors impact, like transport links, housing problems and community issues."

Turning Point’s Connected Care Programme also involves training local people to find out which services their communities really want and need. Speaking about his experience as a Community Researcher, Frederick Ebubedike said: “We’re seeing if people are getting the service they need, and if there are gaps in the service and things that aren’t happening, we can try and do something about it.”

For further information, please visit Connected Care.

23 February 2010