New NHS care team launched in Calderdale

A new team to help improve care for older people in Calderdale has been launched by South West Yorkshire Mental Health NHS Trust. The care homes liaison team (CHLT) launch took place at Dean Clough Mills in Halifax on Thursday 27th March and was attended by various health professionals from across the region.

The key role of the new team will be to improve the quality of care for people living in care homes and psychiatric wards. The team will work primarily with care staff in care homes and on older people’s psychiatric wards, offering their expertise on how best to improve the quality of life of their patients. They will also advise family members of those in care on how to deal with their loved one’s condition.

CHLT’s have been successful in Kirklees and Wakefield and so the Trust is delighted to bring this new service to Calderdale.

The team consists of nurse and team leader Andrew Stapley, dietitian Christine Burnett and newly qualified nurse Sabrina Mitchell. Each of them gave a short presentation on the day about their roles and how they intend to improve older people’s mental health services in Calderdale.

Movement psychotherapist Richard Coaten also attended the event and gave a talk on how movement can be used to enhance dementia sufferers’ quality of life. Dementia sufferer Peter Ashley then gave a talk on ‘living with dementia.’

Andrew Stapley, team leader said, ‘Our work ethic is to see hospital referral as the very last resort and to do everything we can to provide those either in nursing homes or in their own homes with the best care possible.’

Head of dietetics, Dr. Anne Hoyle attended the event and said, "It’s been great to learn about how the new team will slot into the wider organisation and the ways in which we can work together."