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The Poplars (Pontefract)
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About the service
The Poplars ward is a mixed sex mental health unit for people who have been diagnosed with dementia. Admissions to our service can range from voluntary admission to individuals who are detained under the Mental Health Act. Due to cognitive impairment (ability to think and remember) people who are admitted to our unit are unable to live safely independently.
Our team specialise in helping people who present with behaviours that challenge as a result of dementia. We work as a multi-disciplinary team towards a safe discharge, whilst supporting patients and their carers and loved ones through this process.
Why would someone choose the service?
Care Quality Commission reviews have highlighted that we treat people with dignity and respect. Our staff help people to work and their own pace and always respect their wishes when deciding what care they should receive.
We regularly run creativity sessions that all service users can take part in and often exhibit the work they produce.
We work closely with students from the Huddersfield University and provide care and treatment in line with the latest research.
To help build strong links with service users we use life story work to help develop a profile of an individual. This helps us to meaningfully communicate with the person and held get them involved in social activities.
Staff you may meet
- Dietitians use the science of food to help people to make good choices about food and lifestyle. Nutrition is an important part of recovery and wellbeing. All service users admitted to a Trust ward have their nutritional state assessed.
- There are more than 60 different specialities that doctors work within the NHS. Each is unique but there are many characteristics which are common. Roles range from working in a hospital to being based in the community as a GP.
- Domestic staff have a vital role in helping to care for patients. They work in one of three key areas; catering, cleaning or laundry services. All of these services play an important part in aiding an individual’s recovery.
- Housekeepers help nurses run hospital wards. They are a member of a ward team and support the delivery of clinical care by ensuring the ward is a clean, safe and attractive place which is conducive to patient care.
- Nurses who choose to specialise in the mental health branch of nursing work with GPs, psychiatrists, psychologists, and others, to help care for patients. Increasingly, care is given in the community, with mental health nurses visiting patients and their families at home, in residential centres, in prisons or in specialist clinics or units.
- Nursing or healthcare assistants work in hospital or community settings under the guidance of a qualified healthcare professional. They help doctors, nurses and therapists give people the care and treatment they need.
- Occupational therapy is the assessment and treatment of physical and psychiatric conditions using specific, purposeful activity to prevent disability and promote independent function in all aspects of daily life.
- Physiotherapists help people to improve their range of movement in order to promote health and well being. This can help people to live more independently.
- Porters work within the Trust facilities team moving and delivering post, equipment and medication to locations across the organisation. They also help to move frail and often very ill patients between different departments and wards in safety and comfort.
- Receptionists are the first link for many patients and visitors. They often work on their own or with one or two other receptionists, greeting patients as they arrive and check them in. They might also collect patient notes and ensure that these vital records go to the right healthcare professional. In a clinic, they may make appointments and arrange patient transport.
- Social workers help, support and protect people who are facing difficulties in their lives. They help people to take positive steps to overcome problems and improve their lives. This could involve assessing and reviewing a service user’s situation, building relationships with service users and their families and agreeing what practical support someone needs.
- Telephonists (also known as switchboard operators) are employed throughout the health service. They may work on a busy switchboard in a hospital or the Trust headquarters. Like receptionists, they are an important first point of contact for patients and their families and are a vital link between a caller and the person who can help.
- Therapy is a broad term and can range from occupational therapists to behavioural therapists. Our therapists are trained in their specialist area and type of therapy to make sure we can offer the very best care.
- On a ward you will see many different members of staff, not all of them are clinical staff! Non-clinical staff include housekeepers and administrators. Ward housekeepers work with other staff to make sure everywhere is clean and tidy and that you have good food. Administrators have clerical and admin roles, like keeping patient notes filed safely, and they can often help you with general enquiries. If you’re not sure who anybody is please ask them to explain.
Why a professional should choose the service
We consistently achieve best practice indicators as set out in Essence of Care.
100% of people admitted to our service for more than 48 hours receive nutritional screening using the appropriate screening tools.
100% of people who are admitted to our service for more than 48 hours are assessed using the Falls Risk Assessment (FRATT) screening tool.
96% of our staff have received training in aggression management and information governance.
We consistently meet the requirements of our seven day follow up targets.
Support offered
We offer a variety of different support and interventions for people using our service, including:
- Group work
- Occupational therapy
- Physical exercise
- Education sessions
- Work alongside families
- Recreational activities
- Self-care skills
- Social skills
- Health screening (including blood tests, electrocardiogram (ECG) tests, bladder scans and general physical monitoring)
- Onward referral to relevant Trust services
- Pastoral care
Outcomes
During an individual’s stay with us, we hope to give them the necessary self-care and self-management skills to help them to be discharged into the community as soon as possible.
We hope that by giving an individual a diagnosis of their condition we can help prevent further relapse. By building up a person’s physical health, and improving their ability to carry out day-to-day tasks, we hope to aid individuals to live life to the full and live well in their community.
Referrals accepted from:
Single Point of Access team
Referral criteria:
All referrals to our service go through the Trust’s Single Point of Access team (a central team who deal with all mental health referrals) or the bed manager (a designated person who accepts admissions and signposts to the appropriate area).
The referral criteria for the unit is any person over the age of 65 with memory problems or under the age of 65 who have been diagnosed with dementia.