+44 (0)121 301 2896

Author Archives: admin

  1. Participation on a Schwartz Round Panel

    Leave a Comment

    Recently, Julia Danks, Clinical Specialist from the Meriden Team was invited to be a panel member on the Birmingham & Solihull Mental Health Trust ‘Schwartz Round’ event, in to talk about her experience getting started with using Behavioural Family Therapy for the first time after training.

     

    What Are Schwartz Rounds?

    Schwartz Rounds provide a structured forum where all staff, clinical and non-clinical, come together regularly to discuss the emotional and social aspects of working in healthcare.

    The purpose of Rounds is to understand the challenges and rewards that are intrinsic to providing care, not to solve problems or to focus on the clinical aspects of patient care. Rounds can help staff feel more supported in their jobs, to give them the time and space to reflect on their roles which they might not otherwise have in their everyday routines on busy hospital wards. Evidence shows that staff who attend Rounds feel less stressed and isolated, with increased insight and appreciation for each other’s roles. They also help to reduce hierarchies between staff and to focus attention on relational aspects of care.

    The underlying premise for Rounds is that the compassion shown by staff can make all the difference to a patient’s experience of care, but that in order to provide compassionate care staff must, in turn, feel supported in their work.

     

    Schwartz Rounds in Birmingham & Solihull Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust

    Schwartz Rounds were introduced in Birmingham & Solihull Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust as part of a Trust-wide programme of initiatives aimed at enhancing staff wellbeing in January 2019. The Trust will be holding an event every six weeks on different sites during 2019.

    Each Schwartz Round has a different theme and the focus of the event that Julia was invited to was ‘Patients, Families and Me’. Julia spoke about her experiences of working with her first family using Behavioural Family Therapy (BFT) after attending BFT training in 2004.

    Initially Julia and her co-worker found it quite a daunting prospect but after working closely with the family they could see them start to use and develop their skills and life began to turn around for the family. This had a lasting impact on Julia’s work and helped her to see the value of involving whole families in the service user’s care. Something which continues to inform the way she works.

    The benefits were experienced by all of the family as well as the service user and indeed the service felt the benefits too as the family were able to deal with issues themselves and crisis contact with the team reduced dramatically.

  2. The Meriden Family Programme facilitate a visit to Moroto Regional Referral Hospital in Uganda

    Leave a Comment

    Martin Atchison, Deputy Head of the Meriden Family Programme recently helped arrange for Dave Bell to visit Thomas Walunguba in Uganda at Moroto hospital. Dave works at St. Andrews hospital where Martin was speaking during one of their family work training courses and it was mentioned that Dave was visiting Uganda in the near future. Dave expressed an interest in visiting the mental health services in Moroto, and Martin put him in touch with Thomas.

    Thomas Walunguba was the first person from Uganda to visit the Meriden Programme in 2012 and has been instrumental in embedding consistent support for families across the country.  Thomas was happy to arrange the visit.  Dave reported being very impressed with the level of care provided by Thomas’s team with limited resources, and also with the commitment of the staff working there to improve services for patients and their families.

     

  3. BFT Update from Nigeria

    Leave a Comment

    The Meriden Family Programme welcomed Nosa Igbinomwanhia to the office on 25th July.  Nosa, pictured here, came to the UK in 2014 through the Commonwealth Fellowship Scheme from Benin, Nigeria with three colleagues. After completing a number of training courses with Meriden, Nosa returned to Nigeria and along with his other colleagues, Nkechi Igbinigie, Blessing Uteh and Felicia Thomas was able to successfully implement family work (BFT) in the hospital in Benin.

    Nosa and colleagues were able to overcome challenges and create a BFT clinic in the Federal NeuroPsychiatric Hospital, Benin. Nosa reported that people pay out-of-pocket for their care and treatment in Nigeria, and because of this psychological interventions are seen as less acceptable, as something tangible such as medication is more likely to be perceived as value for money.  Also, because family work had not been previously available, it was more difficult to ‘sell’ family work to families as it had not been tried and tested in Nigeria.

    Nosa and colleagues had to be creative in order to get family work started and with the support of management, they were able to offer family work to the first few families at a significantly reduced cost. Once the benefits of family work had been evidenced in the hospital, family work was offered more routinely. More clinicians were trained in the hospital and the benefits of family work have become more widely accepted.

    The Nigerian team is hopeful that as funding becomes more available, such as from hospital/government and possibly other sources like drug companies family work can be made more accessible to families at little cost to them.

    We will be writing about the implementation of family work in Uganda and Nigeria in more detail in the future.

  4. Commonwealth Fellowship Scheme

    Leave a Comment

    The team said their goodbyes to Thomas Tutamwebwa and Umar Candia today.  They have been with the Meriden Family Programme for the last six weeks, the visit being facilitated by the Commonwealth Fellowship Scheme.  They have completed a number of training programmes during their time here, with plans in place to improve services for families in their workplace when they get back home.  Thomas works in Mbarara regional referral hospital and Umar in Arua regional referral hospital.  The programme has now hosted 12 people from Uganda since 2012 and the majority of regional referral hospitals have someone in a senior position who has completed training through Meriden.  Behavioural Family Therapy has become well established in the country and is a core part of the training of Psychiatric Clinical Officers across the country.

    For further information please contact the Meriden Family Programme or Thomas Walunguba, Head of the Behavioural Family Therapy Programme Uganda at [email protected]

    From left Umar Candia- Senior Psychiatric Clinical Officer, Martin Atchison, Maria Albanese, Chris Mansell and Thomas Tutamwebwa-Psychiatric Clinical Officer

    From left Umar Candia- Senior Psychiatric Clinical Officer, Martin Atchison, Maria Albanese, Chris Mansell and Thomas Tutamwebwa-Psychiatric Clinical Officer

  5. Behavioural Family Therapy Trainers and Supervisors Network Event (Midlands Region)

    Leave a Comment

    Behavioural Family Therapy Trainers and Supervisors Network Event
    (Midlands Region)

    By Julia Danks, Clinical Specialist
    Meriden Family Programme

    In May this year, 17 trainers and supervisors in Behavioural Family Therapy (BFT) from across the region attended a network event hosted by the Meriden Family Programme.

    Organisations in attendance included:

    • Birmingham & Solihull Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust
    • Coventry & Warwickshire Partnership NHS Trust
    • Dudley & Walsall Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust
    • Keele University
    • Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
    • Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust
    • Staffordshire University
    • Worcestershire Health & Care NHS Trust

    It seemed fitting to hold the event in the village of Meriden itself so we chose The Strawberry Bank Hotel, which was easily accessible for those travelling to the event.

    After a quick update from Meriden, each of the eight regions that were represented gave an update on developments in their area and what they were hoping to get from the day. They also shared their resources and experiences, sometimes to gasps of shock, delight or envy! Overall there was huge interest from everyone in hearing about what was going on in other areas.

    “Really inspirational to hear how services are doing”

     After lunch the focus moved to updates that have been made to both the BFT workbook and the training programme for delivering a BFT course. There have been many changes over the years following feedback from delegates and but also from training in other areas and picking up fresh new ideas.

    “Interesting changes to the model presentation”

     “Really great overview of changes”

     “The changes made to the programme have given me a lot of ideas that will help deliver training as part of the Health Education England (HEE) standards/expectations”

     There was a large agenda which was only partially covered on the day and the group felt it would be beneficial to meet up in this format twice a year. It was agreed that items on the agenda that were not discussed during this event would be included in future meetings.

    “It has been really helpful to meet other trainers and share practice with each other. It would be helpful to have another event.”

     “Invaluable in sharing good practice and addressing challenges.”

    There was a real sense of energy and vibrancy in the room and it was a testament to everyone who came that the day was such a success. One of the highlights was the opportunity to meet other trainers or reconnect with those who had lost contact. This networking began from the moment the people started to arrive until the event finished and there were still groups on the car park at the end of the day swapping details.

    “Great network opportunity”

     It was a great day and we are looking forward to the next one sometime in the autumn. If you are interested in having a Regional Trainer and Supervisor Network event in your area please contact the team to register your interest as we hope to put on more events in the future.

    Trainers from the Meriden Family Programme with the Family Intervention Team from Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust who attended the event in May.

    Trainers from the Meriden Family Programme with the Family Intervention Team from Nottinghamshire
    Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust who attended the event in May.

  6. Carers Week – 10 – 16 June 2019

    Leave a Comment

    Carers week is taking place from Monday 10th to Sunday 16th June.

    Carers week is an annual campaign to raise awareness of caring and highlight the challenges carers face and recognise the contribution carers make to families and communities.  Details about carers week and information about support for carers can be found by visiting the Carers UK website http://www.carersweek.org  or the BBC website, information for carers is also available on the Carers Trust Solihull website https://www.solihullcarers.org

    Information and support for carers is also available on our website.

  7. Chris Mansell, Head of the Meriden Family Programme

    Leave a Comment

    Hello! My name is Chris Mansell and I have the pleasure of leading the Meriden Family Programme following Dr Gráinne Fadden’s retirement last year. I have been working in the NHS since 1987 and I completed training in the Behavioural Family Therapy model in in 1998. I also trained as a Trainer and Supervisor in Family Work in that year.

    I have worked in a variety of mental health settings and I have been the Head of Nursing in both forensic mental health and generic mental health settings. Many of you will already recognise me as I have been working as the Deputy Director of the Programme since 2010 and I have facilitated training and supervision in family work, and assisted organisations with the development of family sensitive services in a wide variety of settings at a local, national and international level.

    Last year was a very important milestone for the Programme with the celebration of our 20th anniversary. This was a great opportunity for us to reflect on how far the Programme has come in terms of the success of the roll-out of family work and for us to acknowledge the support and commitment of people nationally and internationally who work really hard to implement family work and improve outcomes for service users and their families. The Team are very excited to be continuing the work of the Programme and developing family work into the future. We will be posting news items in the next few weeks with information about our planned activities.

    If you would like to have a conversation with me, please get in touch as we welcome your comments and involvement. My email address is [email protected] .

    Chris Mansell

  8. Training Trainers Course

    Leave a Comment

    The Meriden Family Programme has facilitated two Training Trainers courses in March to support service users and their families gaining access to evidence based family interventions. The Training Trainers course is accessed by people who have completed the initial 5-day BFT course and worked with families under supervision. This course enables them to deliver BFT training and facilitate supervision to people working within their organisations.

    Forty more people have now taken on the role of BFT Trainers and Supervisors within their local services. One course was held in Birmingham and one in Manchester. People travelled from all over the UK with a delegate from Japan making the longest journey.

    Both courses evaluated well and delegates gave the following feedback –

    ‘Excellent course – content really useful/helpful. Builds confidence in a safe learning environment. Great reflection of trainer role to BFT process.’

    ‘Facilitators were super, made for great week, really enhanced the learning. Very good.’

    ‘Thoroughly enjoyed the training, feeling generally more confident and skilled. Excited to begin the journey ahead.’

    ‘Thank you – I feel enthused to take family work forward and confident to deliver training and supervise others.’

    ‘Very well run course. Supportive environment allowing all trainees to get involved fully in role play. Always relevant to practice.’

    ‘Best training I have been on. All trainers friendly and helpful. I really feel I have learned a lot. Thank you.’

    This 5-day course prepares people to present components of BFT, facilitate role play and facilitate group supervision. Delegates are provided with all of the materials required to facilitate a BFT training course.

    We have two further courses planned, both of which will take place in or around the Birmingham area:

    • 7-11 October 2019
    • 9-14 March 2020

    If you would like more information about this training course, please contact Sam Farooq at [email protected]

     

  9. Welcome Dr Carl Harris to the Meriden team

    Leave a Comment

     The Meriden Programme is very pleased that Dr Carl Harris has taken up post as Consultant Clinical Psychologist with the team. Dr Harris began working with the team in October 2018 and said……

    “I am delighted to be part of the Meriden team and to have the opportunity to promote the well-being of people experiencing mental health difficulties by promoting support for their families and carers. My role in the Meriden team is to carry out research and training to help us achieve our aim of putting families at the heart of quality health care.

    I have been working in Birmingham as a psychologist since 1989 and as a clinical psychologist since 1996. I have held posts in primary care across the life span, systemic family work, community regeneration, child and adolescent mental health and parenting. I have been involved in research throughout my working life.  Much of this research has involved parents and families and has been carried out in partnership with them.

    I have a special interest in “community psychology” which sees the people, systems and services around the person as crucial to their development and well-being. I am looking forward to making use of these ideas for the benefit of our service users and to working in partnership with their families, carers and professionals”.

    Dr Harris can be contacted on [email protected].

  10. Meriden Family Programme 20th Anniversary

    Leave a Comment

    We were very pleased and excited to celebrate the 20th year of the Programme in June this year. We held a celebration event which was attended by 60 people from across the UK, Republic of Ireland and Netherlands , who have been involved in the Programme for many years.  We also received messages of congratulations from Canada, Australia, Japan and Uganda.  The event was extremely positive and uplifting. It was a great opportunity to reflect on the work of the Programme over the last 20 years at a local, national and international level and think about the commitment of people globally to develop and implement effective evidence based interventions for families where a person is experiencing mental health issues.

    From left – Amanda Gatherer, Chief Psychologist & Head of Psychological Services, Birmingham & Solihull Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust and Dr Gráinne Fadden
    Director – Meriden Family Programme

    John Short, CEO, Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust and Dr Gráinne Fadden
    Director – Meriden Family Programme

    Chris Mansell, Head of the Meriden Family Programme

    Peter Woodhams, Carer Consultant, Meriden Family Programme

     

  11. Dr Gráinne Fadden’s Retirement

    Leave a Comment

    The Meriden Family Programme would like to announce that the Founder and Director of the Programme for the last 20 years, Dr Gráinne Fadden, has retired. Many of those with regular contact with Meriden will be aware of this, but we wanted to ensure that her retirement is highlighted on our website and use the opportunity to pay tribute to her contribution to mental health care across the world.

    Gráinne showed the drive and commitment required to create the Meriden Family Programme, which formed in 1998. Initially the programme covered the West Midlands and aimed to ensure that the experience of families in contact with mental health services was improved through the training of clinicians in family work and raising the profile of families and carers within services. The programme subsequently worked further afield and is partially self-funding through contracting with external organisations. At the time of writing the programme has links with mental health services across the U.K., Ireland, Australia, Japan, Canada, Uganda, and Nigeria amongst other countries.

    Throughout the development of Meriden over the years, Gráinne has been the person who has been at the forefront of the team, demanding an improvement in the way that mental health services relate to families. Challenging the status quo is never an easy thing to do, but Gráinne has been at the centre of the process of driving through the changes that have been necessary to modernise mental health services, striving towards ensuring that families are at the heart of what services deliver.

    Gráinne has published numerous articles, papers and book chapters, all about families and carers with experiences of mental health services. Her values have always been evident; certainly she pioneered the idea that carers should be involved in the co-production of training and services.  Up until her retirement she was working hard at establishing roles for carers to become carer peer support workers and work within services.

    Peter Woodhams, our Carer Consultant stated:

    Many carers and families are grateful to Gráinne for all the work she has done in championing their importance in care and recovery at international, national and local levels. Her role in developing and implementing family work over many years is unsurpassed and has helped the recovery of many service users and enabled families to feel better supported and more involved.

    We would like to wish Gráinne all our best wishes in her retirement. There is always more to be done in the development of services, and the team will endeavour to follow in her footsteps and continue the work in supporting families in touch with mental health services.