Linda has healthy respect for Argyll’s caring professionals
The Oban Times is running a series of articles championing the work carried out by Argyll and Bute Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP) in the Oban, Lorn and the Isles locality.
Each article features a specific service provided by the HSCP and focuses on the staff who provide that service and the role they play in making a positive difference for the people living in Oban and surrounding areas.
This week we look at the work of the lead for Allied Health Professionals, Linda Currie.
LINDA CURRIE is Argyll and Bute Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP) lead for Allied Health Professionals (AHPs). Her professional leadership role is to support health professions in physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy, dietetics, radiography, podiatry and orthotics. AHPs provide treatment and help rehabilitate adults and children who are ill, have disabilities or have special needs to live life as fully as possible. They work across a broad spectrum of different settings, including the community, people’s homes, schools and hospitals.
Linda’s role is to provide professional assurance and governance. This means ensuring HSCP’s health professionals are registered with the HCPC (Health and Care Professions Council), ensuring professional standards are maintained.
She supports staff with training, registration, returning to practice, professional development and performance, making certain Argyll and Bute HSCP services are delivered to the highest quality of standards.
Linda manages her day-to-day activities by planning and working ahead of deadlines and organising her time effectively. Linda uses video-conferencing and tele-conferencing to reduce travelling and make use of her time more productive.
Her daily challenge includes managing to fit everything in the diary and dealing with the challenge of Argyll and Bute HSCPs rurality.
Linda is proud of her career and working with colleagues to embed reablement as a normal part of our everyday business. Reablement is an approach to providing care-at-home services where AHPs work with an individual to return to the maximum level of independence in personal care and daily activities to reduce the need for care-at-home services. Linda said: ‘My values are built on a foundation of integrity, honesty, fairness, compassion, kindness and respect.’
She plans and implements the development of new services, including reshaping the way services are delivered. She is working on the roll-out of an electronic patient record system. It is the same system social workers use to improve communications.
She is also responsible for the chaplaincy (spiritual health) team managing excellence in pastoral, spiritual and religious care. The team represent many different faiths and cultures as well as people who do not have a particular religious belief but who would like someone to talk to.
Linda is also heavily involved in the work of NHS Highland to reduce the amount of people falling and the impact of falls, working with the local teams who provide falls assessments, exercise initiatives and environmental checks.
Linda said: ‘A large number of people aged 65 and over experience falls for numerous reasons, including medical, physical and environmental factors. Our local teams’ aims are to reduce the risk of falls among older people and patients at risk of falls in Argyll and Bute.
‘Falls are not inevitable as you grow older. However, falling increases the chance of being less able to move about easily. It is imperative to help people improve their health and mobility in order to maintain their independence for as long as possible. The HSCP recently launched the falls number for people who feel less steady on their feet, at risk of a fall or had a fall. The falls number connects people directly to Argyll and Bute HSCP falls team who are highly trained health professionals that can help people with early intervention and preventive approaches to improve their outcomes.
‘The local team and partners carry out falls assessments and make referrals to local and community services, including digital services, to meet people’s needs like HSCP professional services, adaptations to make homes accessible, strength and balance exercise classes, technology enabled care packages, digital exercise programmes to keep people safer, happier and healthier in their own homes.
‘We recently launched “Flo” text messaging service to educate people on fall prevention and to support the “Super Six” strength and balance exercises.
‘I just can’t emphasise enough the importance of regular exercise and activity. For more information on “Flo”, people can email the TEC team tecteam.ab@nhs.net or speak to their circle of healthcare professionals for more information and guidance.’
Linda also has the role of strategic leadership for carers. This involves ensuring carers are supported and empowered to manage their caring responsibilities with confidence and in good health, and to have a life of their own outside of caring, in line with the Carers Act (Scotland) 2016, which came into effect from April 1, and which requires the HSCP to provide additional support to unpaid carers, so that they may continue in their caring role for as long as they wish.
One of the local projects that Linda was involved with in the Oban area is working with the management team to increase the staffing for children’s occupational therapy and physiotherapy services which has been successful.
Linda enjoys life out of work and spending time at home with her family and enjoying the beautiful area where she lives. She is a keen cyclist and enjoys walking the dog at the end of a busy day.
Linda loves working in Argyll and really enjoys being part of the strong community spirit. She feels very proud when she see’s how Argyll and Bute HSCP staff, and all other partners, work so hard, with such enthusiasm to provide such great services for the people of Argyll and Bute.
Linda said: ‘We are so lucky to live in a beautiful place. I am spoiled living on the cycle path that goes out to Fort William and it is definitely not to be unappreciated.’