CONTENTS
1. Introduction
It is vital that, in order to provide a good quality service to adults with care and support needs, the service must work well with partner agencies and other people. They are key to developing the service, ensuring the service has an outward facing vision and delivers effective, joined-up working for the benefit of the adult and their family.
It is essential, for the benefit of all but particularly the adult, that the service communicates with everyone in an open, honest and transparent way and seeks advice and support when it is necessary to do so (see Good Governance and Duty of Candour).
2. Key Organisations, Teams and People
2.1 Key organisations and teams
There are a range of key organisations and teams with whom the service must liaise and work with closely. These may include:
- the local authority;
- any other local authority who is funding the adult’s care and support;
- local authority safeguarding adults’ teams;
- local authority commissioning teams;
- integrated care boards;
- GP surgeries;
- community health teams;
- community mental health teams;
- multi-disciplinary teams;
- other service providers;
- local and national voluntary sector organisations;
- the Court of Protection;
- the police
- external contractors.
2.2 Key people
Key people with whom the service must work closely with, may include:
- the adult’s family
- the adult’s friends;
- an adult’s representative / advocate, including legal representative where required;
- social workers;
- district nurses;
- GPs;
- community mental health staff, including psychiatrists;
- pharmacists;
- managers and staff from other service providers;
- commissioners;
- police officers and police staff, such as police community support officers.
These lists are not exhaustive.
3. Sharing Information
Staff must share appropriate information and assessments with other relevant agencies for the benefit of adults who use the service. Assessments should be up to date, and contain all relevant information pertaining to the adult, their care and support needs and their family. See also Assessments and Information Sharing and Confidentiality.
4. Feedback
In order to ensure that adults receive the best possible service from the provider, it is essential that feedback is gathered from those involved with the adult, which includes family and friends, key stakeholders and partner agency staff. it also must include obtaining the views of the adult themselves, where at all possible (see Interpreting, Signing and Communication Needs).
Those listed in Section 2, Key Organisations, Teams and People should be approached for their views on the service. This should include the care and support given to the adult, their impression of staff attitude and performance, how diverse needs and protected characteristics are catered for, as well as their own communication with service staff and their overall views of the service.
Feedback must be incorporated into the quality assurance processes within the service (see Quality Assurance and Learning Lessons).
