Services
WellChild Nurse
Our WellChild Nurse is funded by WellChild, the national charity aimed at making it possible for seriously ill children, young people and their families to be cared for at home instead of hospital, wherever possible.
About this service
Our WellChild Nurse is a part of the community children’s nursing team. Providing essential care and practical support to children and young people with exceptional health needs and their families, our WellChild Nurse plays a crucial role in enabling children to leave hospital and be cared for at home, reducing the practical, emotional and financial impact for families.
We work across organisations within the integrated paediatric teams to proactively manage, coordinate and support an identified caseload of children and young people with complex care needs. Our WellChild Nurse is the nominated key worker to coordinate the child’s care once at home, in particular facilitating communication between health, social and educational services and ensuring that the health and social care needs of each individual in our care has been met.
We maintain lines of communication across all services, communicating changes in circumstances across service providers and speak on behalf of children and young people and their families in an advocacy capacity when required.
We liaise and build relationships with professionals within and outside of Gloucestershire to coordinate care and improve the experience for the child and young person and their family and carers.
Our aim is to:
- ensure that all health and social care needs are met to improve health and quality of life
- ensure integration of all elements of care including across multiple providers both in and out of county
- improve the experience and choice of children, young people and families by ensuring the voice of the child is paramount
- provide a consistent individual to coordinate all aspects of care across multiple providers and practitioners
- reduce the number of times the family have to tell their story
- and improving safety by coordinating the multiagency team around the child and young person and their individual needs.
Referrals
The Child/Young Person is either:
- Receiving prolonged inpatient care at level 3/4
- Receiving ongoing care from a tertiary care centre, managed by 2 or more specialist teams
- Receiving ongoing care from a tertiary care centre, managed by 1 specialist team but with health complications.
- Young person’s condition is complex to manage – organ transplant, profound physical health needs, acquired brain injury, significantly life-limiting
And one of the following:
- No clear overriding diagnosis and/or ongoing conflict around the assessment or care plan for the condition
- Requires a central point of communication to guide and support a family through transition points e.g. From hospital to home or between services
- Young person not engaging with education and/or no discernible consistent understanding of young person educational needs
- Social concerns such as housing adaptions, economic situation, or parental capacity to manage the condition (Not a safeguarding concern)
Examples of current activity:
- Be the nominated keyworker to co-ordinate the child’s care once home, in particular facilitating communication between health, social and educational services. Arrange team around the child meetings as needed.
- Identify gaps in service provision.
- Be an advocate for the child to ensure their voice is heard.
- Signpost to the allied health services self-referral link or complete referral due to parental capacity.
- Signpost or refer to social care helpdesk for early help or disability and children’s and young people’s service.
- Signpost families to WellChild Family tree network for families, all of whom have children with serious and complex health needs.
- Signpost for assistance with completing forms such as disability allowance or obtaining financial support.
- Refer children to respite provision services such as; Acorns hospice, James Hopkins trust and children’s continuing health care funding.
- Apply to charitable funds for families to access holidays or equipment.
- Apply to charity’s for additional day to day support.
- Apply for WCN helping hand garden project.
- Supporting families with receiving planned clinic appointments locally and at tertiary centres.
- Support families with making a complaint.
- Supporting families with education concerns and refer into SENDIASS if needed.
- Supporting families to get up to date care plans and treatment letter from services involved in the child care.
- Supporting families with housing needs if already on the caseload.
- Supporting families through the process of transition from child to adult services and arrange a team around the child meeting if needed.
- Supporting with hospital discharge to get children and young people with serious health needs home from hospital more quickly and efficiently.
- Supporting families with EHCP review meetings.
- Ensure the families have to equipment required to carry out the care of their child by contacting the appropriate services.
- Liaise with services involved in the care of the child if the family are unable to make contact.
- Liaise with Gloucestershire Integrated care board, Social care and care providers should there be any concern over the care packages that are in place.
- Provide information or advice on practical issues (e.g. housing, or financial support)
- Empower parents to care for their children safely.
- Ensure homes are suitable, accessible, safe and encourage development.
Examples of work outside of service:
- To provide support for the parents own health condition and liaise with the parents own health services.
- To help with re-housing.
- To provide and deliver equipment to the family.
- To give clinical advice.
Contact details
Telephone:
0300 421 8299
E-mail:
Address:
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