Furthering the reach of self care
Self care itself is not a new concept. The report Self care: an ethical imperative was launched in 2010. A year later the Self Care Forum was formed, growing out of a partnership between some eminent GPs, the predecessor of NHS England, the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) and the National Association for Patient Participation (NAPP).
The Forum aims to further the reach of self care and embed it in everyday life. It believes that:
- The original NHS mandate is a blue print for the integration for self care throughout the NHS
- There needs to be a whole systems approach to delivering care
- For this to be successful there must be an inclusion of opportunities to self care
- Self care is not something to be added once everything else has been put in place
- The NHS must support people to self care at every appropriate contact.
Pause to reflect
Where do most of your daily contacts with customers/patients sit on the continuum? Where else on the continuum do you think you could make an impact?
Reflect on the last five patients/customers you spoke to:
• Was a ‘self care aware’ consultation conducted?
• How would you modify your approach to encourage self care in the future?