User Focused Monitoring Project
What is User Focused Monitoring?
User Focused Monitoring (UFM) was developed at the Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health and is a departure from the traditional way of evaluating services. The initiative was led by a qualified researcher and a long-term user of both inpatient and community mental health services. The idea of UFM is that if the evaluation of services was genuinely to reflect the concerns and views of the people who use them rather than those of providers, then users should lead the process at every stage.
UFM at Peter Bedford evaluates mental health services in Camden and Islington Primary Care Trust, and is currently made of eleven researchers, called Auditors, who are current or former mental health service users. There are also two Project Managers and an Administrative Assistant.
Auditors are trained and employed to carry out research and reviews of other service users’ experiences in mental health services. The service users involved in the process gain real skills and experience contributing towards increased social inclusion and wellbeing. For some Auditors, working in UFM will help them to gain other jobs.
Projects carried out during 2010-12
The CPA project
The main aim of the Care Programme Approach (CPA) is to enable mental health service users to maintain good mental health through Care Plans (also known as support plans). Using Care Plans, mental health staff can work with service users to identify the best way in which to provide support, and help service users become more socially included. Support could include physical and social health as well as mental health. Service users are appointed a Care Coordinator who helps to put the support plan into practice. In this way it is expected that mental health service users will regain control over their mental health and stay well.
Care plans have been around since 1991 and there have been a lot of changes since then! The aim of the CPA audit is to ask service users how well the CPA process is working for them. We are using questionnaires to ask 100 service users to find out what works about the CPA process, what isn’t working well, and whether service users think there should be any changes.
The Quality Review Scheme
Care home residents are among the most vulnerable in our society. Although many care homes strive to provide an excellent service, and are staffed by dedicated workers, there are times when standards can fall short of the council’s expectations. The Quality Review Scheme aims to examine how residents feel about residential care homes in Islington.
A team of volunteers, called Quality Reviewers, speak to residents using a questionnaire. They also use an observation form to monitor what’s going on around them. The project covers the following areas: food quality and choice; activities; cultural needs and diversity; dignity and personal care; individual interaction with residents; openness and transparency to complaints; safeguarding of vulnerable adults. The project is also interested in whether the residents live in an attractive, fresh and welcoming care home environment, and if they feel happy and content.
Click here to download and view UFM Project Reports.
If would like to know more about User Focused Monitoring or about our projects please contact us on 020 7226 6074 or send us an email now: ufm@peterbedford.org.uk
The UFM Team are based at our Legard Works site in Islington. Follow this link for information on How to find us
Auditor and Quality Reviewer Vacancies, click here (same page as Project Reports page)