Although we haven’t been able to keep you up to date with what’s been happening since our last newsletter at the start of the year, as ever the past months have been a busy time for Fife Health Charity.
Our work behind the scenes with our Trustees and the many people and organisations that donate to the charity has continued to help us make a real difference to the health and wellbeing of NHS Fife patients and staff.
There’s always a story behind every donation and every project we support. In this issue of our newsletter, we’re excited to share some recent highlights and updates.
We would love to hear your feedback and any ideas about what you would like to see in future issues. You can get in touch with us at fife.healthcharity@nhs.scot
Fife Health Charity funding update
Small Grants Programme 2022
As we reported in our last newsletter, the charity received a high number of applications for the Small Grants Programme 2022, which awards up to £10,000 of funding for approved projects. Following reviews by charity staff and the charity Sub Committee at meetings in March and April, 36 out of 39 applications were recommended to the charity’s Trustees for approval.
A total of £202,131 was awarded to the 36 approved projects, which included:
- Providing reminiscence interactive therapies and activities for people with dementia Improving patients’ mental health and wellbeing
- Creating better patient experience and resources
- Providing staff training, mentoring and wellbeing programmes.
Almost 50% of the projects focused on improving the estates and facilities in hospitals and clinics across Fife for the benefit of patients, relatives and staff. The projects supported by the charity included creating a peaceful and restful environment to support relatives visiting patients for extended periods, creating an outdoor space for staff and creating a new child friendly waiting area within a minor injuries department.
If you have a project in mind that could be eligible for Small Grants funding, please keep your eye on our website, social media and newsletter for future opportunities and application deadlines.
Recently funded projects over £10,000
Five larger scale projects funded by the charity in April and June of this year also put patient and staff wellbeing at the heart of their successful applications. In total, we funded £295,730 spread across five innovative and inspiring projects.
The largest project, the refurbishment of the Victoria Hospice, at the Victoria Hospital, Kirkcaldy, is set to improve care facilities for patients and relatives during what can often be difficult times.
A major research project by Fife Palliative Care Service secured charity funding to identify and examine what matters most to patients, families and carers in shaping and improving future advanced cancer care in Fife.
The charity was delighted to fund a series of thank you and reflection events for NHS Fife staff held throughout the region in recognition of their amazing commitment and dedication during the Covid-19 pandemic.
In Kelty, we worked with NHS Fife’s Children & Young People’s Community Service to fund the creation of a sensory room in the locally based Child Development Centre.
Creating a Pregnancy Loss Bereavement Suite within the Maternity Unit at the Victoria Hospital, Kirkcaldy, received funding to provide a dedicated, private space for mothers and loved ones experiencing the loss of their baby.
Project updates
Fife Simulation and Training Centre
Fife Health Charity continues to support enhanced staff training and development to provide ever higher standards of patient care across all NHS Fife hospitals and facilities. The official opening of the Fife Simulation Training Centre (FSTC) at Queen Margaret Hospital, Dunfermline by Professor Alex McMahon, Chief Nursing Officer, on 16th February 2022 marked a new chapter in this vital area of our support of staff and patient wellbeing.
Simulation is a key element of the training programmes for nursing, medical and allied healthcare professionals designed and delivered by expert staff within the FSTC. The development of the new centre was fully funded by the charity, enabling healthcare professionals to simulate and practice realistic scenarios and hone new clinical skills.
Funding by the charity has contributed to the recruitment of two key personnel to run the training programmes and to the delivery and installation of simulation equipment including a simulation defibrillator, ventilator and anaesthetic machine, an AVATr virtual reality system and a lifecast manikin.
Staff from across NHS Fife have already accessed and benefited from the centre’s advanced facilities, including the first cohort of international nursing recruits in March as part of their Practice and Professional Development. Additional teaching and training sessions at the centre include Emergency Medicine, Foundation Year 2 Simulation and Paramedic Community Midwifery. The centre has now successfully delivered the NES Clinical Skills Training for Pharmacists course three times, with the final date of the four-session block taking place in August.
In addition, the centre has welcomed interest and visits from allied health professionals and interprofessional education providers, including critical care nursing, operating theatres, ScotGEM (Scottish Graduate Entry Medicine) and Urology.
Following the suspension of teaching in the early months of the year due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the refurbishment of the Education Centre, also supported by Fife Health Charity, students from the University of St Andrews and ScotGem students have now returned for regular teaching each week.
Another key aspect of the FSTC’s work is strengthening NHS Fife’s educational links with the wider community. In April, local school pupils enrolled on the Reach and Gateway programmes at University of St Andrews attended the centre for a placement experience during the school Easter break.
“Simulation training opportunities for General Practice is a new territory that we are keen to develop at the centre. We are currently collaborating with the Scottish Centre for Simulation based in Forth Valley to develop and commence an Emergencies in Primary Care course. We have also joined them to look at their exciting GP in Situ pilot scheme, which takes simulation into the community and helps GP practices and their teams develop the skills needed in dealing with Primary Care emergencies in their base practices.”
Dr Babar Akbar, GP Sim Tutor, Fife Simulation Training Centre
Become a Simulated Patient Volunteer
Opportunities are now available to assist in staff and student training sessions by becoming a Simulated Patient Volunteer at the Fife Simulation Training Centre, based at Queen Margaret Hospital. If you’re interested in taking part in directed role play as a 'patient' within healthcare based scenarios, find out more about applying on the Volunteer Recruitment page of the NHS Fife website
NHS Charities Together – Community programme
Throughout 2022, we have continued to partner with NHS Charities Together via Community Partnerships Funding, which supports those disproportionately affected by Covid-19, thereby taking pressure off the wider healthcare system when demand is high.
Fife Health Charity has awarded a total of £81,847 in funding to 12 community focused projects. Here we highlight three projects where our support is helping to make a real difference to the lives of people in Fife communities.
PAMIS Leisure Project
Passionate advocates of developing and enhancing the benefits of multisensory storytelling, PAMIS aims to improve the quality of life for those with long term health conditions and their families. The innovative PAMIS Leisure Project provides virtual multisensory storytelling for people with a profound and multiple learning disability (PMLD).
FHC funding enabled PAMIS to provide musical instruments and storytelling equipment to people with PMLD to create regular opportunities to engage and interact during online sessions and at home. The project has also enabled PAMIS to provide online yoga sessions for family carers during the pandemic and beyond, helping to combat the risk of isolation and creating a positive impact on their health and wellbeing.
To date, our funding has helped PAMIS reach 20 families in Fife. For people having to shield as a result of the pandemic, the multisensory project has led to multiple benefits. In addition to having positive impact on motor skills, hand eye coordination and cognitive development, having access to their own instruments means project participants can enjoy the instruments and equipment at music therapy sessions, and with family and friends as well as during activities led by PAMIS.
Fife Alcohol Support Service: Home Essentials
Fife Alcohol Support Service provides specialist support to help people stay out of hospital following a near fatal overdose (NFO), or to support them to leave hospital at the earliest opportunity. Tailored for clients of the Service’s ADAPT team, during the pandemic the Home Essential has been helping to free up beds when hospital capacity has been at a premium due to Covid related admissions, and when there has been a sharp spike in the number of NFOs due in part to the impact of Covid.
The challenging lifestyles of ADAPT team clients often leaves them isolated and in need of basic essentials. Having access to the Home Essential service after a NFO can help ensure everyday survival, especially in the key month or so after overdose. Providing a basic phone and top-up cards enables a client to keep in touch with vital services and even offer a lifeline. Providing vouchers for clothes and food can boost health, wellbeing and esteem not only for the clients, but also for their families who often have to deal with support agencies.
Through referrals and direct work with the Fife Health and Social Care Partnership, the project has so far reached 225 people throughout Fife. Due to the scale of need and the number of clients presenting, the ADAPT team are working with many more clients than anticipated. Funding from Fife Health Charity has helped to ease pressures on the team and ensure it meets its key objectives to keep people on track with treatment, reduce drug related deaths and help stay in touch with services following a NFO.
Gallatown Gala & Community Group
Preventing hospital admissions through early interventions is the primary objective of an exciting new community focused initiative developed by a local group based in the northern suburb of Gallatown in Kirkcaldy. Following funding from Fife Health Charity, the Gallatown Gala & Community Group and its development worker are partnering with Fife Voluntary Action to develop a team of 12 volunteers to become peer mentors and community responders to provide outreach activities on an ongoing basis enabling people to be supported within the community and, in some cases, reduce the need for medical intervention.
Six peer mentors have already completed the Introduction to Volunteering Course facilitated by Fife Voluntary Action. The project aims to help volunteers build personal resilience, develop a coping strategy toolkit and become trauma informed, ensuring they are better equipped and more likely to provide positive peer support to their family, friends and neighbours in the wider community.
The first cohort of volunteer mentors completed a resilience workshop held in the rural surroundings of Falkland Estate, where they took part in team building activities, woodwork crafts and a group session where they reflected on their personal journeys and shared experiences. Applying their new found skills within the community has already led to a range of positive benefits including reducing social isolation, improving mental health, encouraging greater diversity and inclusion and helping to define future employment goals within the care sector
2021/22 donations & highlights
The charity has continued to receive tremendous support from donors throughout 2021/22, with an incredible £466,000 donated or bequeathed to the charity.
Every donation, however large or small, to Fife Health Charity helps to make a real difference to the staff and people using the services of NHS Fife. We want to thank everyone who has donated to the charity in the past year.
If you or anyone you know would like to support Fife Health Charity, please get in touch with the charity team to discuss how you can help us continue to make a real difference. You can email us at fife.healthcharity@nhs.scot
Challenge 95
Following 95 days in intensive care in the Victoria Hospital, Kirkcaldy as a result of the impact of COVID-19, Niall Williams committed to undertaking a series of challenges with Scouting friends and family based on the number 95. Niall set himself the goal of walking 95 miles in 95 days - a formidable personal challenge considering that when he left hospital he had been unable to walk unaided.
Starting with an initial £6,000 fundraising target, Niall and his friends went on to raise an amazing £25,444. The generous donation is being shared by the Intensive Care Unit and Physiotherapy department in the Victoria Hospital and the Sir George Sharp Unit in Cameron Hospital, Leven, which specialises in neurological rehabilitation, to support the staff and patient within the three facilities in the months and years ahead.
Accepting donations
Each and every donation the charity receives helps to make a real difference to the staff and people using the services of NHS Fife. These donations are being made thanks to the high standard of care and support which colleagues are providing and people wish to acknowledge.
As a charity, it is essential that we manage our funds in line with charity law and also NHS Fife Financial Operating Procedures. This starts from the point at which someone decides to make a donation and we are very grateful to all the staff in NHS Fife who help people to make these donations, ensuring that these are properly recorded and fully accounted for. If you need to find out what to do when accepting a donation, we have a handy briefing which you can read at Blink (joinblink.com)
Everyone at Fife Health Charity would like to thank you all for your efforts.
Meet our new team member
We’re delighted to welcome a new member to the Fife Health Charity team. Alison Caldwell has joined us as Communication Officer and will be working with colleagues, Trustees and stakeholders to spread the word about our aims, achievements and plans for the future.
How to contact us
www.nhsfife.org/fifehealthcharity
Donate: www.justgiving.com/faht
Facebook: @fifehealthcharity
Twitter: @FifeHealth
Email: fife.healthcharity@nhs.scot
Scottish Charity Number: SC011988
