Staff Recognition Week: Supporting patient involvement at HMP Leicester

Throughout week commencing 21 – 25 September, we are holding a special staff Recognition Week to say thank you to our fabulous staff for everything they have done over the past few difficult months and continue to do during the Coronavirus pandemic.

The Recognition Week will showcase and celebrate the amazing work of our staff and how they have been innovative in adapting their practices to ensure that our patients and service users have continued to get the very best care and treatment possible throughout this time. The commitment of our staff to making a difference in these unprecedented times is truly inspiring.  You can read about our inspiring staff and how they have adapted during the pandemic below. 

Patient involvement is at the heart of the HMP Leicester Healthcare Team’s work, with team members listening to and engaging with patients to help improve services and understand their experiences.

During the coronavirus pandemic, patient opinions and experience continue to be invaluable, with many necessary changes to services and regimes impacting patients and staff alike.

Megan Wainwright, Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner, says that the team wanted to ensure that patients continued to be involved with services and have their voices heard.

She said: “The pandemic response meant that we saw the cancellation of the monthly patient forum and a reduction in patient contact. Up to 12 patients usually attend the forum, where we discuss any issues related to mental, physical health or substance misuse services – including how we can get patients more involved and engaged for example by supporting health promotion.

“We needed to find new ways of engaging with patients so at the beginning of the national lockdown we hosted a poetry competition, encouraging them to write about their personal experiences of being locked-down within the prison estate and how this has impacted them and their families.

“We received some incredible responses, not only highlighting the challenges of the situation but also emphasising their understanding of and compassion for the difficult measures introduced to keep themselves and others safe.”

Recognising the patients’ talents and the impact of their poems

The team felt it important to acknowledge the talent, empathy and hard-work of the patients who entered the competition and three winners were chosen and given prize bundles. In collaboration with local charity SoftTouch Arts, all of the poems have been made into a booklet to be shared with the residents at HMP Leicester, showcasing the men’s creative talents and sharing their personal experiences of the pandemic.

Many of the competition entries spoke about how the reduction in social contact, employment and activity has impacted on individuals’ mental health. This highlighted the importance of personal wellbeing and creating meaningful connections. Based on this, the team is also hosting an art competition, encouraging patients to share how they manage their wellbeing and what wellbeing looks like for them.

Thinking creatively

The team hopes to continue to encourage patients to share their experiences creatively, with similar projects planned for beyond lockdown.   

“Compassionate care is at the heart of our work” added Megan. “Since the start of lockdown we have had to think creatively and out of the box, finding new ways to support patients with reduced contact. The team will continue that focus as we move through the different stages of the pandemic.”