Community wellbeing hub outreach base launches at Royal United Hospital
Additional help and support for patients at the Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust (RUH) is now available thanks to a new ‘outreach base’ run by the Community Wellbeing Hub.
The new outreach base is situated in the Atrium at the hospital and is staffed by members of the hub’s team who will be on hand to advise and help patients and their families find the support they need.
This could be anything from accessing extra support for those being discharged from hospital to help with resolving employment or housing issues or accessing mental health support and services. The team will be available Monday to Friday.
The hub is a collaboration between Bath & North East Somerset Council, HCRG Care Group, and a number of third sector organisations.
Councillor Dine Romero, cabinet member for Children, Young People and Communities, said: “This outreach means patients and their families can have a chat with one of our team if they are looking for reassurance about getting the right support as they recover from a spell in hospital. It is all about helping people regain their independence and keep well and I’m delighted to see it open.”
Cara Charles-Barks, RUH Chief Executive said: “Thousands of people come to the RUH every week so having a hub on site is an amazing opportunity to make it easier for our community to access the support they need to live a healthy life. If your loved one is in hospital, you may be worried about how they or you will cope when they get home. The hub will make it easier, providing the information, help and advice you need, whatever your circumstances.
Simon Allen, Chief Executive of the Age UK BANES and a lead CWH partner said: “This has been a fantastic collaboration between the RUH and the Community Wellbeing Hub and we are delighted to be launching the first phase of our project. We have appointed a new Community Wellbeing Hub Hospital Co-ordinator to work with all partners to ensure that patients and their families get the support they need.”
Phase two of the project, to be launched in the spring, will see the introduction of a new ‘Onward Admission Form’. This will enable ward staff to discuss with patients about their needs and make referrals to the hub before they return home from hospital. The hub is also working with existing Commissioned Hospital Discharge Services to improve the join up of wider services to help patients to be discharged home as quickly as possible.
The hub team will be located in the Atrium at core times during the week day between 12pm and 2pm.
You can read more about the Community Wellbeing Hub here: Community Wellbeing Hub