Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust

Dr Sarmad Nadeem is strategic medical lead for our community transformation programme, and is one of four new consultants supporting the development and delivery of living well services. He recently presented his work on this at the Iraqi Psychiatric Association Conference in Baghdad. Sarmad introduced the new living well way of working, highlighting our progress in ensuring services are joined up, accessible, efficient, safe, and evidence-based, with a strong focus on trauma-informed and high-quality patient care.

Heywood, Middleton, and Rochdale living well service helped over 3,000 people with severe mental health issues in just 18 months. The service unites our NHS mental health professionals and pharmacy colleagues, local GPs and primary care colleagues, voluntary sector staff from Rochdale and District Mind and Turning Point, adult care professionals from Rochdale Borough Council, officers from Greater Manchester Police, talking therapy practitioners from The Big Life group, experts in homelessness, substance misuse, employment, benefits and many others. Christine, 53, from Syke, was referred to the service after a traumatic experience left her so anxious and depressed, she couldn’t leave her bedroom. She was supported by a range of services and partners, including senior mental health practitioner Cassie Jones-Branagan; consultant psychiatrist Dr Hossam Marey; Alex Cussons, wellbeing co-ordinator and Joanne Murphy, peer support worker from Rochdale and District Mind; and Gail Ashton, cognitive behavioural therapist from Rochdale talking therapies Christine said: “I was too scared to do anything. My daughter brought my meals and looked after me. I felt so isolated I started having suicidal thoughts. I was going through hell.” “The ladies were really keen to help me. They came up to see me in my bedroom and we talked about what I wanted to achieve. My main goal was going to the gym. Because I felt so scared, we took little steps. “Thanks to support from Farah and the team, I’ve now been to the gym twice. Farah comes with me and she’s amazing. Gail is supporting me with cognitive behaviour therapy, which is helping change the way I think. My next challenge is to get into voluntary work. It’s reassuring to know I can phone Cassie and she’ll help." “My advice to anyone struggling is that help is out there. When you feel so bad everything can seem hard. Even if you don’t think you’ll get somewhere, you will – just stick with it!” Cassie Jones-Branagan said: “Our new joined up approach meant we could combine our skills and expertise to quickly provide Christine with all the support she needed. “Christine has shown real courage in overcoming her fears and we’re so proud of her progress. Our no wrong door approach means we can help more people like Christine achieve a happier and more hopeful future.”

Our young people's mental health support team have been sharing their expertise at Rochdale mental health conference last week. The focus was on supporting mental health in local schools. The team delivered presentations on mental health awareness in the classroom, staff wellbeing and building resilience for young people, and local resources to help young people find support or self-help advice. We have these teams available to support most schools and colleges across Bury, Rochdale, Oldham, Stockport, Tameside and Glossop.

Have you ever wondered what a day working on a children’s mental health ward is like? Apprentice healthcare support worker Mary, who is based on Hope unit in Bury, has featured in a short ‘day in the life’ film about working in CAMHS (child and adolescent mental health services). This is one of several films that will be available in the coming weeks to promote jobs in CAMHS across Greater Manchester. Filmmakers captured Mary doing her usual tasks to show how her role makes a positive difference in the lives of young people. Mary said, "This felt very much like a full circle moment for me, as I was also introduced to this role during a recruitment open day at my college and now I'm helping to recruit others. Having been in this role since February, it's everything that I thought it would be and more. It's fantastic to now be a part of inspiring the future workforce, and to help highlight what a great career choice this is." You can check out the latest CAMHS jobs on our website or by searching ‘GM CAMHS careers’.

Bury NHS Talking Therapies Service has done some excellent work to help Sarah, from Prestwich, overcome her severe phobia of needles Sarah was born with Von Willebrand disease, a rare form of haemophilia that affects the blood’s ability to clot. This meant she has needed lots of treatments and transfusions from a young age. As Sarah grew older and needed more treatments and tests, her phobia grew stronger and she started to ignore appointments. She’d ruled out having children and travelling anywhere that requires immunisations. The needle phobia became so severe she once discharged herself from hospital, despite needing treatment to prevent her becoming paralysed after a bleed on the spine. She eventually had to go back for treatment, which was the turning point for her getting support from our talking therapies service in Bury. Sarah met with Joanne Gisbourne, cognitive behavioural therapist, and immediately noticed an improvement. Sarah said: “Joanne knew exactly what to do. She understood me and knew the right stepping stones for me. She was incredibly patient and reassuring and worked flexibly around me to get the best possible results. Joanne arranged for Sarah to speak with an expert doctor to explain in detail about the different types of needles, how they work and what they are used for. She also reached out to Sarah’s local GP and asked for her to be able to sit in on someone having a blood test. They agreed to let her sit in on a nurse’s appointment, and this helped to desensitise her even further. After 11 sessions, Sarah has been able to overcome her phobia. Sarah adds: “For the first time in my life I can think about needles and not feel anxious or afraid. I feel like I’ve got control over my body again and can live a much healthier and fulfilled life. I am so grateful.”

We're lucky to have brilliant volunteers and colleagues who make music on our hospital wards, as therapy or just to help people unwind. Music can be such a powerful tool for mental health, reducing stress, regulate mood, and allowing people to express emotion and creativity. Maestros Matt and Liv have been known to treat patients on Arden ward in Stockport to popular music sessions, while karaoke is always a big hit on Taylor ward in Tameside. Local artist Nick Shahlavi volunteers on Prospect Place, working with our occupational therapist to provide music and lyric writing sessions for patients. And Phillip and Liz volunteer with regular violin and piano performances for older people at The Meadows in Stockport. Most recently they were joined by therapy support worker Sarah, who sang songs from musicals to great applause.

“My role as governor is both rewarding and enjoyable in many ways. It offers a unique opportunity for personal and professional growth, connecting with others, and contributing to Pennine Care’s vision ‘a happier and more hopeful life for everyone in our communities’. “I am a Stockport resident, have lived - and living - experience of mental health issues, but also see the impact that poor mental health is having on those around me through my day job at Gaddum – a Greater Manchester support charity – and in my personal life. “Doing something that I know is having a direct impact on people who need support is the most important thing for me. “I've particularly enjoyed being involved in developing the five-year strategy, sharing my views, and learning about the extensive work being done to improve mental health, learning disabilities, and autism services. “I’m currently supporting the recruitment of the next Chair, which is really interesting and I feel excited to be on this journey with the Trust. This is an added opportunity that I chose to support with – but one that I really felt my skills could add value to. “I highly recommend it. This is a unique opportunity to have your voice heard and influence how Pennine Care’s services can be improved. You don't need prior governor experience or a healthcare or academic background.” Ben is one of our appointed governors, representing the voluntary, community, faith, and social enterprise sector. He has shared his experience since joining us last year. We’re currently looking for governors to represent all the boroughs across our area – Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside and Glossop – please check out our website if you’re interested.

We are proud to be ranked as the best place to work in the North of England in our category of mental health, learning disability, and community trusts, from the recent NHS Staff Survey results. We were the sixth best in the country for being 'a great place to work', and top in the country for 'feeling free to act in your role’ and for 'making suggestions about how to improve things'. Check out the Pennine Care Jobs page on our website for details on how to join our flexible and supportive teams. We provide mental health learning disability and autism services across Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside and Glossop. #JoinUsBeYou #PennineCarePeople

Ellen McGowan, speech and language therapist and apprentice advanced clinical practitioner, has had a chapter published in a new book on speech and language therapy for dementia and other progressive diseases. Author Dr. Anna Volkmer invited Ellen to write a chapter by combining recent research with her own clinical experiences. Ellen explained, "My chapter highlights the importance of personalised therapy and how this can enhance and improve the lives of patients. "It's an honour to contribute to this book and share my insights on life story work. I hope it helps professionals provide better care for people with dementia."

Our trusted relationships team - which supports staff to safeguard children at risk of exploitation across Greater Manchester - has received great feedback from deputy mayor of Greater Manchester, Kate Green. The service, which has been running for the last six years, has just secured another three years of funding. Kate Green said, "I was so pleased to meet a number of trusted relationships therapists, whose role is greatly valued in supporting the multidisciplinary team in planning their work with children. “It's clear that their compassionate approach to supporting team members is just as crucial to successful team delivery. I'm happy the service is continuing and remain confident that it will go from strength to strength."