Welcome to the Scottish Association of Community Hospitals

The Scottish Association of Community Hospitals
supports, promotes and develops Community Hospitals
within NHS Scotland.

2nd August 2011
IMPORTANT NOTICE TO OUR MEMBERS - THE 2011 CONFERENCE

As part of a more integrated approach towards Shifting the Balance of Care the Scottish Association of Community Hospitals has been invited to support a joint conference this year with the Scottish Government’s Reshaping Care Improvement Network.

PLEASE VIEW FURTHER INFORMATION REGARDS THIS EVENT HERE

WE ARE HERE FOR YOU

Following on from the 2010 SACH Conference, and the Masterclass held to inform our members of a Learning Needs Analysis survey, we would like to provide an update on new developments.

As you are aware, the SACH has embarked on an educational project in partnership with NHS Education for Scotland. This has involved a number of stages:

• A national overview on the needs of Community Hospital staff in relation to CQIs, National Standards and programmes.
• A co-mapping educational programme for GPs.
• A number of focus group discussions held July / August 2010.
• A national electronic survey undertaken during April 2011.

Further development of this work involved compiling a report to give feedback on the National Electronic Survey of the self-assessed learning needs of community hospital staff, and we are now in the process of visiting NHS Board areas / Community Hospitals to ‘sound check’ the findings.

The report can be downloaded here: Identifying the Learning Needs of Community Hospital Staff in Scotland.

 

What is SACH?
The Scottish Association of Community Hospitals (SACH) is a non-profit making voluntary body, representing Community Hospitals across Scotland and anyone who is connected to a Community Hospital, is a member of an extended Primary Care Team or is involved with a voluntary organisation with close links to a Community Hospital, such as a local League of Friends.

Vision
Is that Community Hospitals and their teams remain capable, fit for the future and play an integral part in supporting NHSScotland to reliably improve quality, ensure value and deliver better outcomes for people closer to home.

Aims
The SACH aims are:

• to promote, develop and influence the Intermediate Care agenda;
• to inform and influence developments within the NHS and other associated bodies;
• to provide support for members to enable them to address the objectives of the Association at a local level and in their clinical practice; and
• to provide and support education/communication both within and outside the organisation.

What does SACH do?
The Scottish Association of Community Hospitals supports its members to provide the best care possible for the communities they serve by encouraging best practice, promoting patient-centred care and ensuring the implementation of national guidelines and standards. The SACH endorses that those involved in Community Hospitals are a natural force for local integration because they have always worked in a multidisciplinary, multi-agency environment.

What are Community Hospitals?
"A Community Hospital is a local hospital, unit or centre providing an appropriate range and format of accessible health care facilities and resources," explains Professor Lewis Ritchie of the Department of General Practice and Primary Care, University of Aberdeen, and a Committee Member of the Scottish Association of Community Hospitals.

"Medical care is normally led by GPs, in liaison with consultant, nursing and allied health professional colleagues as necessary and may also incorporate consultant long stay beds, primary care nurse-led and midwife services."

Services currently being provided by Community Hospitals across Scotland, in both urban and rural settings, include:

• Intermediate GP Acute Care
• Out-of-hours and emergency triaging services
• Out patient and specialist clinics
• Pre-admission and routine testing
• Day surgery
• Palliative care
• Rehabilitation
• Treatment for patients who cannot be cared for at home but who do not require the specialist care provided by a more distant hospital
• Convalescence if required