We’re now well into December with the festive season upon us, and it’s hard to believe that this is the last issue of Partnership Matters for the year!

Whilst this will be a time for folks to get a break and spend time with family and friends, we’ll continue to deliver our essential services to our city’s most vulnerable patients and service users who rely on them. I’d like to express my gratitude and thanks to staff and partners who’ll be working over the holiday period to maintain care and support and be that familiar face to them. I appreciate that this is at a time when we’re facing winter pressures, and despite this, it never ceases to amaze me the great efforts that staff go to in ensuring they’re supported.

I’d also like to say thanks to all our staff and partners for their hard work and commitment over the past year in continuing to support the health and social care needs of our city, and their support for one other. You make me ever so proud to be a part of what we’re doing in Glasgow to support our patients, service users and their families, especially during this challenging period of the cost of living crisis and the impact it’s having on people across Glasgow and Scotland. You are what make Glasgow, and I’m immensely grateful for what you do on a day-to-day basis. Thank you.

We kick off this issue of Partnership Matters with a feature article on Technology Enabled Care (TEC) Clinics that we’ll be trialling as part of our Health and Social Care Partnership’s (HSCP) Maximising Independence approach. We use technology regularly in many areas of our lives. But for many people, technology can be a barrier to their wider community, as well as a welcome lifeline. As well as helping with day-to-day tasks like switching on lights and making phone calls at the touch of one button, there are tools that can help people stay safe inside and outside their home, such as movement and temperature sensors, alarms and reminders.

We’ll be working with partners to provide digital support to those who use our services, their families and staff who support them and the general public in Glasgow. The clinics will be delivered through Glasgow Life libraries and third sector organisations, offering advice and support on devices including smart phones and tablets. There will also be information on how to access equipment and apps that can support people’s health and care such as medication prompts and how to stay connected to their friends, families and carers.

We also feature articles on:

• our HSCP’s Supported Employment Service and how they’ve been supporting people with autism and learning disabilities into paid work for the past 14 years. We recently created a short video to showcase the service and tell the inspiring story of clients who have benefited from being supported by it
• National Power of Attorney (PoA) Day, which took place on 23 November, when we’re reminded of the importance of having a PoA in place – a legal document that allows an agreed person to act on behalf of someone in the event of an emergency, illness or accident
• 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Based Violence, the international campaign that calls for the elimination of gender-based violence against women and girls from 25 November to 10 December, during which we raised awareness and
• our latest Health Improvement Annual Report 2022 to 2023, highlighting the work of our HSCP’s Health Improvement Team and the progress made in improving health and wellbeing and reducing health inequalities

We also continue to include links to more news articles that have been published on our HSCP’s website, as well as links to upcoming meetings and events. You can keep up to date on what’s happening across our HSCP with partners by following us on X and Facebook, too. If you have something you’d like to feature in Partnership Matters, feel free to email us at gchscp_communications@glasgow.gov.uk. 

I’d like to wish each and every one of you an enjoyable and peaceful time, and I hope you get to have a rest at some point over the period or in the new year.

Warmest holiday wishes,

Susanne