The first BSG Scotland members’ event of 2009 took place at the Centre for the Older Person’s Agenda (COPA), Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh. Members of COPA’s HUB were on hand to greet attendees and guide them through the campus to the meeting rooms. The HUB is a diverse network of older people who conduct and take part in research as well as others interested in gerontological research. Anyone can sign up to become part of the HUB network and receive email alerts about their varied activities (www.qmu.ac.uk/copa).

The meeting began with the now traditional networking lunch giving members and their guests a chance to catch up with colleagues and make new contacts. At the start of the afternoon’s programme we were welcomed by Yvonne Coull, Director of COPA, who spoke about some of the recent and ongoing work at the centre. One important project is the Futures Group which forms a key part of the Scottish Government’s National Forum on Ageing. The Futures Group will be responsible for the implementation of the forthcoming Ageing Strategy.

The first speaker of the afternoon was Melanie Lewin, a researcher with COPA and also the manager of an innovative service for older people in Edinburgh called ‘Shared Lives’. Melanie’s presentation was about the development of the publication ‘Good Ideas: A practical handbook for supporting older people in their own homes.’ This very practical resource was developed in response to a need to understand more about the lives of people who cannot get out of their houses on a regular basis. The research involved older people undertaking interviews with people who were housebound to find out what their needs and wishes were. The research also explored what carers are currently doing for this group and aimed to highlight good practice. The guide provides practical and straightforward advice for carers of older people, particularly those who are housebound. Copies can be downloaded from the COPA website: http://www.qmu.ac.uk/copa/publications/research_reports.htm 

Brittany Ellis spoke of her work as the project leader of a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) between the University of Stirling, Fife Council and NHS Fife. The aim of this partnership is to develop a 10-year strategy for dementia care across Fife. KTP projects provide links between academic institutions and external organisations to encourage the use of research to inform practice. This project will run over two years and Brittany works full time managing the project. As someone external to the main organisations involved Brittany was able to bring fresh eyes to the development of the strategy. She has spent a lot of her time talking to people across Fife from many different groups. She has been able to identify some of the key issues within Fife which are barriers to good care for people with dementia and conversely has identified examples of good practice which could be spread across Fife. Brittany is working closely with a wide range of stakeholders to produce the strategy which should be complete by December this year. You can find out more about the project at its website: http://socialwork.fife.gov.uk/fds/

The final speaker was Kathryn MacKay, a lecturer in Social Work from the University of Stirling. Kathryn has recently been involved with a project looking at the role of the ‘named person’ within the legal procedures relating to the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) ( Scotland) Act. The ‘named person’ is an individual who knows the person receiving treatment and can therefore express an opinion about the care or treatment that person receives. They are not the same as an independent advocate who must put the patient’s view first. In the past the named person was nominated by default and would be the patient’s closest relative but it is now possible to nominate a named person specifically. The aim of this project was to explore whether the new system worked better than the previous default system. The findings from the project indicated that it was still the case that most named people were identified by default and that many named people attended the first hearing but then dropped out of the process. However, the named people that Kathryn spoke to as part of the project did feel it was a useful role. The full report from the project can be accessed at:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2009/03/09103446/0

Interesting discussion followed each of the speakers making it an informative and enjoyable event. We will be hosting another meeting later this year and will publish details of this on the BSG website Calendar and on the BSG Scotland webpage.