MEDIA AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY
Alan Pattison, Clinical-Operational Estates lead at Lincoln Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, said: “It is great to have technology in house that actually makes our work easier and more enjoyable – not only for the clinical and care staff, but also for our service-users.”
In answer to my question to him about
the most important insight he has gained from these years of experience, he says: “I think that a grounded understanding of self-management, autonomy, and personal coping strategies, essentially forms the basis of everything we do – and in that, we have as much regard for the service-user as the caregiver. Every person has their own way of handling a crisis, also called the individual coping style. CoWin and GRASP make it possible for healthcare professionals to take over control from a person only when it is absolutely necessary – with clear frameworks, but leaving room for individual coping strategies. That room allows clients to climb out of a crisis under their own steam. We see in practice that this leads to faster and more sustainable recovery. Unlike other software on the market, GRASP offers uniquely powerful tools to both service-users and care professionals, enabling constructive work from both sides to de-escalate the situation and restore both the service- user’s well-being and equilibrium and the working relationship.”
What does ‘self-management’ mean in practice? “Self-management starts with the loss of self-control,” Erik Kuijpers explained. “This is one of the most difficult themes in psychiatry. It means having your fate largely in someone else’s hands. Our solutions make it possible to create an environment in which care for someone is taken over. A service-user is given the tools to create these conditions, so that care is provided as far as is possible based on the characteristics and personality of the individual, when they are unable to do so themselves. Compare it to a person’s last will and testament that sets out the conditions of care should they later be diagnosed with dementia. At a time of crisis, it is often desirable and positive to be able to fall back on the wishes expressed by the person themself. This also creates a stronger healing effect afterwards, because the person was a ‘co-owner’ of the care process. We’re talking about relatively small things. Think of being able to express yourself – to relax by drawing or listening to your
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favourite music. What regularly happens in real-world mental healthcare settings is that everything still seems to move predominantly to one side, with the person in crisis actually being denied a lot, or even everything. But there is increasing evidence that shows that greater autonomy, however small, contributes to faster recovery and a better response to medication.”
Important nuances But surely, I asked Erik Kuijpers, there are plenty of examples on crisis wards where this is very difficult or impossible? He said: “Of course – there are important nuances. Take, for example, complex treatments where someone could injure themselves or somebody else, or might be suicidal. These are cases where taking temporary control is justified, because doing nothing or too little could result in undesirable outcomes. In addition, it is sometimes simply not safe or responsible to stay together in one room.” He continued: “In such situations,
CoWin and GRASP ensure that contact between service-user and carer remain possible. For example, a distressed service-user may direct their anger at a care worker during their admission. Strong aggression makes contact difficult, but as a care worker you also want to show understanding for the individual’s emotional state. Often, justifiable feelings of anxiety get in the way of this contact. GRASP provides applications which leave room for that anger, allowing clients to vent. The simple fact of the anger just being given space usually ensures a quicker return to a lower energy level with room for equivalent contact and, consequently, eventual recovery. What ultimately matters is that you take steps to provide care in the spirit of how service- users would like it to be provided.” I asked Erik Kuijpers whether
there also any particular persistent misunderstandings about Recornect’s solutions? He said: ‘There are sometimes assumptions about CoWin and GRASP that turn out to be incorrect. For example, the idea that with CoWin you might ‘spoil’ a person or, on the contrary, give them too many stimuli. Practice clearly shows
NOVEMBER 2023 | THE NETWORK
that neither assumption is true. Rather, the opposite. Having some say in, and influence on, one’s own care conditions has been proven in practice to be a good and even necessary basis for quicker recovery, not a ‘luxury’. As far as stimuli are concerned, we live in a hi-tech society. Patients in crisis intuitively recognise the usefulness and purpose of the CoWin media wall. Our solution is therefore also often immediately embraced and seen as reassuring. We do, however, sometimes see a few reservations about our system among healthcare staff, but after a short introduction and training, it soon becomes clear to them that as caregivers, they remain in control of the system, and have a powerful new tool at their disposal to stay in touch in a safe way. Recornect’s mission is therefore to deploy our hardware and software to provide both counsellor and service-user with new tools, alongside the usual techniques, with which to interconnect and pave the way to a true healing environment.”
Remy Vermeer
Remy Vermeer has been with Recornect since 2021. He is responsible for coordinating schedules, installations, and collaborating with various stakeholders, including healthcare institutions, architects, and contractors. His extensive experience in operational projects is reflected in his role as Project manager at Recornect.
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