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Making an impact
Dr Cheryll Adams, CBE
Executive Director, iHV
Today - challenges but also opportunities
Very difficult times:
•Austerity
•Health visiting being integrated into LA children’s
services
•Cuts to PH budgets reduced HV resource
•NHS apparently in turmoil with increased pressure on
services
•Global upheaval
How will you respond?
1. Batten down the hatches and hope that it will all
turn out better than you think it will?
2. Step forward to help make the future one that you
want to see?
So what next?
Today we have given you:
• New ideas
• New toolkit
• New enthusiasm
• New confidence? Hopefully!
How should you act?
• What is most essential is don’t delay!
• Make a plan and start to implement it.
• We hope you will be change leaders whether for small or
large changes.
‘A leader is one who knows
the way, goes the way, and
shows the way.’
(John C. Maxwell)
Consider
•Clarity of purpose - what is the problem
– what needs to be achieved? May be a
personal goal.
•Find and provide the evidence/make the
case
•Build support – don’t go alone, rarely
effective
•Be brave and be persistent
•Be creative – think out of the box
Act locally, change locally
What needs to be influenced? How can you influence?
E.g. Some thoughts re HV cuts being made:
• Build relationships with local commissioners/senior management
• Think about what would influence/drive change
• Build capital and make a plan – build relationships, broker deals,
find allies
• Market your services and all they can achieve for the
community/population
• Why invest in an advanced specialist doubly registered
practitioner?
• Use the iHV Economic Briefing for evidence, also the ‘State of HV’
survey report.
• Empower the population to support you
TOGETHER WE CAN DELIVER THE CHANGE WE WANT TO SEE!
Act locally - Influence nationally
•Use social media to get your messages out about
your great service and any risks to it
•Use the press and spoken media to promote
innovative practice – it makes it harder to cut it!
• E.g. A day in the life of a health visitor is powerful reading
for other people – one HV got their story into the Guardian
•Other opportunities to influence – MPs, letters to PM
•Complete our surveys so others can act on your
behalf
•Share evidence with influencers
How is the iHV responding to the HV cuts?
• State of Health Visiting and other surveys – we needed the
evidence
• Gaining support - informing those who need to know – PHE,
MPs, Members of the House of Lords, Local Government
Association, Royal Colleges e.g. GPs, Paediatricians,
Psychiatrists, voluntary sector – all can help us, all believe in
what we do.
• Building allies – encouraging others to act on our behalf or
acting together
• Letters to the Prime Minister
• Publishing the evidence and briefings for local use,
promoting via social media
• Letters in the press
• Working with film companies – series on health visiting
If you believe in something,
make it happen
- starting today!