Wellbeing support for Islington primary care

We believe prioritising the wellbeing of people working in primary care in Islington is the key to improving recruitment and retention. Supporting our workforce to flourish will in turn benefit the residents of Islington. 

Our strategy

With support from our peers, borough and NCL colleagues, our strategy exists to: 

• Attract people to work in Islington and provide induction for new recruits with a focus on wellbeing.  

• Build awareness to the importance of wellbeing and raise the profile of Islington as an employer. 

• Be inclusive and curate offers to meet the needs and interest of people working in primary care.  

• Bring people together through group activities and build a wellbeing community of practice. 

• Underpin our approach by the evidence-based 5 ways of wellbeing framework. 

Who can access wellbeing support?

The Islington Training Hub wellbeing initiative is inclusive and open to: 

• Those who are new to working in Islington primary care and attending the induction events. 

• Those who are considering applying to work in primary care in Islington. 

• Those working in Islington primary care who self-identify as wanting to improve their wellbeing. 

Resources

There are several resources available at borough, NCL and national levels to support wellbeing of people and teams in primary care;

Islington Wellbeing Community of Practice

We know that there are already enthusiasts in some practices who are focusing on wellbeing. As Islington Training Hub works to build an Islington community of practice network, we want to encourage people who work in the borough to continue to champion wellbeing and come forward, take part and help spread good practice.  

 See our padlet page for more information, resources and photos of our gatherings so far:

To get involved with the group, or to find out more, please contact igpf.islingtontraininghub@nhs.net

QOF Workforce and Wellbeing Survey Offer

The Quality and Outcomes Framework guidance released in March 2023 introduced a new quality improvement module, which focuses on workforce and wellbeing in 2023/24. To meet the expectations of this module, QOF guidance advises practices to undertake an assessment of the factors that currently impact on workforce wellbeing of their staff and identify areas for improvement. 

The NCL Training Hub is offering a centralised survey to undertake this assessment and provide individual practices with an analysis report with key findings based on their results.

Individual reports will include:

• Areas of success and strengths that have been identified

• Areas for improvement which can inform QI improvement plans

• Suggestions for QI activities based on results

It is intended that this offer will help practices prioritise activities that will have the most impact on their team’s wellbeing and experience at work.

If practices would like to participate in this offer, the following survey link can be circulated with staff: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/LLPYY9J

For more information about this offer, please visit: NCL Training Hub 

To explore other forms of support for this QI module, please visit the QOF Toolkit webpage: NCL Training Hub

Please note: some GP practices may have already been sent a copy of this survey from their PCNs.

Project 31

The Spitz Charitable Trust uses the power of live music to improve wellbeing while reducing isolation and loneliness. Through participatory music events, The Spitz bring people together to improve wellbeing and interaction.

Project 31 is pilot study to trial live music in GP practice waiting rooms in Islington. We are inviting expressions of interest from Islington GP practices to host a musical session by The Spitz.

If your practice would like to take part in this trial, please contact Islington Training Hub.

Meditation guides and template for self and group practice

Would you like to spend more time with your colleagues at work and find a way to create a moment of calm and connection?

Here is a template you can use to embed regular meditation practice into your day, week or perhaps at the start of a practice meeting.

Steps:

1. Find a day and time in the week that your colleagues can meet – perhaps make a Teams calendar invite so everyone gets a reminder in their diary and/or send a screen message to everyone the morning of and 15 minutes before the meditation session will begin.

2. Find a place in the practice where you could all sit undisturbed for 10-15 minutes – perhaps you have one preferred place to gather or how about a different person ‘hosting’ each week? Could you move it outside if the sun is shining and you have a calm place to be?

3. Once everyone has gathered, give people a moment to settle and then play one of the meditations below depending on how much time you have.

4. Voila! You can now return to your work likely feeling less stressed, with improved concentration, and feeling closer to your colleagues.

Below is a small selection of meditations from Insight Timer. You can also download the Insight Timer app on your phone for free for many more resources for meditation, breathwork, sleep, yoga, mental health courses and more. It is worth signposting patients there too!

Becoming a Parkrun Practice

The Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) and Parkrun are working together to promote health and wellbeing for staff and patients by encouraging GP Practices across the UK to  become parkrun practices. This is a wonderful way to increase physical activity, friendships and socialising, mutual support and personal empowerment.

Parkrun is a free, community event where you can walk, jog, run, volunteer or spectate. parkrun is 5k and takes place every Saturday morning.

Parkrun is positive, welcoming and inclusive, there is no time limit and no one finishes last. Everyone is welcome to come along.

Keeping Well NCL

Keeping Well NCL is a staff mental health and wellbeing initiative that seeks to connect and support the North Central London health and social care workforce.

Visit the Keeping Well NCL website for more information, including resources and online support for you and your teams. 

NCL Health and Wellbeing

North Central London Training Hub has curated a new set of resources and workshop events for primary care workers. The aim is to support the development of a centralised health and wellbeing offer across our ICS.

To see the latest updates and resources, visit the NCL Training Hub website.  

Staff wellbeing surveys

NHS England  is working on a primary care staff wellbeing survey but this won’t be ready until 2024. There is no one survey that we would recommend, but these questions from the NHS Institute for Employment Studies may be useful.

The NCL Training Hub Health Wellbeing team will be releasing a toolkit for practices to help with the new wellbeing component of the QOF in summer 2023.