Lingwood reviews NHS safety and security roles

This week, director Alan Lingwood and customer relationship administrator Summer Jenkins met with the local NHS to review the new SSO (Safety & Security Officer) roles that have been implemented since January at the RLI (Royal Lancaster Infirmary).

The meeting took place at RLI, and involved the Dementia and Care of the Elderly Team, Safeguarding Team and their Security Management Specialist. It was a chance to talk through how things are progressing and discuss the impact of the SSO roles.

The feedback we received about our partnership working alongside the University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust was fantastic, and since implementing the role of the SSO, the number of incidents recorded for Anti Social Behaviour, Violence and Aggression has reduced significantly, resulting in zero incidents reported in March.

All Lingwood Security Management SSOs are trained in Dementia Awareness, Hand Hygiene and Communication every three months to ensure they are kept aware of the latest developments and that their training record is always up-to-date. This allows for greater continuity of service, which benefits patients, NHS staff and also our own staff on-site.

Following the success of the SSO roles, we are looking to train more of our bed watch staff so that they can progress into an SSO role and take on more responsibility. Two of our staff our photographed below in their uniforms, alongside Alan Lingwood.

Speaking after the meeting, Alan said: “It was a very positive meeting today and it was nice to see the direct impact of our work in such a vital service for the local community. I’d like to personally thank all the staff who have worked hard with us on all roles for the NHS; they are a credit to Lingwood Security for their work in making this a success. I look forward to seeing more of our staff progress into the SSO role over the coming months.”

Training Day

Yesterday also saw four members of our staff attend a training course with the Dementia and Care of the Elderly Team yesterday at the University of Morecambe Bay Hospital Trust. Well done to Kaylem Quinnell, Ron Tinnion, Frank Asemota & Owen Fitzmaurice Rawes, who all received excellent feedback from the trainer, noting that they were very receptive, engaged and took all of the information on board.

The training covered various topics, including: hand hygiene training the full role and responsibilities of the Safety & Security Officer monitoring behaviour & recording clinical training covering dementia &delirium symptoms, behaviours and management, plus understanding the person-centred approach.

Background to the SSO Role:

Patients who are older are more at risk of developing delirium and are at high risk if have dementia already. This causes acute confusion and hallucinations. The combination of symptoms of dementia such as disorientation and memory loss, together with delirium symptoms can be bewildering, terrifying, upsetting and emotional. This causes behaviours to change in the person, usually exhibiting agitation, aggression and sometimes violence, as they try to keep themselves safe in their reality.

This can have a detrimental effect on staff who are caring for them, sometimes resulting in harm from verbal and physical assault. As part of our duty of care, Lingwood Security Management (LSM) provide support and safety for staff where needed. The SSO is the link between LSM and the RLI, providing on-site advice on tasks that can be undertaken by bed-watch personnel, and if additional security is required for patient and staff safety, they will also ensure bed-watch personnel are briefed, carry out their duties and complete appropriate paperwork.