Pioneering study to improve well-being of Devon carers

The University of Plymouth has just completed a year-long research project aimed at improving the health and well-being of Devon's carer community. The project tracked the needs of carers in five GP surgeries across Devon to identify how best to support them in their care-giving role whilst improving independence, health and well-being. This was achieved through pilot schemes set up at the selected surgeries to contrast which support elements were most effective. All five participating surgeries appointed a Carers' Advice and Support Worker, whilst the other four also took on one of the following additional services: health checks, counselling or occupational health assessments. One additional site took part in the project, delivering 'business as usual' as a control against which to compare activities. Through conducting interviews, questionnaires, satisfaction surveys and focus groups, the project identified marked achievements in improving support for carers including: - a more holistic approach to developing a broader support and social focus to carer interventions the establishment of a 'read-coded' system for the identification and linking of the carer and cared for highlighting the benefit of having a face-to-face listener rather than a telephone call centre or 'bothering' the GP, an issue which arose in focus groups recognition of the need for flexible consultations in terms of both time and location - All surgeries have also established an information bank about local resources for carers.