Health Visitors

[marykenny55]

I've just been told by my Health Visitor that all of their jobs are under threat because of lack of funding from the Local Authority. With the closure of all of the local children's centres they are all really worried about another baby P going unnoticed. Has anyone else heard this ?

I have not heard this but then I'm not in the industry. I think you should post this in Chat to see if anyone there has heard about it.

Yes they are reducing the service across the country. Sadly this will result in many more child deaths as safeguarding is a huge part of the role. In some areas school nursing has been completely axed and it's happened completely under the radar. Very sad times for vulnerable children.

I would post in chat too for traffic

Oh no! My HV practically saved my life when I had PND. This is really sad news.

Baby P had social work, health visitor and doctor involvement, he had even been removed from his mother once because of the abuse and social services unbelievably gave him back, health visitors didn't do much for baby P.

It is a statutory service funded from department of health so won't be cut completely. What has happened is that funding has been reduced and it is up to the local authority and the NHS provider of the HV service to look at how best to incorporate less funding into the service - so it may be that weighing clinics are reduced or the service changes slightly. I would not imagine the whole service can be completely cut

Also it is very unprofessional of your health visitor to be discussing that with you.
I assume she means that they are re-banding/re-grading their jobs or as I said above changing how the service works not that all jobs are going to go. She certainly shouldn't be implying to you that another baby p case will happen because of it!

Health visiting services have gone from being commissioned by NHS to being commissioned by Local Authorities - so yes, in theory they can commission a lesser service, which would mean HV job losses and safeguarding issues.

We had are weighing clinics reduced to two monthly.
Most hv are worth their weight in gold and have helped me no end.
We are left with no children centres and now they are gradually reducing the support from hv.
Problem is that yes it might save a little bit of money short term but long term when families are at crisis point because of lack of support who is going to fund it then?

The irony is 4000 new HV's were trained after several reports identified the first 3 years of life as critical for future health and well being. As soon as that programme was finished they started cutting the service!

The needs are the same if not more tbh with increasing levels of homelessness and poverty.

And why is it unprofessional? Junior doctors have been very vocal about the changes they are facing.

I didn't say I agreed with the cuts and I dont I was just explaining that it would be a reduced service not completely cut - which I disagree with too. The advantage of the health visitor service is that it is universal and anyone can have a problem or need extra help and support regardless of postcode, previous experience, age etc and at the moment the service can help find that support. I agree that in the long run we eill be spending more money on crisis care/ social work etc rather than the preventative
I assumed the op had been told this from a health visitor during a client/professional meeting/appointment - in which case I think it is unprofessional to be discussing contract changes. I would also not want a junior Dr to discuss it with a patient either.
Discussion in a public medium is entirely different

Sorry dylsmimi, but you are wrong HV's are now funded from the public health budget via the local authority. Posts are being cut and/or hours reduced. My HV didn't make the connection to baby P, I did. Whilst baby P did have all of the above it was an poor management and communication that led to his death. We were told 'lessons would be learned' although it appears that the lessons learned were fewer hours face to face contact and more management. Once again it will take a tragedy before front line services are prioritized over yet another re-organisation and bloated bureaucracy. The fact that you regard any exposure of these matters as unprofessional makes me think you subscribe to the general desire within the NHS to suppress and spin bad news rather than see the truth come out.

No
How did I say that?
I said that if you were meeting about your health visitor about the care to your child I don't think they should be discussing their employment contract with you on that situation.
As I said - same as if I met with a junior doctor or any other professional as a patient then I do not think they should be discussing their terms of pay and conditions in THAT forum
I said that in other circumstances then it should be discussed and highlighted such as in the media etc but I still do not think a one to one patient/professional appointment is the time to do that.
I am quite aware of where the funding is from and said that as there is less finding due to local authority cuts that the NHS providing the service (those who have been commissioned by the local authority) have to change the service to work within that budget
I categorically said I didn't agree with with cuts so I am not sure why you seem to be making out why I want to cut a service that I said was valuable in its universalism?