Local older person’s charity Mid and East Antrim Agewell Partnership (MEAAP) have been awarded a prestigious award in relation to their work by The Health Creation Alliance at a reception at the House of Lords.
Their IMPACTAgewell® model of care for older people was awarded “Best Health Creating, Population Health Management Approach” after being shortlisted from entries across the UK.
IMPACTAgewell® works with older people across Mid and East Antrim putting people’s social needs on a par with their medical needs through working in partnership with local GPs, the NHSCT and Community Pharmacy. It is funded by the Department of Health and the Dunhill Medical Trust and has been operating in the area since 2017.
The Health Creation Alliance defines health creation as “the process through which individuals and communities gain a sense of purpose, hope, mastery and control over their own lives and immediate environment; when this happens their health and wellbeing is enhanced.”
IMPACTAgewell® officers support people, 60 years old and over, living with a long term health conditions over a 6 month period, visiting them in their home and working with them to develop a health and well-being action plan. Their “My IMPACTAgewell® Plan”, focussing on topics like home, wellbeing, health, community and future, allows the older person to see what matters most to them.
Their officer works with the GP, Pharmacy and NHSCT partners and the older person to connect them to the best support in the area. Over 2,500 older people have been supported by IMPACTAgewell® and referred to services such as benefits and scam advice, specialist health condition support and befriending services as well as benefiting from joined up clinical support.
Executive Director of Health Programmes at MEAAP Sarah McLaughlin said:
“We are extremely honoured to have received this award from The Health Creation Alliance.
"At MEAAP we have always been uniquely placed to listen to the needs of older people allowing us to work with all of our partners, including the local community, positively enhancing the established systems to show there are alternative ways to address people’s needs.
"Through our IMPACTAgewell® Hubs we created unique new working relationships in the area which previously didn’t exist and to have the success of this model recognised on a national level is inspirational.
"Currently we work with 20 of the 27 GP surgeries across Mid and East Antrim. By next year we hope to encourage them all to come on board with IMPACTAgewell® so that all older people registered with any GP surgery in our borough can access our support. We realise this is a very pressurised time for our partners in primary care and we are here to offer them our support and to offer older people support in their health and wellbeing."
If you or a friend or family member would like more information on IMPACTAgewell® contact Mid and East Antrim Agewell Partnership on 028 256 586 04.
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