National Treatment Agency - supporting and involving carers

[Lelee]

For info:

http://www.nta.nhs.uk/areas/users_and_carers/publications/supporting_and_involving_carers_10.08.pdf

[maggiem]

Thanks Linda,
Have briefly scanned the doc before printing off, looks interesting.  I feel that I am lucky to access 6 x 50min sessions of councelling at my G.P surgery.  It is proving to be both helpful but difficult, I am only on no 3 session tomorrow but it is making me think more about my programme of recovery rather than being totally wrapped in my daughters.  It is easy to forget how much damage is done mentally and physically when 'caring' and the problems caused holistically.  It would be wonderful that help could be accessed readily with involvement without negative perceptions from the drug service providers.   Although I have been to a few of my daughters meetings(she has wanted me there) I do feel that I am not involved properly.  I can understand in the early days when disclosure of her past had not come to light but now it is in the open I would love to be more involved and therefore help in the correct way.  I have never seen a treatment plan or heard it discussed!!!
Tomorrow she has a meeting with the drug misuse social worker to discuss her options prior to rehab, again I would like to know what would be involved first hand rather than a brief discussion with my daughter or self investigation.   I want to be involved but I am not interfering.
Will read the doc tonight after watching the programme on channel 4 with much interest.
Love Maggie

[mcdermott]

Hi maggie,

I'm sure you know this, but the decision about whether to involve a carer, and the extent to which a carer should be kept in the loop is a decision for the service user, not the agency staff involved. They have a strict obligation to keep confidential any information that your daughter hasn't authorized them to share with you, and they would get into serious trouble if they were to breach that confidentiality without your daughter's express written permission to do so.

Sometimes, things can be difficult for staff when a service user is telling a carer one thing, but telling the service something else. For example (and I'm not suggesting this is happening in your case, it's just an example) a service user may well be telling their carer that they are perfectly happy for a carer to know all about everything, but they might be telling their keyworker that they don't want to share any information at all. In such a situation, the service can look as though they're being obstructive but they really don't have a choice in the matter.

It can get even more complicated when a service user changes their mind about what or how much to share with a carer -- so when things are going well, they agree to share everything -- but when they relapse, they start placing strict limits on what a worker can share. To the carer, it looks as though the service is being random and unhelpful, but in fact, they're simply fulfilling their primary obligation of confidentiality to their client.