Retreat News
December 2014
Contents
02
Poem of the Month
03
News Hound
Merry Christmas Everyone,
It’s been a long year and if you’re
anything like me you can’t wait to get
home and have a rest.
04
Christmas Quiz
05
Staff Consultative Committee
07
Policy in Focus
08
Blogs
08
Top Tweets
09
Meet... ???
09
HR News
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
10
The Retreat Super Star
10
In The Kitchen
11
What’s On
New website
The Retreat video
New look quality account
Facebook and Twitter
New noticeboards
Internal and external events
and who can forget the many iterations
of the staff newsletter.
It sure has flown by, so big thank you to
everyone who has helped me along the
way.
And a merry Christmas and happy new
year to everyone.
“Maybe Christmas, the Grinch
thought, doesn’t come from a store.”
Not only is it the end of the calendar year
but it’s also the end of my first year at The
Retreat. It’s at milestones like this that I
like to look back and have a think about
the things I’ve done over the last year:
Pete :)
- Dr Seuss
01
Poem of the Month January 2015
Hope
By Emily Dickinson
Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune--without the words,
And never stops at all,
And sweetest in the gale is heard;
And sore must be the storm
That could abash the little bird
That kept so many warm.
I've heard it in the chillest land,
And on the strangest sea;
Yet, never, in extremity,
It asked a crumb of me.
02
George Jepson Decorations
N
ews
Hound
Tommy on Tour
On 24 November The Retreat played host to
Tommy Whitelaw and his national campaign
“You Can Make A Difference” aimed at
encouraging individuals to make a difference in
caring for people with Dementia.
As part of the visit Tommy gave a talk on his
experiences of being a carer and the stories he
has heard from other carers across the country.
It was a very moving evening and something
we hope to do again in the future.
George Jepson are very proud of their new
dementia friendly environment. We have had
lots of new easy chairs and a settee delivered
to George Jepson recently because the old
ones were no longer fit for purpose having
been on the unit for several years.
The large main corridor has been given an
added identity with colourful, well-defined
doorways, extra seating areas and more
choice of living spaces, which has created
a more homely and safer dementia friendly
environment.
The updated alarm system has had unexpected
benefits for a patient who now has increased
independence and autonomy
The Retreat Cricket
The Retreat
Garforth
Stillingfleet
MOD
Ledsham
Posh Acomb
Games Played
9
8
9
7
7
8
Points
60
55
49
42
29
13
Prize Winning Poster
Kate Barker won a prize for research on ‘CFT
as a team approach on a specialist in-patient
unit’ at ‘The Compassionate Mind Foundation’s’
3rd International Conference’
‘It felt like we had hit the nail on the head’
Experiences of an in-patient CFT group
Dr Kate Barker and Hannah Buckland
Abstract
Hannah Mills supports men and women with complex mental health difficulties. Individuals struggle with a range of difficulties including self-harm, dissociation,
suicide attempts, drug and alcohol use, relationship problems, eating related difficulties and psychosis. One of the main therapeutic approaches used on the unit is
CFT. Participants were asked, via the process of semi-structured interviews, about their experiences of CFT within the group.
Findings
The interviews highlighted several themes that are described below:
New learning
An Increased
understanding of self
Using CFT to make
changes
Relationship with
Compassion
• ‘I’ve leant that I have an amygdala! I
know that I’ve got different parts of my
brain, like the old brain and new brain
and can use them at different times’
• ‘I’ve learnt about the new brain and
old brain, the different feelings they
have and how they affect me today
and the links this has to today’s
society’
• ‘I’ve learnt about the fight, flight, freeze
system and how you do one of these
when threat happens. I’ve learnt about
the old brain/new brain too, as the old
brain is how you respond to threat’.
• ‘The model helped me to realise that
my threat system is always quite high
and it’s driving the drive system. It felt
like we had hit the nail on the head
when I learnt this’
• ‘It has helped me understand myself
as I know more about how my brain
work’
• ‘It has been helpful. It showed us in
slow motion how the brain works. This
means I can process my thinking..and
makes it easier to understand what is
going on when threat happens’
• ‘[CFT] has helped me with my selfharm as I turned these thoughts into
more compassionate ones that didn’t
involve harming myself’
• ‘It’s helped me in the way I see my
relationship with my daughter and with
anxiety. It’s helped me turn around
negative images I had about myself.’
• ‘If I’m stressed or angry...I can employ
the new brain to find out if those
emotions are warranted in the here
and now, I can then work out if the
emotional response is valid or if it’s an
old emotion from the past and so I can
let it go’
• ‘It has taught me to be more
compassionate towards others. I think
compassion is good for other people
but not for myself ...I still don’t think I
deserve compassion myself‘
• ‘Before attending the group I hadn’t
thought about being compassionate
towards myself, only towards others’
• ‘It was easier to think of ways to be
compassionate towards other people.
It got a bit easier towards the end
as I had more tools to facilitate selfcompassion’
Discussion
CFT has proved to be a popular model with the participants of the CFT group. The findings indicate that the psycho-educational element of the CFT model helped
participants to increase their understanding of themselves and this increased knowledge has led to changes in behaviour and an increase of self-compassion.
References:
Beaumont, E.; Galpin, A. & Jenkins, P. (2012). ‘Being kindre to myself’: A prospective comparative study, exploring post-trauma therapy outcome measures, for two groups of clients, receiving either CBT or CBT and Compassionate Mind Training. Counselling Psychology Review, Vol.27, No.1, pg.31-42.
Gilbert, P & Procter, S. (2006). Compassionate Mind Training for people with High Shame and Self-Criticism Overview and Pilot Study of a Group Therapy Approach. Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, 13, pg.353-379.
Veale, D; Gilbert, P; Wheatley, J & Naismith, I. (2014). A New Therapeutic Community: Development of a Compassion-Focussed and Contextual Behavioural Environment. Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy. DOI:10.1002/cpp.1897
03
Film and TV Round
Christmas Quiz
As a bit of festive fun we’ve put together a little
quiz for you all to take part in.
Answers will be in the next green newsletter in
the new year.
Best of luck and have a merry Christmas.
General Knowledge Round
1. The Christmas tree in Trafalgar Square is an
annual gift from which nation?
2. According to the Christmas carol, “Good
King Wencelas looked out on the Feast of
Stephen”. On what date does the Feast of
Stephen fall?
3. If a person was given all the gifts in the
song “The Twelve days of Christmas”, how
many gifts in total would they receive?
4. What Christmas item was invented by
London baker Tom Smith in 1847?
5. “Christmas won’t be Christmas without any
presents” is the opening line from which
classic novel?
6. What is the name of the German/Austrian
yeast cake often served at Christmas?
7. In “The Grinch Who Stole Christmas” why
was The Grinch so mean?
8. What were the names of the three wise
man?
9. What Christmas item was first commercially
designed by John Calcott Horsley in 1843?
10.What is the name of The Simpson’s pet
greyhound?
04
1. In the film “The Muppet Christmas Carol”
which character narrated the story?
2. What brand of water do Del Boy and
Rodney attempt to sell in their 1992
Christmas special?
3. Who played Fred Claus in the 2007 movie of
the same name?
4. What was the name of Captain Mainwaring’s
brother in the 1975 “Dad’s Army” Christmas
episode?
5. In which year was the Queen’s first TV
Christmas message?
6. In the 1947 film “Miracle on 34th Street”,
who played Kris Kringle?
7. Which English cricketer won the 2007
“Strictly Come Dancing” Christmas special
making a hat trick of wins?
8. Who plays Jack Frost in the 2006 movie
“The Santa Clause 3”?
9. Which “Happy Days” actor starred in the
1979 movie “An American Christmas Carol”?
10.In “Coronation Street”, where was Rosie
Webster born on Christmas Eve 1990?
Food and Drink Round
11.Often served at Christmas, what name is
given to chipolatas wrapped in bacon ?
12.Meaning literally Christ’s Bread, from which
European country does Christopsomo
originate?
13.Where would you be if your Christmas
dinner consisted of rice and peas, chicken,
oxtail and goat curry?
14.Who created a Christmas pudding for
Waitrose with a whole orange inside?
15.Which fish is popular as a Christmas dish in
Eastern Europe?
16.What in Germany is Lebkuchen, which is
traditionally served at the Christmas?
17.What should be eaten on each of the twelve
days of Christmas to bring good luck?
18.Of what is a Norfolk Black a variety?
19.A favourite for Christmas dinner, by what
name do we know the vegetable Brassica
oleracea?
20.What in the UK was traditionally mixed into
the Christmas Pudding to bring good luck to
the recipient?
Staff Consultative
Committee
The purpose of the group is to provide a forum
to discuss and action certain staff issues
with the aim of improving and enhancing our
working environment and developing a social
community. For example organising Staff
Social Functions, Staff Benefits, Co-ordinating
the annual Staff Survey and overseeing the
Staff Social Fund.
The organisation may use the group to consult
on potential changes to staff Terms and
Conditions of employment although individual
issues and contractual questions should not be
raised at this group. These should be directed
to the relevant Line Manager.
The Group meets once a Quarter and consists
of 15 members of staff who represent each of
the units in the hospital
For those staff who do not feel they are covered
by a rep for their particular job role they can
forward any issues or items for discussion
direct to the Chair.
The Staff
Consultative Committee
Adam Mosley
Chair
Jenny McAleese
SMT
Lisa Yeomans
HR
Michael Moss
Facilities
Carol Wheatley
Admin
Kirsty Savage
Tuke Centre
Mandy Stirk
Domestics
Bronwen Gray
Quaker
Carly Brewer
Acorn
Mary Atkinson
Allis
Linda Davies
Strensall
Ann Lovely
George Jepson
Rachel Eastaugh
Hannah Mills
Sandra Blake
Katherine Allen
Hannah Clark
Naomi
05
Notes From The Last Meeting
The group’s most recent meeting was on 3rd
December. The minutes of the meeting are
available on the Shared Drive. A summary of
some of the areas discussed we’re as follows:
• the recent Staff Benefits Drive and a
proposal for additional Staff Benefits;
• progress of the Staff Smoking Task and
Finish Group and their work towards
ensuring The Retreat becomes a no
smoking site for staff on the 11th March
2015;
• staff Christmas party at York Racecourse;
• ideas for a spring staff social event;
• update on the planning for the 2015 Staff
Survey;
• financial/service development update.
Meeting dates for the group for 2015 are as
follows:
4th March, 3rd June, 2nd September and 2nd
December.
Our
Every year The Retreat carries out an annual
staff survey, last year the survey was designed
and managed by a group of staff from the staff
consultative committee and called Our Voice.
We had a 52% response rate which is a great
improvement on last year. We were all really
pleased to find out that 86% of staff who
completed the survey thought The Retreat was
a nice place to work and 76% of staff believed
that The Retreat’s top priority was Patient Care.
The survey was an excellent opportunity to
make suggestions and how to improve things
at The Retreat and many changes have already
come about as a result of last years survey.
As an incentive for staff to take part in the
survey, The Retreat made a £1 donation to a
local charity for each survey filled in. Last year
the charities chosen and the amounts donated
to each one were:
Alzheimer’s = £59
St Nicholas Fields = £25
York Mind = £48
This year following staff feedback, the
donations will work a bit differently so that the
full amount will go to the single charity with the
most votes as it was felt the larger donation
could make more of a difference.
The 2015 Our Voice survey will be taking
place in february so watch this space for more
informaion about the Survey and how you can
get involved.
06
Policy
Focus
IN
Protected Pay
THE POLICY
The Retreat is committed to supporting
successful organisational change by making
provision for the protection of your basic pay
following salary reduction.
KEY POINTS FOR STAFF
> When might your pay be protected?
Your basic pay may be protected when it
is reduced as a result of:
> What does pay protection apply to?
Pay protection applies to your basic salary,
sick pay, holiday pay and any adoption/
maternity/paternity pay.
Pay protection will not be extended to cover
additional hours worked (over the minimum
contractual arrangement), unsocial hour payenhancement or bank holiday working payenhancement. You will not receive any annual
incremental or inflationary pay increases
during the protection period.
> How long will my pay be protected?
If you are eligible for pay protection, you
will receive full protection of your basic pay/
salary for six months after the date of the
change.
> What happens after this time?
Once the six-month protected period expires,
your pay will be adjusted to the top-point of
the appropriate (new) grade. There is no
right of appeal.
• the introduction of a revised pay/
grading structure.
• organisational restructure.
This is subject to a qualifying period of
one year’s employment.
>When might your pay not be
protected?
There are situations where your pay may not
be protected. For example, when:
• the change is a result of a change in
hours worked.
• the change/action has been taken
as a result of poor performance or
unacceptable conduct on your part.
• you have requested or taken action
to make a change which affects your
banding.
FIND OUT MORE
View the full policy (HRM 25) at www.
retreatlearning.org.uk or on The Retreat’s
Shared Drive.
07
logs
Here are excerpts from some of the Blogs
appearing on the website this month. Be sure
to visit the website for the full story.
Uniforms or Not?
One of our specialist older adult units
explores the idea of uniforms in preperation
for introducing them to one of our female
dementia units.
Read the full Blog here:
http://bit.ly/ReBlogs
Claire’s Story - Two Perspectives on
Eating Disorders
In this guest blog Claire takes time to think
about her experiences of Eating Disorder
services as a patient and NHS staff member,
and asks explores some questions around the
changes to the Diagnostic Criteria.
Read the full Blog here:
http://bit.ly/ReBlogs
Self-Harm
In light of the recent increase in children’s
hospital admissions for intentional self-harm
Dr Liz Lawson answers some frequently
asked questions about self-harm.
Read the full Blog here:
http://bit.ly/ReBlogs
If you’d like to contribute to our Blogs
please get in touch by emailing:
[email protected]
08
op weets
The Tuke Centre @TheTukeCentre
Dr Liz Lawson talks about self
harm in young people on @
BBCYork bbc.co.uk/programmes/
p02… (fast forward to 1hr 11min
43 secs)
5:41pm 19 Nov 2014
Becca @becca_naylor
Went to an incredible talk this
evening at @TheRetreatYork. A
powerful, personal and heartfelt
perspective on dementia. No
words #tommyNtour
9:42pm 24 Nov 2014
The Retreat @TheRetreatYork
We won a prize at the
Compassionate Mind Foundation’s
conference for our research ‘CFT
as a team approach on a specialist
in-patient unit’
10:34am 1 Dec 2014
The Retreat @TheRetreatYork
Dr Liz Lawson from
@TheTukeCentre wrote a column
for todays @yorkpress about
tackling obesity pic.twitter.com/
VzsHaqVsDH
4:41pm 4 Dec 2014
Jenny McAleese @JennyMcAleese
To London today with @
Andersonretreat to give triennial
report on @TheRetreatYork
to Meeting for Sufferings @
BritishQuakers
8:01am 6 Dec 2014
Follow us on twitter @TheRetreatYork
HR News
Meet...???
Sadly no one wanted to meet you this
week.
If you’d like to be featured in one of the
upcoming staff interviews all you need to
do is answer the 6 simple questions below
and email them to:
[email protected]
Role A typical day Why I work at The Retreat Most unusual thing you’ve been
asked to do? Favourite film If I was CEO for the day I would...
Whether you’ve worked here 5 years or
5 minutes it’s good to let people know
who you are because with so many staff
working at The Retreat not everyone will
know you.
Welcome to...
Jonathan Adams – Support Worker,
Katherine Allen
Natalie Clinkscales – Support Worker,
Katherine Allen
Chloe Hildred – Support Worker, Naomi
Richard Jenkinson – Assistant Psychologist/
Support Worker, Naomi
Naomi Littlewood – Support Worker,
Katherine Allen
Marie Robinson – Finance Assistant
Jo Sanders – Staff Nurse, Acorn
Ros Deo - Bank Support Worker
Chloe Pitt - Bank Support Worker
Nicole Acton - Bank Support Worker
Isobel Naylor - Bank Support Worker
Sophie Adgo - Bank Support Worker
Emily Jones - Bank Support Worker
Laura Lawrence - Bank Support Worker
Farewell to...
Margaret Castro – Tuke Centre
Chris Dawson – CTM Hannah Mills
Gill Redhead – Support Worker, Naomi
Mike Walker – Senior Staff Nurse, Hannah
Mills
Congratulations to...
Marie I’Anson – Naomi – 10 years
Wendy Parker – HM – 10 years
Gail Jacques – Strensall – 25 years
Julie I’Anson – Allis – 10 years
Marie Mosley – Strensall – 5 years
09
In
The
Kitchen
Tiffin
P
E
U
S AR
ST R
This month’s Super Star is Joan Garrett. Joan
she goes beyond her role, comes in on her
days off voluntarily, takes patients to new and
exciting places and also takes them to their
homes so families can see more of their loved
ones.
If you’ve got a colleague who goes above and
beyond and you think they deserve to be next
month’s Super Star, you can nominate them by
emailing [email protected] and
letting me know why they’re a super star.
10
Ingedients:
11/2 packs of digestives
75g raisins
50g sugar
110g cocoa powder
225g golden syrup
225g butter
300g milk chocolate
• Crush biscuits and mix with raisins.
• In a bowl melt the cocoa, sugar, butter &
golden syrup and pour over biscuit mix.
• Pour into a lined baking tin and leave to
cool.
• Melt milk chocolate over a pan of hot
water.
• Pour the melted chocolate onto biscuit
base and spread evenly.
• Leave to chill.
What’s on ?
Tuesdays
Fornightly
7.00pm - 8.00pm
Old Library
Wednesdays
10.30am
Staff Block
Meet the SMT
The Retreat Choir
Thursdays
7.30pm
Main Hall
December 15
1.45pm
Main Hall
December 16
7.00pm
Units
December 17
2.00pm - 3.00pm
Lecture Room
Yoga
Nativity
Jules Carol Singers
Natural Laughter
Skills
December 18
6.30pm-8.30pm
Recovery College
December 18
7.00pm
Main Hall
December 19
10.30am
Main Hall
Photoskills
Tuesday Singers
The Bold Balladeers
Christmas Show
December 23
2.00pm
Main Hall
December 25
Christmas Service
Christmas Day
Merry Christmas
December 19
10.00am - 11.30am
Recovery College
Medication &
Mental Health Mood Stabilisers