Conversation starter: David Jackson, Scarborough and Ryedale Carers Resource 

David works for an organisation that supports carers, a group that is often overlooked when it comes to conversations about health and care. 

We need to engage with those who will be providing services in the future. 

At a top level, we need local authorities to communicate better with smaller organisations. Is there a way of connecting, and pooling our resources to give better care? Maybe creating a digital profile that we could share across services? 

The conversation centred around finding the time to give a more human-focused service. Learning context, not just ticking boxes. Knowing the carer, and patient, and asking the right questions is important. Ultimately you have to sit down and talk to people to work out what’s wrong.  

To treat the cause and not the symptom, we need to take the time. But do we have the time, when everyone is so stretched?  

The group agreed we need to teach that saving time by taking the time in the first place. We need to change priorities about what really matters. If you’re giving a bed bath you are not just bathing somebody, you’re checking the skin, you’re asking about their home life. There are lots of ways we can gather more information, but it takes care and attention to the job.