Totally Health to provide clinical health coaching services in Derbyshire

Published: 30-Oct-2013

COPD health coaching promotes self-care and self-management through the winter period


Totally Health will partner with Southern Derbyshire Clinical Commissioning Group and the Royal Derby Hospital NHS Foundation Trust to help with the management of winter pressures by working with patients diagnosed with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD).

The health coaching service will provide for better health outcomes, reduced repeat and re- admissions, promotion of self-care and cost savings in an environment where £7 out of every £10 of NHS spending is currently used for the management of long-term conditions.

Totally Health will work with 100 patients through the winter period, providing clinical health coaching services that will support the local care pathway and local primary and acute care providers to help the patients better self manage their conditions and avert exacerbations. The health coaches are registered nurses who help the patient manage their condition by providing mentoring and support via both outbound and inbound telephone calls.

One of the values of health coaching is that at all times clients feel involved and in control, which improves self-esteem and can elevate self efficacy

Wendy Norton, head of health coaching at Totally Health, said: “Health coaching for long-term condition management puts the patient at the centre of the process. People with long-term conditions can feel overwhelmed by the condition and its associated treatments. One of the values of health coaching is that at all times clients feel involved and in control, which improves self-esteem and can elevate self efficacy. It also becomes easier for an individual to identify when things are starting to go wrong so that they can be supported to take immediate appropriate action rather than waiting until the situation has worsened, requiring medical intervention or hospitalisation which could potentially be avoided.”

Wendy Lawrence, chief executive of Totally Health, added: “We know from our work with other CCGs that health coaching can make a profound difference to patients and the emergency care services, and with specific care plans in place over the winter months we believe that our services will make a real difference to the patients involved in the programme over this potentially-difficult period.”

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