Raising Awareness on the Critical Need to Enhance the Skills of Care Managers to Effectively Support the Adoption of Person-Centered Care (PCC) practices at the organizational level: insights from Cyprus University of Technology & Anziani e non solo
The Greek experience
The 1st Hybrid event, organized by Cyprus University of Technology under Activity 2.9, brought together 70 participants from diverse healthcare institutions. The event, took place at Poseidonia Hotel in Limassol, Cyprus, focused on person-centered care in healthcare, the link between leadership and patient-focused care, and the introduction of the Compass Project.
The event covered several work packages, addressing the significance of person-centered care in healthcare and discussing existing challenges in Cyprus. It explored the connection between leadership and person-centered care, emphasizing the empowerment of healthcare teams, training and development, and adaptation to changing needs.
The Compass Project, its origin, and primary goals were introduced, highlighting its significance in the context of person-centered care. The project’s timeline, key milestones, and the main difficulties it aims to address in healthcare and patient outcomes were discussed. The target groups for the Compass Project were defined, focusing on those who would benefit most from its implementation.
Detailed discussions on Work Packages (WP 2, 3, and 4) provided insights into the training course’s content, objectives, and expected outcomes. Attendees were invited to participate in the pilot phase of the project, emphasizing the benefits of gaining valuable skills and knowledge.
The event featured speakers and experts specializing in elderly care and management, offering a comprehensive perspective on the challenges and solutions in the field. Dissemination materials included personalized invitations, event visuals, and agendas distributed before the event. These materials were also shared on social media platforms, extending the reach to a wider audience.
After the event, participants received certificates of attendance, handouts of presentations, and contact information of the presenters for further inquiries. They were granted access to the training platform through a provided link, enhancing the continuity of learning beyond the event.
The event successfully achieved its intended goals, with 32 in-person attendees and 38 online participants. Stakeholders, representing various healthcare institutions, suggested strategies for promoting and exploiting the project’s results. These strategies included engaging nurses and patients, continuous audience training, workshops and evaluations, regular updates, practical support from authorities, and community awareness.
Evaluation results from 37 collected questionnaires indicated high satisfaction among participants. The majority, comprising healthcare professionals, expressed optimism about the Compass Project’s potential impact and future utility. The positive feedback highlighted the event’s alignment with participants’ expectations, significant learning, and the overall value of the content and presentations.
As the Compass Project progresses, the insights gained from the event pave the way for meaningful collaborations and innovations in person-centered healthcare, contributing to positive outcomes at both national and European levels.
The Italian experience
On 19 May 2023 on the occasion of the Caregiver Day, an annual event aimed at raising awareness and valuing the care provision, the dissemination event of the COMPASS project and its activities took place online, with a focus on the first project product, i.e. the training course. The course aims to support care managers in adapting their skills so that they are able to exercise leadership that supports the implementation of person-centred care practices.
A total of 128 participants with very heterogeneous and complementary profiles were brought together for the occasion. Specifically, care managers and professionals with managerial responsibilities or representing care organisations took part, care service presidents, social workers, psychologists and psychotherapists, risk managers, professional educators, nurse assistants, care service quality managers, caregivers and volunteers.
The event allowed to share with the audience reflections on the care context in residential and home care services, sharing insights on the current status in the Italian context and analysing various needs to be met. These reflections were then linked to the COMPASS project and the results developed and under development in providing person-centred care for the elderly.
The discussion was enriched by the various speeches of key speakers who brought significant insights on how it is essential to innovate the provision of services and increasingly person-centred care in residential care settings. Indeed, this innovation includes care capable of responding to the needs for inclusion, autonomy and personalisation of care for the elderly assisted, while creating a support network around their family caregivers. It was also emphasised that this goal can be achieved above all through the role of coordination and management figures, through appropriate leadership and staff support processes and strategies.
The dissemination event in Italy brought very satisfying results, both for the attentive participation and for the interest in the project and the concrete involvement in the pilot activities of WP2 to which several participating organisations joined.
