Delirium “Reach Out” Project
One service already making a real difference has been developed through collaboration between Cumbria Partnership NHS Foundation Trust (CPFT) and North Cumbria University Hospitals NHS Trust (NCUHT).
The Delirium REACH service started at the Cumberland Infirmary on 2 January 2018 and now averages 49 contacts a day. In January the team saw 471 patients, with a total of 1456 contacts. It launched at the West Cumberland Hospital on 5 February 2018.
The service has been designed to screen all over 65s, and anyone known to memory services, when they are admitted to hospital. It also provides interventions for those who develop delirium while in hospital. It is hoped this will reduce length of stay for those patients by an average of 2 days.
Feedback from frontline ward teams has shown the support is enabling nursing staff to concentrate on other patients, and they feel reassured they are being given advice, equipment and interventions to support those patients developing delirium.