Specialist
Safeguarding Children - Paediatric Liaison Service (PLS)
NHS Haringey and North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust
Promoting Children’s well being and protecting them from significant harm is a shared responsibility; it depends crucially upon effective information sharing, collaboration and understanding between agencies and professionals. (Working together to Safeguard Children 1999)
Every Child Matters Change for Children suggests multi-agency working can make a unique contribution to preventative and early
intervention services because it has been shown to be an effective way of cross-cutting risk factors that contribute to poorer
outcomes for children and young people.
Inadequacies in information sharing and management may lead to disastrous consequences (king and Read 2003). All professionals have a duty in Safeguarding Children at an early stage.
The role of the Paediatric Liaison Team is to work in partnership to ensure effective two-way communications between hospital and community to enable children and their parents to receive appropriate care and support.
Lord Laming in 2003 clearly stated that no appraisal of Child Protection should be considered complete until they have been fully documented accounted for and addressed
The Paediatric Liaison Service needs to be alert to possible indicators of abuse and neglect. Specific attention is given to children who are on the Child Protection Register, frequency of A and E attendance, account and circumstances of the injury, lack of supervision, psychosomatic symptoms, and complex interactions between issues such as eating disorders, school refusal, bullying, self-harm, assaults, parental mental health issues, domestic violence and drug/substance misuse.
Key roles and responsibilities of the Paediatric Liaison Service (PLS)
- To work in partnership with other professionals and maintain effective two-way communication systems
- To be alert to the indicators of child abuse and neglect
- Review health information and outcomes for all children who come to the attention of health services at North Middlesex University Hospital Accident and Emergency Department, Walk in Centre and Paediatric Eye out-patient clinic
- Scrutinise all information as recorded pertaining to the child and her/his family and liaise with relevant service
- To prioritise communications on vulnerable children
- To facilitate timely inter-agency communications
- To promote effective collaboration directly from ward to community based professional and vice-versa e.g. the HV/SN in the community is the gatekeeper of all the health information and will make decisions on contact with the family
- To attend, participate and represent the HV/SN service at multi disciplinary meetings e.g. Antenatal link meetings, Psychosocial and Child Protection Meetings
- Contributing to meetings via giving an up-to- date Health Visiting/School Nursing perspective where necessary
- To increase awareness of the PLS within the hospital
- To participate in the development of the PLS
- To represent the Health Visiting Service at case conferences and give feed back
- To initiate and participate in research and clinical audit
- To maintain contemporaneous records
- To participate in training and development actively promoting the gathering of information at first point of contact, to help to inform decision making of community based professional, e.g. establish current address, name of school, GP, Name on Child Protection Register, Looked after Child
- To maintain own professional development
- To promote awareness of the specialist care of the next Infant Programme (CONI) in NHS Haringey
- To accept appropriate referrals to CONI Programme to enable the Specialist Health Visitor to work directly with Service users
- Making referrals to PLS
Referrals are made to the PLS primarily from Accident and Emergency and Walk in centre of all Children 0 – 18yrs. The A and E attendance is reviewed by the PLS Health Visitor/Specialist Nurse, following review information is communicated to relevant Health Professional in the community.
In situations where children attend the NMUH where an overseas address is recorded but may have a link with an address in Haringey the reason for attendance is reviewed and liaison with the relevant Health professional takes place. This may highlight the need for delivery of health services to the family who prior to that attendance at NMUH may be unknown to the community Health Services.
Paediatric Liaison service guidelines for overseas children attending NMUH
Referrals are received at Antenatal clinic Link meetings either verbally or written on a Link form of vulnerable pregnant women and women who have had a previous sudden and unexpected infant death. Following review of history and antenatal risk assessment the Health Professional in the Community is informed, she will assess the need for service delivery to that client.
Care of the next Infant Programme in HTPCT
When a family has had the experience of the tragic death of a baby the next pregnancy and early months of that baby’s life will induce a lot of anxiety. The aim of the Foundation for the Study of Infant Death (FSID) is that every family should receive adequate support with a subsequent baby following a cot death. The CONI programme in NHS Haringey offers education, advice and support promoting awareness and building confidence through risk minimisation within the affected family. The programme is parent-led and is offered jointly with the Health Visitor/Midwife up until the baby is aged six months or two months beyond the age at death of the previous baby. It consists of:
- Weekly contact with the allocated health professional and fast access to the Paediatrician
- A symptom diary is issued-this record will help a parent to recognise changes in the babies health
- A room thermometer will enable the parent to monitor ambient room temperature
- Sheffield centile chart to record weight
- An apnoea monitor with sensor to detail babies breathing
- Paediatric resuscitation training for the family
- Re-enforcement of risk factor reduction information e.g. smoke cessation, room temperature and sleep position and arrangements
- A phone card to facilitate free access to FSID helpline
Criteria for Referral to Coni Co-ordinator
The above pathway outlines the referral process and highlights the names of professionals delivering the service in NHS Haringey and Enfield PCT and their contact points.
Who are the Paediatric Liaison Team?
We are employed by the TPCT in the Safeguarding Children Team, based at:
North Middlesex University Hospital, room 37 old nurses home Sterling Way N18 1QX.
t: 020 8887 4010
f: 020 8887 2872
Specialist Health Visitor
Post Vacant
e:
Specialist Liaison Nurse
Paulette Thomas
e: paulette.thomas@nmh.nhs.uk
Administrator
Marjorie Johnson
e: marjorie.johnson@nmh.nhs.uk
