Community frailty team workforce development – a personal reflection
Community frailty team workforce development – a personal reflection
Purpose
This paper represents a personal view of a newly appointed consultant practitioner trainee in frailty. This role was created as a result of a rapid workforce review of a Frailty Support Team (FST) in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Design/methodology/approach
The FST traditionally worked alongside other community services. A “One Team” approach was developed whereby prior silos of community nursing, therapy and frailty teams became a single, locality based and mutually supportive integrated community service. This significantly increased capacity for an urgent community response for older people with complex needs and improved clinical management and coordination of care. As a workforce review identified the need for skills development, new roles for trainee advanced frailty practitioners (AFPs) and a consultant practitioner trainee in frailty were established.
Findings
Staff experience of the “One Team” model was positive. The changes were thought to encourage closer and more efficient working between primary care and a range of community health services. The improved communication between professionals enabled more personalised care at home, reducing pressure on emergency hospital services. A rapid review of the workforce model has enabled the enhanced team capacity to cover a wider geographical area and improved recruitment and retention of staff by introducing a new pathway for career progression within the expanding specialism of frailty.
Originality/value
The challenge of COVID-19 has prompted rapid service redesign to create an enhanced “One Team in the community.” The innovative workforce model looks beyond traditional roles, values the experience and capabilities of staff and develops the skills and confidence required to provide a more integrated and person-centred specialist community pathway for people living with frailty.
Community care, Integrated care, Frailty
464-468
Lewis, Lucy Anne
b7bac6f9-0e97-41da-93fe-9af4f0a27f9e
Corbett, Eleanor
d61ac6b3-3eae-4b5a-8547-6bf36b642569
2 September 2021
Lewis, Lucy Anne
b7bac6f9-0e97-41da-93fe-9af4f0a27f9e
Corbett, Eleanor
d61ac6b3-3eae-4b5a-8547-6bf36b642569
Lewis, Lucy Anne and Corbett, Eleanor
(2021)
Community frailty team workforce development – a personal reflection.
Journal of Integrated Care, 29 (4), .
(doi:10.1108/JICA-04-2021-0021).
Abstract
Purpose
This paper represents a personal view of a newly appointed consultant practitioner trainee in frailty. This role was created as a result of a rapid workforce review of a Frailty Support Team (FST) in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Design/methodology/approach
The FST traditionally worked alongside other community services. A “One Team” approach was developed whereby prior silos of community nursing, therapy and frailty teams became a single, locality based and mutually supportive integrated community service. This significantly increased capacity for an urgent community response for older people with complex needs and improved clinical management and coordination of care. As a workforce review identified the need for skills development, new roles for trainee advanced frailty practitioners (AFPs) and a consultant practitioner trainee in frailty were established.
Findings
Staff experience of the “One Team” model was positive. The changes were thought to encourage closer and more efficient working between primary care and a range of community health services. The improved communication between professionals enabled more personalised care at home, reducing pressure on emergency hospital services. A rapid review of the workforce model has enabled the enhanced team capacity to cover a wider geographical area and improved recruitment and retention of staff by introducing a new pathway for career progression within the expanding specialism of frailty.
Originality/value
The challenge of COVID-19 has prompted rapid service redesign to create an enhanced “One Team in the community.” The innovative workforce model looks beyond traditional roles, values the experience and capabilities of staff and develops the skills and confidence required to provide a more integrated and person-centred specialist community pathway for people living with frailty.
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More information
Published date: 2 September 2021
Keywords:
Community care, Integrated care, Frailty
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 509987
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/509987
ISSN: 1476-9018
PURE UUID: 91c5fa06-e314-4ec5-b29d-f582d3e75a0d
Catalogue record
Date deposited: 12 Mar 2026 17:48
Last modified: 13 Mar 2026 02:54
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Contributors
Author:
Lucy Anne Lewis
Author:
Eleanor Corbett
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