Last week during Alcohol Awareness Week, Helen and Ashliegh from the BLOSM* team had stalls at both hospitals, raising awareness to both colleagues and patients around this important issue and further raising awareness of the service they offer to patients at CHFT. 

Over the last few years the BLOSM team has forged strong relationships with community drug and alcohol services across both Kirklees and Calderdale. There has been a focus on collaboration to improve the experiences of people attending our hospitals with issues relating to drugs and alcohol. The BLOSM team have contracts with both Change, Grow, Live (CGL) in Huddersfield and Waythrough in Calderdale who support staff in reaching into both Emergency Departments working as part of the wider BLOSM team. 

Both Helen Wooley and Ashliegh Murray (see images) have worked alongside BLOSM to build better pathways from the hospital into community services, supporting safer discharges following inpatient admissions and offering support and care for patients attending ED. They have further embedded the principles of Trauma Informed Care across our hospitals and have both been a fantastic addition to our team. These links have created better referral pathways into community services and supported our clinical teams in ensuring that our patients are offered the best possible care and support.

*BLOSM is a service based across our emergency departments. They provide support for vulnerable service users and bridge the gap between acute and community settings.

Pictured left to right: Ashliegh and Fazila Azwat from CGL, and Helen and BLOSM youth navigator Amaan Nadeem.