Health and social work services

Tender description

The Redbridge TB Awareness Project aims to raise awareness of TB symptoms amongst high risk communities in the various languages to enhance understanding, which would contribute to the reduction of high prevalence of TB in Redbridge — currently at 41 per 100 000 population in 2016-17. The Redbridge Council for Voluntary Sector (Redbridge CVS) strategically plans and implements a TB awareness Project and is overseen by the Redbridge TB Partnership. The Redbridge CVS TB awareness Project and TB Partnership aims to: — raise awareness of TB symptoms amongst high risk communities in the various languages to enhance understanding, — which contribute to the reduction of the high prevalence of TB in Redbridge; at 41/100 000 population in 2016/17. This was a significant reduction from 45/100 000 population in 2013 when the project started; (though not the exclusive contributor). However, despite the significant reduction observed so far, Redbridge is still above the World Health Organisations (WHO) threshold of 40/100 000 population for high burden of TB, hence the need to continue the project. The Redbridge CVS TB awareness Project was formally recognised at National level by the Department of Health (DH) and won an award for a Healthy Buddie’s programme that is currently being emulated by other boroughs and recognised by Public Health England as an example of “Good Practice” towards the fight against TB locally. In addition, The Redbridge CVS TB awareness programme has undergone a voluntary evaluation of its work by East London University and found to add value to the work of TB reduction locally. The Redbridge CVS TB awareness programme, works on a model of recruiting health buddies from within the local communities; to raise awareness on a 1:1 and group sessions, in various community languages. The work is aimed at enhancing clear understanding of the signs and symptoms of TB to encourage, urge, nudge, and facilitate residents from at risk communities to seek medical attention early; so that they can get treatment early, as well as alleviating the stigma associated with TB; factors which are key to achieving complete treatment of TB. Continuing the work of the Redbridge CVS TB awareness programme will support continued TB prevention work through continuing to build existing collaborative work with the various community networks which provides the necessary community outreach to reach at risk and vulnerable residents. Redbridge CVS is the local council voluntary sector organisation supporting other community sector organisations, locally, thereby supporting building community capacity and building bridges with other partnerships and other boroughs. Some of the Health buddies have gone on to take new permanent employment roles in other organisations The Health buddies that are recruited are not permanent staff so may not be transferred and therefore could possibly mean that Redbridge will lose the training, skills and specialism that they have got from the training that Redbridge CVS had previously carried out. If this service was tendered out and went to a different provider there may be additional costs of training local health buddies to provide the Service thus will not be cost effective.