At a recent study day (Child Talk What Works consensus event) I heard Dawn Smith, Healthcare Professionals Advisor, talk about commissioning SLT services. She suggested we tell stories about the impact our services have, with compelling headlines and concise evidence. She talked about the importance of making “effective relationships … across increasingly complex systems” and said that the services thriving under the new commissioning arrangements have “transformational leaders.” It was an interesting talk.

We need to write headlines, and stories with evidence, but we’re not writers. We need to make “effective relationships” with finance people, and non-clinicians but we don’t know what makes them tick. And there wasn’t much on how to be a transformational leader on my SLT degree course.

Dawn’s talk made me reflect on something I’ve been mulling over for a while – to be successful SLTs, in today’s tricky climate, we need to be open to learning from other disciplines, and I don’t mean other allied health professionals. We have excellent clinical skills, we have trouble with the other part of our roles, such as getting sign off to try new models of service delivery, working collaboratively with professionals from other disciplines, and balancing conflicting priorities. I think we can learn from professions like software developers, project managers, writers, religious leaders, entrepreneurs and performers.

Let me give you an example. In September I attended an improvisation workshop. One of the activities involved pretending to pack a picnic with your partner, we did this 3 times. In the first round, whenever you partner suggested an item to add to the picnic basket you had to reject it outright and explain why it was a terrible idea. In the second round when your partner suggested an item you reluctantly agreed to pack it, but explained why it wasn’t such a great idea. And in the third round when you partner suggested an item, you responded “yes, and,” accepting the idea and adding to it with your next contribution. This was an “aha” moment for me. I’ve been in so many meetings that get derailed by the passive aggressive behaviour we experienced in the second round, the “yes, but….” response to a suggestion. The third round felt energising and collaborative, exactly what I want to channel into meetings. Here was a simple, practical tool, I could use immediately in my work. Bingo!

On 20 January 2014 I’m involved in an event called #dareconf mini, the tag line is: Learn to collaborate, communicate and reflect. It’s designed for digital professionals but I think the themes are also relevant for therapists. SLTs are pretty good at reflecting but we can definitely do with some help collaborating and communicating with all these new people in our ecosystems.

The presentations will cover:

• How to communicate with compassion
• Undermining the power of our organisations
• How parts of our jobs make us feel like a fish out of water
• How to balance vulnerability and courage, to make bold choices
• Using facilitation to help people work together in times of change
• How to be a coach and a mentor

As well as leadership and how to leave your comfort zone.

Have you found it difficult to explain what your team does to people who have no shared frame of reference? Have you struggled to negotiate shared objectives with an angry stakeholder? Have you wrestled with how to phrase a project proposal, or request for training in a way that gets you your desired outcome? This day on people skills can help. Each presentation combines a personal story with a practical “how-to” you can apply to your work and you’ll take home a personalised workbook with next steps from each talk.

This full day of practical learning, includes lunch and costs just £165 +VAT if you book before 18th November. Join us. And help spread the word: email this information to friends and colleagues, post about #dareconf Mini on Facebook and Twitter, and tell your boss!

I’m considering how to explore this theme of what SLTs can learn from other professionals. Do you know someone I should talk to? Let me know.

Kate Malcomess: Co-creating Solutions

Kate Malcomess opened the event. She began by describing the problem: constant firefighting, being told to do more for less, and therapists feeling isolated and helpless. She encouraged us to see the road ahead as an adventure and an opportunity, rather than a threat. Kate suggested we co-create solutions with like-minded people and produce evidence that we are making a difference. It was an uplifting presentation which gave me hope.

Watch Kate’s 15 minute talk:

Sally Shaw: An Adventure in Hackney

The second speaker, Sally Shaw, talked us through how the team in Hackney redesigned their service and like Kate, she pointed out that it’s an ongoing adventure! She talked about how to kick start change, the importance of a ‘can do’ attitude, and she argued that we need to take risks. By this point I was scribbling down ideas to take back to work.

Watch Sally’s talk:

Kim Lewis: Cuts and Efficiencies

Kim Lewis, the final speaker of the evening, talked about what terms like “cuts” and “efficiencies” really mean. She highlighted that cuts can reduce access, quality and continuity of care. Kim challenged us to think about sustainability, ask questions about new proposals and get strict about telling people when we can no longer cope. It was a thoughtful, pragmatic talk, with some searching questions.

Watch Kim’s talk:

Meeting the Commissioner in the lift: what would you say?

After the presentations we divided into groups to discuss what we’d heard, discuss our challenges and work through a scenario together. Each group summed up their discussions by recording a 15 second Elevator Pitch – what they’d say to the Commissioner, if they met him or her in the lift. All the groups did a wonderful job, here are the pitches for your viewing pleasure!

It’s a challenging time to be a Speech and Language Therapist, so it was fantastic to spend an evening with dynamic therapists solving problems together! Did you come along? Leave a comment, I’d love to know what you thought.

Speech and Language Therapy is a tricky place to be at the moment. We’re trying to provide a quality service that satisfies our clients and commissioners—with fewer resources. On a personal level, each day at work brings difficult decisions: as the number of referrals increases and the size of the staff team decreases, something’s got to give. How do we provide a service that’s ‘good enough’? How do we reduce risk, and raise staff morale?

Come and debate these issues

We’re debating these issues and more at the Therapy Ideas Live Debate on 26 June. To get the evening started there’ll be presentations from three featured speakers:

• Kate Malcomess is an independent consultant best known for developing the Care Aims Model. She facilitates change management programmes – just what we need!
• Sally Shaw is the manager of Children’s Therapy Services in Hackney, she’ll share how the team there is coping with all the changes.
• Kim Lewis is an SLT representative for Unite, whose campaigning focuses on maintaining quality.

After these presentations we’ll divide into small groups, discuss what we’ve heard and share our own ideas and challenges. Everyone will have a chance to contribute and be actively involved in planning how to move our teams forward.

Join in the conversation

It’s too late to bury our heads in the sand and hope things will return to the way they were. The golden age of choosing between multiple job offers, endless supplies of money for CPD and resources, and therapy that could continue indefinitely, is in the past. We need to take responsibility and step up to the challenge. Come and listen to our speakers, share ideas with your colleagues & start problem solving: so let’s get this conversation started!

Read all the details and buy your ticket!

Photograph by tropical.pete

We’re changing the format for the next event, so therapists can discuss their ideas and share their experiences. I’m excited to announce the next Therapy Ideas Live event will be a debate – Redesigning Service Delivery for a Changing World: Taking Responsibility for the Future of Speech & Language Therapy.

The debate will feature Kate Malcomess, Sally Shaw, and Kim Lewis, and is taking place as part of the RCSLT’s Giving Voice Campaign. It’s on 26 June 2012, at The Mermaid Conference Centre, London, 6.00 – 9.30 pm.

Changing Landscape

New commissioning regimes, reduced budgets, and growing caseloads: like it or not, Speech and Language Therapy is changing, and there’s no going back. Let’s tackle this challenge together, by learning from each other, listening to contrasting expert perspectives, and taking an active role in redesigning service delivery for the future of our profession.

We’ll hear from three featured speakers, debate what we’ve heard, and discuss experiences and challenges in small groups. Come along, and meet other therapists who are trying to make positive changes.

Get Your Ticket Now

Tickets are £10 and limited so get yours now. Check out all the details and buy your ticket!