Your location: Challenging behaviour in services
Link Up in action
Bill Mackay (Link-Up's Acting Service Manager) was interviewed for an insight into a shift at the service:
Interview
Bill says:
'It's important that as a staff team we ensure that the One Stop service runs smoothly. This is where we first start to interact with service users. Behaviour can be challenging; but we have to remember that the majority of people presenting to the service have been living on the streets and may not have interacted with anyone for a two-three week period. Keeping that at the forefront of our mind is helpful to staff.
Staff begin to enter into full dialogue with the service user. De-escalation is always done in a private one to one situation wherever possible. The first priority is to provide the individual with a safe and secure environment.'
Bill says that staff must use their skill bank and theories of de-escalation.
Once the service user is calm staff will then start to conduct an assessment of their needs. The emotional and crisis support we provide at assessment is very much person-centred.
'The vast majority of people presenting to our service are already known to us through the link work we do with other agencies in Glasgow. This aids us to deal with behaviour which may be challenging.'
Bill has worked at Link Up since 2001 and he explains that behaviour has changed over the years. He says that staff need to be able to cope with this:
'Front door presentations through the One Stop service have changed and we now see a trend in behaviour being directly associated with poly-substance misuse, rather than a single substance. This becomes more difficult for staff as there is not one specific substance we are dealing with.
In the last year Link Up has had to call paramedics as a service user passed out at the front door. A number of staff are now first aid trained in order to cope with situations they face.'
Link Up has good relationships with existing services such as paramedics and the local community police. Bill continues:
'Our advice is always clear to staff. If a service user requires specialist advice then we will contact another agency.'
In a robust service like Link Up the team can be faced with a number of service users presenting challenging behaviour simultaneously.
Lastly Bill describes how challenging behaviour can affect the team at Link Up. Bill comments:
'We ensure that we comply with TPS policy and hold a post incident de-brief. This provides staff with a platform to be reflective and also to look at the learning from the particular event. It is good for staff to reflect at the end of a shift as no one should leave work with too much emotion with them.'