Innovation in integration helping to overcome barriers across health and social care

"These are prime examples of organisations successfully utilising innovation to overcome barriers."

Overcoming barriers with new and innovative ways of working is certainly a common theme within health and social care integration. The Connected Communities series has identified and spotlighted these themes in particular in four organisations: MySelf-Management, Eat Sleep Ride, Affa Sair, and ‘1000 Huts’ – who are exemplary in incorporating new and innovative ways of working to overcome barriers for the benefit of the communities they represent.

In the case of MySelf-Management, the COVID-19 pandemic led to funding restraints and difficulty in maintaining a responsive, effective, and meaningful service across the Highlands, which is the largest and most sparsely populated region in Scotland. But the pandemic pushed the organisation to innovate an entirely new format for their services by transitioning online for the first time, allowing services to again become high-quality and effective given they could now reach with the entire community across a large geographical distance.

Similarly, Eat Sleep Ride utilise an entirely unique and innovative approach which helps people to harness the therapeutic qualities of nature in the Borders. By working with horses in particular, the organisation support people to feel more comfortable in themselves and overcome their own personal barriers. This has seen around 300 young people take positive steps towards further education and employment, highlighting the strengths of integration in breaking down those barriers and creating more closely connected communities.

In Grampian, Affa Sair are also championing innovation when overcoming barriers related to chronic pain. Without professional accreditation, the organisation have historically faced difficulty in gaining the respect of the healthcare sector. But having taken steps to provide an innovative social prescribing scheme for people with chronic pain in partnership with the NHS, Affa Sair have utilised the themes of integration for the benefit of those with chronic pain by overcoming those barriers, putting people in their community right at the centre, and ensuring that those with chronic pain can gain local physiotherapy and hydrotherapy sessions at a reduced price.

Additionally, the ‘1000 Huts’ project by Reforesting Scotland, which promotes and endorses an innovative shift towards a hutting culture to connect with nature and enhance wellbeing, has encountered numerous barriers and challenges over the years, including legal and planning restraints. But having successfully campaigned to change Scotland’s planning laws to make hutting more feasible across the country, the ‘1000 Huts’ project has been able to better highlight hutting as an innovative alternative to reconnecting with nature which allows people to truly escape from their busy urban lives and take care of their wellbeing.

As identified within the Connected Communities series, these are prime examples of third sector organisations successfully utilising innovation to overcome barriers and champion the themes of integration. MySelf-Management are again able to deliver effective and high-quality self management services across the Highlands, Eat Sleep Ride are fostering a culture of compassion and care within young people by connecting them with nature, Affa Sair are utilising innovation to put people with chronic pain at the centre, whilst the ‘1000 Huts’ project are at a forefront of pushing healthy cultural change. By overcoming barriers with innovation, it is clear that the themes of integration play an integral role in creating a Scotland where everyone has a strong voice and enjoys their right to live well with dignity and respect.