Gray Healthcare has been established for a little over twelve years and is the brainchild of our Executive Chairman and Founder Jonathan Gray. After spending much of his career within the acute hospital sector he questioned why so many patients with mental health conditions were trapped in the system. It was clear that because people were exhibiting behaviours that challenge, providers in the community were unable and reluctant to support them. Moreover, many of those who were discharged then experienced repeated failed placements and numerous readmissions to hospital.
On thinking through the issues, it appeared obvious that the components someone required to stay well in the community, after they had completed their ‘treatment’ in hospital should and could be delivered in a home setting. The environmental factors of a hospital limit ongoing successful rehabilitation. Providing a comfortable home environment supported by a consistent, dedicated support team would enable ongoing further restorative rehabilitation towards normal living. Add to this a bespoke staff team, recruited specifically to meet the person's needs and who they could build rapport and establish a therapeutic relationship with would positively affect their wellbeing.
Our model continues to evolve over time and continues to provide a key solution to unlocking difficult to discharge patients from hospitals. The model also offers a more sustainable solution to the national issue of so many people placed out-of-area away from their loved ones.
The model - Bringing Healthcare Home.
As the Transforming Care agenda has developed with NHS England and Building the Right Support, we continue to receive referrals for people with learning disability and autism remaining in hospital and also from within traditional services in the community who have been unable to meet the complex needs of this client group.
There are a number of key elements to the success, robustness and sustainability of the model:
- A commitment to dedicated in-reach prior to discharge
- A commitment to non-physical contact intervention strategies
- A expansive clinical team to oversee and support teams working with the person
- A commitment to meet the needs and aspirations of the person but also to work closely with the family and other stakeholders to achieve great outcomes over time
We have retained the fidelity of our model, not sacrificed quality and standards which has been instrumental in aiding to build our reputation to successfully manage higher levels of complexity.
In December 2018 we revised our registration working with our regulatory Care Quality Commission Inspectors. We moved out of the social care directorate and into the hospital directorate; we are a registered provider of Community Based Mental Health services for adults of working age. Our specialisms allow us to work with Dementia, Learning disabilities, Mental Health conditions, and Physical disabilities.
Our second inspection at the end of 2021 saw us achieve an OUTSTANDING rating in CARING and good in all other domains which we are incredibly proud of.