The Royal College of Occupational Therapists is asking all its members across the UK to take part in ‘What matters to you’ day on 6 June 2019.
Led by NHS Improvement and NHS Scotland, the annual campaign, now in its fourth year, celebrates the positive impact that simply asking people ‘What matters to you’ can have.
The campaign encourages everyone to have a ‘What matters to you?’ conversation with people they support or care for. The idea is to encourage more meaningful communication between people who provide health and social care, and the families and carers who receive it, by asking them to have more person-centred conversations with each other.
There is lots of collateral available for free, including posters, stickers, badges and other materials. You can download these and get further information via the campaign website. You can also contact england.wmty@nhs.net for more details, and don’t forget to join the Twitter conversation using #WMTY2019.
Julia Scott, CEO, Royal College of Occupational Therapists said:
“‘What matters to you’ day is fast approaching and I encourage every occupational therapist, indeed, every health professional in the UK to get involved with it. Share your story, sign up to an event and of course have a meaningful conversation with someone.
“Listening to people in your care and the people around them is very important. Personalised care is one of the key priority areas for the NHS across the UK, as mentioned in the Long Term Plan for England and the health and social care policies in the devolved nations of the UK.”
“Occupational therapists focus on person-centred care and looking at what matters to the person. In today’s fast-moving society, studies show that often in conversations we don’t really listen properly to what is being said. One of the main aims of ‘What matters to you?’ day is to help us develop greater intent to simply listen, to listen deeply and to understand. ‘What matters to you?’ day is an opportunity to stop and think a little more about how we are listening, who we are listening too and what we are doing as a result.”