Staff Lottery funding was recently granted to support the printing of the Stepping Stones toolkit designed by the Live Well Co-Production Group.
The Live Well Co-Production Group brings together members from all walks of life, sharing a vision to transform health, wellbeing and experience, for those living with long-term conditions. They apply a collaborative approach which achieves outcomes that matter, underpinned by mutual trust, respect and collective responsibility, within a safe, inclusive, participatory environment.
The collective has been working together to identify needs of the wider community. People with lived experience had highlighted the challenges they face in managing their health, accessing information and support, particularly whilst waiting, and the impact this has had on their wellbeing. This led to the development of Stepping Stones, a co-produced toolkit to support people living with long-term health conditions.
The group recognise that each person’s experience is individual to them, and that no two people are the same. Stepping Stones is a toolkit for individuals to use in their own personal situations, focusing on what matters to them and identifying solutions to challenges they might experience. Offering a breadth of tools to help people track their next steps, record successes, and support them when their symptoms are more difficult to manage. This is all part of each individual’s personal Stepping Stones.
Co-production Group member, service user and charity representative, said: “Being involved, being able to put my experiences across, to say what worked well and what didn’t work well for me, to produce this toolkit to support people is so empowering for me as a patient”
To ensure that Stepping Stones is accessible and inclusive for all people living with long-term conditions, the group recognise the importance of printed copies being available to support all abilities.
Staff Lottery funding has been granted to support the printing of Stepping Stones to ensure the equity of access. The Therapies and Innovations teams have highlighted the patient experience, health and wellbeing, as well as quality and safety benefits of making printed copies of the Stepping Stones toolkit available.
Cardiff & Vale Health Charity were delighted to support the project, as it provides a direct way for patients to manage their long-term conditions and their wellbeing. The Stepping Stones toolkit makes a real difference to those who need further support throughout their diagnosis, as proven by the positive feedback from patients who have adopted regular use of the toolkit.
You can view and download a digital copy of the Stepping Stones toolkit on the Keeping Me Well website.
You can find out more about how to join the Staff Lottery, and how to apply for funding to improve your department by visiting our website.