The Community Whole Life Whole Systems Twinning Collaboration Convention brings together people and organisations that wish to learn from each other in a reciprocal ways that address the following:
- identifying areas of good practice based on our philosophy, values and practice
- agreeing areas of common interest in service development that promote de-institionalisation and whole life, whole community, whole systems approaches
- overcoming the barriers of thinking, practice and organisation that prevent progress in achieving a whole life for people
The convention has has been developed and supported by IMHCN members over the last eight years and has proven to be an effective way of introducing new ways of working.
The Twinning involves two or three organisations who have identified a common agenda for change and development.
The organisations develop a programme for study visits where workers, service users and family members spend time examining the day to day operation of each other services.
Lessons learnt by the study groups about the visited services are then discussed and shared with a wider group of colleagues and managers within their respective organisations.
Consideration is then given by participating organisations to the application of the learnt thinking and practice within their local services.
A partnership agreement is then established and overseen by a joint steering group from members of participating services.
An implementation plan is agreed between the participating services that sets out the process of change that is needed to bring about the new ways of thinking and practice.
The Member organisations in these Twinning Convention Collaborations hold progress meetings, workshops and host conferences in the development of this work and agreement with each other and with the wider IMHCN membership.
Over 1 to 2 years the Twinned Services continue to work together, exchange workers on placements, provide mentoring and support to each other including joint training, seminars and Action Learning Sets..
These programmes have been developed in Australia, England, Denmark, France, Ireland, Italy, Malaysia, New Zealand, Serbia and Wales.
Further Information
Organisations that would like more information and how to become a Twinning Convention partner should contact John Jenkins,CEO of IMHCN at [email protected].