27 April 2010 - Edinburgh

The 28th meeting of the National Employment and Health Innovations Network was held on 27th April at Edinburgh's Dynamic Earth. As usual, our Scottish colleagues supplied a full and interesting programme of plenaries and workshops.

Roddy Duncan, Head of the Health and Work Unit at Scottish Government will introduce Health Works, the Scottish review of Healthy Working Lives aimed at employers, workers and health care professionals.

We'll hear about the new Working Health Services - the Scotland-wide Fit for Work service - and the unique research and practical opportunities it provides in offering an occupational health service to those employed in SMEs.

NEHIN is also happy to host the launch of the Scottish Regional Branch of the VRA at this meeting and will hear from Sarah Mitchell, Programme Manager of the Rehabilitation Framework at the Scottish Government on their developments of rehabilitation and Vocational Rehabilitation.

Liz Catterson, Learning Disabilities Co-ordinator at the Scottish Government, will present the newly launched Scottish Supported Employment Framework, and explain its significance for people with disabilities who want to find work, and in the research slot, we are delighted to be hearing from Dr Ewan MacDonald, OBE, Director of SALUS, NHS Lanarkshire, about recently completed research into on and off flows from Incapacity Benefit.

You can download the interim programme below, followed by the presentations.

Download the programme (61 KB)

Health Impacts of Moving Back to Work (344 KB)

Alan McGregor, Professor of Economic Development, TERU, Glasgow University

Equally Well (workshop) (208 KB)

This workshop will look at the experience of rolling out employability training to non-employability staff as part of the Lanarkshire Equally Well test site.

Research Slot – Incapacity Benefit Claimant Profiles (1.1 MB)

Dr Judith Brown, Research Fellow, University of Glasgow

Health & Employability: The Renfrewshire Approach (workshop) (120 KB)

The workshop will outline the innovative partnership working between Renfrewshire Community Health Partnership and Renfrewshire Workforce Plus that has led to novel approaches to the development and delivery of health & employability locally.

Supported Employment Framework for Disabled People in Scotland (workshop) (148 KB)

The Scottish Government and COSLA published its Supported Employment Framework in February 2010. It sets out an alternative model of supported employment that involves a staged approach of progression for an individual which will move them towards sustained, mainstream employment. In this presentation, delegates will have the opportunity to find out more about the Framework and how it will be taken forward.

Working Health Service Scotland – A Fit for Work Programme (394 KB)

Mark Kennedy, Programme Director, SALUS, North Lanarkshire