A series of events hosted by the Heath and Care Fellowship Group in the Royal Society of Arts, exploring how we, as a community, can care differently as health and social care moves into the community.
Healthcare is changing. Hospitals are under pressure, community provision is growing, and the way we think about care is shifting. The Circle of Compassionate Care brings together expert speakers, practitioners and people with lived experience to explore what compassionate, community-centred care can look like in practice.
What to expect
Each event in this series spotlights a different theme, drawing on innovative approaches from the UK and around the world.
Topics include:
- Alternative methodologies of care – learning from Finland, Japan, India and other countries leading the way in community-based support with a humane and compassionate focus.
- The practice of listening as therapeutic practice – a series of six online workshops introducing compassionate, network-focused care in practice- introducing grassroots community led organisations currently working in the current health environment.
- The changing landscape of mental health provision – discussion on new approaches, including technology and avatar-based therapies
- Tech for compassion – collaborative workshops developing technological solutions designed with care at their heart. We are joined by RSA Network RAIN (responsible AI network)
- Research in action – feedback from cutting-edge trials, including the imminent SOAS Odessi Open Dialogue trial and other exciting emerging practice-based research that, we hope, will transform our health landscape.
- Housing and basic provision for living. How do we provide for the most marginalised in society? How do we visit when there is no home? How does health work when there is no GP or community team facility? We look at what has worked where with our most vulnerable communities and what we can do to resolve basic human rights issues; to have a home, decent food and support.
Why this matters
Health and care touch all our lives, yet access is uneven and systems are often fragmented. Too often, the voices of unpaid carers, families and those with lived experience are left out of the conversation.
The Circle of Compassionate Care is a space where these voices are central. We believe that the best solutions come from bringing together people who use services, those who deliver them, and those researching what works.
Who is this for?
You are warmly welcome if you are:
- An unpaid carer, family member or person with lived experience
- A health or social care professional interested in new ways of working
- A policymaker, researcher or student exploring community-based care
- Anyone curious about how we can do care better, together
- International grassroots initiatives based on compassionate care in your community
Our goal is to offer a prompt, an expert by experience, a learning platform that is discussion-based, truly co-produced, non-hierarchical space for change for those in our communities who are most at need and at risk in this changing environment.
Join us
Events run throughout the year, online and in person. Whether you come to listen, learn or share your own expertise, there is a place for you in this circle.
Get in touch to find out more or to suggest a speaker or theme. We look forward to seeing you, and we welcome and encourage your participation and ideas for our platform - online, hybrid or in person.
We are also keen to hear from those further afield and look forward to transporting ideas geographically in our pursuit of humane and compassionate care.