Quality Corner
Lee
Influenza Vaccines Influenza (flu) is a common viral illness that affects people of all ages. While symptoms may be mild for some, influenza can cause serious illness and may lead to hospitalisation—even in otherwise healthy people.
The safest and most effective way to protect yourself and others is to receive an influenza vaccination each year from a health professional. The flu virus changes regularly, so the vaccine is updated annually, which is why yearly vaccination is important. The type of vaccine recommended depends on your age and health needs, and your GP can advise which option is right for you. Annual influenza vaccination is recommended for everyone aged six months and over. Receiving a vaccination not only helps protect you—it also helps protect your family, friends, and the wider community. For more information on vaccinations, please see a friendly member of the care team. Do you know about PainChek? Within our homes, we use the PainChek system, a clinically validated digital pain assessment tool. Using AI technology to support a modern pain assessment framework PainChek will identify the presence of pain even when it’s not obvious. PainChek is fast and easy to use. Using a smart device, the device’s camera looks at the person’s face then analyses the images using AI driven facial recognition. PainChek analyses facial expressions and facial muscle movements in real time and combines this information with observations of behaviour, body movements, and vocalisations to generate an objective pain score. This information calculates an overall pain score and stores the result. This outcome forms the evidence base supporting the implementation of pain management interventions, and for the ongoing monitoring of their effectiveness over time. This approach supports the early identification of pain, more consistent assessments, and improved pain management. By enabling accurate and timely pain recognition, PainChek helps care teams deliver safer, more consistent, and person‑centred care. All assessments are stored securely, allowing for trend monitoring and shared clinical insights to support ongoing care planning. Kind regards, Lee State Quality Manager
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