Dear Social Workers,

At Baker Baker Health, we provide specialist GPs to deliver medical assessments for Children in Care and their Carers. We currently operate in the following counties:

• None currently but we will update this when it changes.

Thank you for partnering with us to ensure the best care for these young people. Together, we can make a real difference.

Initial Health Assessments (IHAs)

We understand the importance of completing Initial Health Assessments (IHA) within the 28-day statutory timeframe after a child enters care. We are committed to working closely with you to achieve this.

IHA Process:

• Notification

Please aim to notify Baker Baker Health within 1 day of a young person entering care via email at [We are awaiting a secure NHS.net email address. In the meantime please use hello@bakerbakerhealth.com and include no patient identifiable information]. We will then contact the carers to schedule an appointment within 21 days of receiving your notification. We will inform you of the booked appointment.

• Referral and Consent Forms

Please send the referral and consent forms within 5 days of the young person entering care to [We are awaiting a secure NHS.net email address. In the meantime please use hello@bakerbakerhealth.com and include no patient identifiable information].

• Interpreters

When the young person is not fluent in English (eg Unaccompanied Asylum Seekers) please arrange a face to face interpreter to attend the appointment. We appreciate that occasionally they are only available by phone, however this is far less effective and has an isolating effect for the young person in comparison to the face to face component.

Social Worker Support

Your attendance at the IHA is incredibly valuable as you bring an additional perspective and can contribute to important discussions. However we understand that your workload may not always allow this. We would really appreciate any support you can offer the carers to ensure the young person attends the appointment eg coming with them if the carer is unable to.

What If the Young Person Refuses to Attend?

If the young person is reluctant to attend and the carer is struggling to pursuade them, we'd be grateful if you could speak to them. You may find the video on this website for the under 12's or 12-17y olds helpful.

If they still refuse to attend with could offer them a 

• "Virtual IHA" on Teams as sometimes the distance gives them more confidence. This isn't as good as a face to face IHA as physical examination is not possible, but is better than not having them there at all.  
• “Planning Meeting” with you, the Carer and any other professionals / family members available. It can be done on Teams or Face to face and is a useful opportunity to gather all the information we can, including any views of the young perosn that those are present are aware of, and then create a plan to address the known issues and arrange closer follow up plans as the young person hasn't been seen. Once again this isn't as good as it lacks the direct input from the young person or phycial examination, however it is far better than nothing and helps to meet the statutory requirement. The appointment can be converted to this at the last minute if people are available. 

If the young person "is not brought to the appointment", we will try to arrange a Virtual Planning Meeting on the same day with anyone who is available.

If the appointment needs to be rescheduled, please be aware it may not meet the statutory timeframe and there may be additional expense incurred.

Adult Health (AH) Medicals 

We also offer Adult Health (AH) medicals to speed up the approval process for prospective carers, helping avoid frustrating delays.

AH Medical Process:

1. Referral Request: Please email the referral request to [We are awaiting a secure NHS.net email address. In the meantime please use hello@bakerbakerhealth.com and include no patient identifiable information]. We will then contact the prospective carer and arrange an appointment.
2. Forms: Please complete Part A of the AH form and pass it to the carer to fill out Part B, which they will then bring with them to the appointment.
3. Report Submission: Once the report is completed, we will forward it to the Medical Advisor as requested by local commissioners. In some cases, we may act as the Medical Advisor and generate the report for the Panel.

Feedback

We are committed to working efficiently and collaboratively with you. If you have any suggestions on how we can improve our service, please don’t hesitate to contact us at hello@bakerbakerhealth.com .

Thank you for partnering with Baker Baker Health to support Children in Care and their carers!

Dr Chris Hewer (He / Him)

GP, Founder and Medical Director