13 May 2011

Hi.

Ever been to one of those AGMs that was really boring and provided nothing better than an opportunity for a quick nap? Well there is an exception and that was yesterday at the TSA AGM when the world’s largest custard cream got a mention. More about that later!

Over 120 members attended and it was a great event. OK we still had to do the business bit of the AGM but Vice Chair Lorna Muir led the morning session extremely well and even the Treasurer’s report totally absorbed the members – well there were no questions from the floor!!

Two excellent presentations – one from Alyson Bell on the life and times of a TSA Director – which was a really clear outline of the main role of a director, the qualities required, and the opportunities it provides to challenge and influence the role and main priorities of the TSA. I hope it was a good prompt for others to consider standing as a director.  The other was a joint presentation on the recently awarded telehealth project in Northern Ireland, by Eddie Ritson, Programme Director, European Centre for Connected Health and Kevin McSorley, a TSA Director and also Executive Director of Fold Telecare. A really good insight into the project, and the expectations/requirements of the commissioner and service provider.  

Over lunch David Ardron, a TSA Director and General Manager of Supra UK, led the Code of Practice awards to 12 organisations. It was great to see so many organisations receiving their awards and recognition being given to the teams that had worked so hard to achieve the required standard.

The late morning and afternoon was given over to workshops on three topics; shifting telecare from alarms in the home to continuous monitoring anywhere, the challenges of assisted living at scale, and the 2009 Code of Practice. All the workshops were well attended and a great opportunity to learn more about these topics.

But what really struck me was yet again the amount of networking, discussion and general ‘meeting up’ across the industry that went on. This may be a bi-product of the business reason for the AGM, but it is still a very important element of what makes TSA really tick.

And so to the custard cream! Well 2010 was a year of many notable events, including an entry in the Guinness book of Records for the largest custard cream. On a more serious note the TSA on behalf of and with its members achieved a huge amount and I was able to present to the meeting just some of the achievements and work undertaken in 2010 as well as looking forward to the challenges and opportunities of 2011. Perhaps the keenest interest was in the announcement made about the call handling KPI in the Code of Practice. This has been a hot topic for some time and TSA working with its members has been able to determine an approach that addresses members concerns while ensuring the high standard and quality of the Code is maintained.

So maybe we have broken the mould for AGMs – they can be informative and enjoyable!

I’m off now to enjoy the custard cream with the rest of the TSA team.

PS. copies of all the presentations from yesterday are on the members’ website.

Regards

Trevor Single