A CAMPAIGN developed in north Cumbria to protect vulnerable patients is now being rolled out across the country.

The Stop And Watch programme aims to help carers to spot the signs that elderly patients and those with learning disabilities are deteriorating.

The early warning scheme originated in America but was modified by NHS staff locally, and is now used by both North Cumbria University Hospitals NHS Trust and the Cumbria Partnership NHS Foundation Trust.

Its success has prompted it to be rolled out across the county, region and country.

The simple tool is designed to raise awareness of 12 signs of deterioration and supports carers, along with families and relatives, to seek appropriate assistance when needed.

It is hoped the project will give people confidence to raise concerns, and could lead to preventing patients becoming unnecessarily unwell.

The tool was developed through learning from issues highlighted in reviews where patients could have been helped sooner.

It has since been shared across England through the Learning Disabilities Mortality Review programme, following presentations at national conferences in Manchester and in the north east.

Stop And Watch is also being rolled out to more than 100 residential and nursing homes in Cumbria, with requests for the training materials now coming from Lancaster, Leeds, Coventry and Camden in London.

Anna Stabler, director of nursing and quality for NHS North Cumbria Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), led the development of the project.

She said: "A lot of work has gone into producing the Stop And Watch locally and has become a fantastic tool for anyone who provides care or support to a vulnerable person.

"The project has been supported online, with communications materials produced to allow messages to be easily shared with the public, and we are now keen for it to reach as wider audience as possible."

Judith Thompson, North East and Cumbria Learning Disability Network Manager, said: "It's a pragmatic and straightforward tool that will play a huge role in spotting deteriorating health and getting early help for people with learning disability and other vulnerable groups."