The Institute of Health Visiting (iHV) is delighted to announce the launch of its eighth Annual Report.
Launched at the iHV annual Leadership conference on 1 December 2020, the report details the Institute’s developments, partnerships and projects over the past 12 months, plus the preliminary findings from our latest annual survey.
After the initial disappointment of having to postpone so many of our plans for 2020, #TeamiHV quickly embraced the challenges of working online to not only deliver our conferences and PIMH Forums on a virtual platform but our training as well, and this has been very enthusiastically received.
2020 has been a year like none before for health visiting, as it faced the challenges of adapting to a world forced into “lockdown”. The challenges of COVID-19 have been felt both by the Institute and in practice, bringing with them much learning. Our first concern is always the families we support, whom we know this year did not receive either adequate or, in some cases, any support during a crucial time.
Whilst much of the world’s attention was focused on reducing the transmission of the virus and treating acutely ill patients (mostly adults), it was clear that the needs of children and families were increasing, yet they were largely overlooked by policy makers. At the iHV, we have been concerned from the outset about the wider impacts of the pandemic and have raised concerns about the vulnerability of babies and young children who are at home, hidden from society and some living with significant adversity and abuse.
