BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
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RESPONSE
RESPONSE
(a) Obtaining the views of local people about their experiences of local health and social care services:
Healthwatch Bucks has a helpline which is available by telephone, e-mail and through the website. Leaflets and marketing materials have been distributed county-wide to raise awareness and these asked people to contact us to tell us about their experiences. Healthwatch Bucks has partnered with the Patient Opinion and Care Opinion websites as another independent means for people to share their experiences and collect data from these sources. In partnership with the CAB, they also collect anonymised data about health and social care issues in Buckinghamshire from the CAB services.
Healthwatch Bucks volunteers have attended a wide variety of public events and meetings for specific groups of the community to publicise Healthwatch and seek views. The Healthwatch Bucks outreach worker attends a variety of public events but also targets specific groups of the community, including BME communities, children and young people and gypsies and travellers.
Community engagement work for specific projects is carried out in partnership with VCS partners who are ‘trusted intermediaries’. Examples include:
(b) Monitoring the standard of provision of local health and social care services, e.g. through ‘enter and view’:
Healthwatch Bucks has representatives at a wide variety of meetings where the standard of provision of local health and social care services is considered. Some examples include: Thames Valley NHS Quality Surveillance Group,
(c) The number of Enter and View visits carried out?
Given the context in which healthcare services are provided in Buckinghamshire – the two main hospital providers used by Buckinghamshire residents are the Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust and Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hopsitals NHS Foundation Trust, both of which have been subject to a combination of Keogh Review and enhanced CQC inspections in the last year - Healthwatch Bucks has not carried out any ‘Enter and View visits in 2013/14, as a decision was taken that appropriate Enter and View activity would be monitoring of improvement plans in 2014/5.
(d) Influencing the commissioners of local services to achieve improvements in those services:
Healthwatch Bucks is a member of the Chiltern CCG Patient Engagement Steering Group which will work to ensure patients are engaged in commissioning decisions. We are working with the CCGs to help with public and patient engagement in the commissioning of Specific services, e.g.
(e) Influencing the provision and effectiveness of public health services:
Reports from our projects with Talkback, Action4Youth, Child Bereavement UK and SEAP are due in June/July and August and will be made available to the Health and Wellbeing Board and commissioners.
(g) Requesting Healthwatch England to conduct special reviews or investigations:
We made no requests to Healthwatch England in this regard in 2013/14.
Healthwatch Bucks has a helpline which is available by telephone, e-mail and through the website. Leaflets and marketing materials have been distributed county-wide to raise awareness and these asked people to contact us to tell us about their experiences. Healthwatch Bucks has partnered with the Patient Opinion and Care Opinion websites as another independent means for people to share their experiences and collect data from these sources. In partnership with the CAB, they also collect anonymised data about health and social care issues in Buckinghamshire from the CAB services.
Healthwatch Bucks volunteers have attended a wide variety of public events and meetings for specific groups of the community to publicise Healthwatch and seek views. The Healthwatch Bucks outreach worker attends a variety of public events but also targets specific groups of the community, including BME communities, children and young people and gypsies and travellers.
Community engagement work for specific projects is carried out in partnership with VCS partners who are ‘trusted intermediaries’. Examples include:
- Talkback – project to get the voices of those with learning disabilities
- Child Bereavement UK
- Action4Youth
- SEAP
(b) Monitoring the standard of provision of local health and social care services, e.g. through ‘enter and view’:
Healthwatch Bucks has representatives at a wide variety of meetings where the standard of provision of local health and social care services is considered. Some examples include: Thames Valley NHS Quality Surveillance Group,
(c) The number of Enter and View visits carried out?
Given the context in which healthcare services are provided in Buckinghamshire – the two main hospital providers used by Buckinghamshire residents are the Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust and Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hopsitals NHS Foundation Trust, both of which have been subject to a combination of Keogh Review and enhanced CQC inspections in the last year - Healthwatch Bucks has not carried out any ‘Enter and View visits in 2013/14, as a decision was taken that appropriate Enter and View activity would be monitoring of improvement plans in 2014/5.
(d) Influencing the commissioners of local services to achieve improvements in those services:
Healthwatch Bucks is a member of the Chiltern CCG Patient Engagement Steering Group which will work to ensure patients are engaged in commissioning decisions. We are working with the CCGs to help with public and patient engagement in the commissioning of Specific services, e.g.
- Pain Management services
- Transforming Outpatients using Assistive Technology
- Muscular Skeletal Services
(e) Influencing the provision and effectiveness of public health services:
Reports from our projects with Talkback, Action4Youth, Child Bereavement UK and SEAP are due in June/July and August and will be made available to the Health and Wellbeing Board and commissioners.
(g) Requesting Healthwatch England to conduct special reviews or investigations:
We made no requests to Healthwatch England in this regard in 2013/14.
