2018 - End of Year Messages
A Word from our Chair
As Chair of Healthwatch Hertfordshire there are a few additional issues to bring to your attention which may have got lost in the noise generated by national news: –
Allied Healthcare (also known as Goldsborough in Hertfordshire). Concerns were raised by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) about the financial position of this organisation which provides care services across England. Consequently the County Council have taken back the care contracts in Hertfordshire and have either handed them to other contractors or are managing the contracts themselves. So far this seems to have worked well with little disruption but let us know if you hear of any problems.
West Herts Hospital Trust – Your Care Your Future. The Trust, supported by Herts Valley Clinical Commissioning Group (HVCCG) held a number of meetings in the Autumn about the future of Your Care Your Future and what it means for the residents and patients of West Herts. Available funding is likely to be substantially less than the £550m originally identified to fund the plans, and further consultation is planned in the new year.
Prevention is better than cure. The Department of Health and Social care produced a paper under this name in November. This is an important contribution to developing a vision to help us live long and healthier. No doubt we will come back to this in future newsletters, but in the mean time you may wish to read the paper which can be found here.
Have a good Christmas and let us know of any health or care issues that you think we need to hear about.
Steve Palmer,
Chair Healthwatch Hertfordshire
A Word from our Chief Executive
On the 10th December last year we had snow, it doesn’t look as though snow will be here as soon this year, but to quote Perry Como or Johnny Mathis ‘it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas’ out there. Christmas lights on houses, busy shops and Christmas meals on the agenda.
Maybe here’s the opportunity to thank everyone in health and social care (and all other people working over Christmas) for all their contributions to making our lives better. Celebrating the NHS 70th birthday in 2018 was another reminder of what we have in Britain, in sharp contrast to those living in health economies reliant on personal insurance.
Whilst our Health and social services get an awful lot right, we all want services to improve.
Celebrating the NHS 70th birthday in 2018 was another reminder of what we have in Britain
A key opportunity comes when we hear about your experiences and your views and make recommendations for improvement. Lots of you have contacted us this year, please keep doing so next year.
We’ve also had a busy year on our project activities – here’s just a snapshot…
- Developing a model of greater patient involvement in GP practices in special measures
- Improving Acute and Community Services (Partnership working with Newton Europe)
- Enter and View visits looking at Access to Dental Services, Care Homes and Acute hospitals
- Looking at carers’ needs and involvement in psychiatric inpatient discharge: earlier in the year we concluded our work making recommendations to help improve dual diagnosis services in response to carer and user feedback
- Mystery shopping of call handling Hertswise dementia services
- Engaging with individuals with a Learning Disability to help with the design of supported Living accommodation
- Review of the effectiveness of complaint handling in Acute hospitals
Our achievements are due to the hard work and commitment of a wide range of people: Our Team; Our Board and our Volunteers – thank you for all you do for us, and enjoy the festive break!
Geoff Brown
Chief Executive Healthwatch Hertfordshire
