Tell Us What You Think About Our Work

Reflective Audit 2015

Tell us what you think about our work

Healthwatch Devon is the consumer champion for health and social care in Devon. Our job is to get feedback from the general public about the health and care services they receive. And then to present that feedback to service managers so that they have a better chance of understanding what works - and what doesn’t - from the public’s point of view.

We think that we should also be listening carefully to what people think about our service. So this is your chance to tell us. Please use the questionnaire to tell us what we do well, and what we could do better. You can give your comments anonymously if you want.

About this audit

The official remit for local Healthwatch comes from the Health and Social Care Act 2012. According to this, our job is:

·  To use our seat on the Devon Health and Wellbeing Board, to ensure that the views and experiences of patients, carers and other service users are taken into account

·  To enable people to share their views and concerns about local health and social care services.

·  To alert Healthwatch England, or CQC and/ or council scrutiny committees where appropriate, to concerns about specific care providers, health or social care matters

·  To provide people with information about their choices and what to do when things go wrong, and to signpost people to information about local health and care services and how to access them

·  To give authoritative, evidence-based feedback to organisations responsible for commissioning or delivering local health and social care services

·  To help Clinical Commissioning Groups and council social care departments to make sure that services really are designed to meet citizens’ needs

·  To be inclusive and reflect the diversity of the community we serve.

The Audit

How to take part in our stakeholder survey

This audit asks questions that are entirely based on our official remit. For each question, we have given some basic facts to help you make an informed judgement about our effectiveness.

The closing date for replies is Monday 23rd March. After that, we will collate and publish the feedback, plus our replies to comments raised.

Please return this completed audit:

By post to Healthwatch Devon, FREEPOST RTEK-TZZT-RXAL, First Floor, 3 & 4 Cranmere Court, Lustleigh Close, Matford Business park, Exeter, EX2 8PW

By e-mail to , with “Reflective Audit” as the subject line.

Healthwatch Devon is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation: 1155202

Healthwatch Devon is funded by the Department of Health, plus Devon County Council, the Northern, Eastern and Western Devon Clinical Commissioning Group and the South Devon and Torbay Clinical Commissioning Group. Our services are delivered through a partnership with Living Options Devon, Devon Senior Voice, Be Involved Devon, Devon Carers Voice, Devon Link Up, Citizens Advice Bureau, Hikmat Devon CIC, Devon Grapevine and the Intercom Trust. We also have the help of a number of volunteer teams.

To sign up for free membership, to join our mailing list for regular newsletters and updates, or to find out more about volunteering opportunities, please visit www.healthwatchdevon.co.uk, or call us on 0800 520 0640.

About You

Most of this section is optional, but we do need to have an answer to the fields marked *. This will help us to understand broadly where the feedback is coming from.

Name:
Address:
*Postcode:
Tel no:
Email:

*Are you answering this survey as a: (Please tick one)

Member of the general public
Commissioner of health and care services
Provider of health and care services
Healthwatch Devon delivery partner
Healthwatch Devon member
Healthwatch Devon accredited volunteer
Devon Health and Wellbeing Board member
Devon Health and Wellbeing Scrutiny Committee member
Other (please state)

Devon Health and Wellbeing Board

Our job

To use our seat on the Devon Health and Wellbeing Board, to ensure that the views and experiences of patients, carers and other service users are taken into account

What we have achieved in 2014/15

We have reported evidence from Devon residents about their experiences in the health and care system. Our reports are linked to key themes in the Health and Wellbeing Strategy, including:

·  Good health and wellbeing in older age

·  Strong and supportive communities

·  A focus on families

Our reports enable Board members (County Councillors, Clinical Commissioning Group Board members and senior managers in health and social care) to hear the patient and service user voice, and to learn from evidence that they would otherwise not have access to.

What do you think?

Healthwatch Devon’s presence on the Devon Health and Wellbeing Board is:

Very effective
Quite effective
Not sure
Quite ineffective
Very ineffective

Please tell us more if you want to.

Helping people to give feedback on services

Our job

To enable people to share their views and concerns about local health and social care services

What we have achieved in 2014/15

·  We have gathered feedback from over 1,000 people through our Speak Out forms.

·  We have run surveys on topics including Non-Urgent Care, Transport to Health and Leaving Hospital. Around 1,500 people have given feedback.

·  We have responded to requests from commissioners for help in talking to patients, service users and carers, on thirty separate health and care topics including Long Term Conditions, Walk-In Centres, Smoking Cessation, Personal Budgets and more. Over 1,000 people have been able to give their views and experiences.

What do you think?

In helping people to give feedback on local health and care services, Healthwatch Devon is:

Very effective
Quite effective
Not sure
Quite ineffective
Very ineffective

Please tell us more if you want to.

Alerting the authorities

Our job

To alert Healthwatch England, Care Quality Commission and/ or council scrutiny committees where appropriate, to concerns about specific care providers, health or social care matters

What we have achieved in 2014/15

We have escalated various matters to the Care Quality Commission, NHS England, Devon County Council and the Quality Surveillance Group. These have included:

·  Negative experiences of patients attending a GP Practice.

·  Concerns raised in relation to the quality of care in four separate residential care homes

·  Concerns regarding the reduction of the Out of Hours GP Service in the area surrounding Plymouth.

·  The quality of care received in a patient’s own home.

·  The quality of care received from a Patient Transport service.

·  A concern raised by an NHS worker in relation to the quality of care in a community hospital.

·  Experience data in relation to dental services to help inform upcoming CQC inspections

What do you think?

In terms of alerting the authorities to matters of concern, Healthwatch Devon is:

Very effective
Quite effective
Not sure
Quite ineffective
Very ineffective

Please tell us more if you want to.

Information and signposting

Our job

To provide people with information about their choices and what to do when things go wrong, and to signpost people to information about local health and care services and how to access them

What we have achieved in 2014/15

On-line communications:

·  A monthly e-bulletin to 1,700 subscribers

·  A Twitter account with 1,500 followers

·  A website with 1,500 page views per quarter

Publications:

5,000 copies of a quarterly newsletter to individuals plus GP surgeries, hospitals and care homes

Face to face and telephone advice:

Our CAB Healthwatch Champions have provided information and advice to over 500 individuals on specific concerns that they have asked for help with.

What do you think?

Healthwatch Devon’s information and signposting service is:

Very effective
Quite effective
Not sure
Quite ineffective
Very ineffective

Please tell us more if you want to.

Providing authoritative evidence

Our job

To give authoritative, evidence-based feedback to organisations responsible for commissioning or delivering local health and social care services

What we have achieved in 2014/15

Some examples are as follows:

·  Contributed to the Health and Wellbeing Scrutiny Committee’s Spotlight Review of Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services. Responded to a call for information from the People’s Scrutiny Committee for their task group review into child sexual exploitation.

·  Published reports on matters such as Non-Urgent Care, Transport to Health Services and Leaving Hospital with evidence-based recommendations requiring responses from commissioners and providers.

·  Enabled commissioners to hear directly from patients, service users and carers, on topics including Long Term Conditions, Walk-In Centres, Smoking Cessation and Personal Budgets.

·  Responded to the NEW Devon CCG’s draft Strategic Framework for Community Services, with evidence from patients and service users.

·  Contributed to a Devon County Council internal audit review on information and advice services in relation to the Care Act.

·  Contributed to an Office of Government Commerce Gateway Review of the NEW Devon CCG’s Transforming Community Services Project.

What do you think?

In terms of giving authoritative evidence to health and care service managers, Healthwatch Devon is:

Very effective
Quite effective
Not sure
Quite ineffective
Very ineffective

Please tell us more if you want to.

Helping professionals to understand

Our job

To help Clinical Commissioning Groups and council social care departments to make sure that services really are designed to meet citizens’ needs

What we have achieved in 2014/15

We have responded to requests from commissioners for help in talking to patients, service users and carers. We have tackled thirty separate health and social care topics including: Long Term Conditions, Walk-In Centres, Smoking Cessation, Personal Budgets., Needle and syringe equipment, Flu vaccination, Care Act - IT use, Young people and community health services

Over 1,000 people have been able to give their views and experiences, helping commissioners to build the public’s point of view into the design of services.

What do you think?

In terms of helping to make sure that services are designed to meet citizens’ needs, Healthwatch Devon is:

Very effective
Quite effective
Not sure
Quite ineffective
Very ineffective

Please tell us more if you want to.

Inclusion and diversity

Our job

To be inclusive and reflect the diversity of the community we serve.

What we have achieved in 2014/15

Working with and through our delivery partners (see page 2 for listing), we are able to involve a range of different audiences, including:

·  People with physical and sensory disabilities, and the Deaf community

·  People with learning disabilities

·  Older people

·  People with experience of mental ill-health

·  Carers

·  People from Black and Minority Ethnic communities

·  People from the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender community

·  Children and young people

What do you think?

Healthwatch Devon’s ability to be inclusive is:

Very effective
Quite effective
Not sure
Quite ineffective
Very ineffective

Please tell us more if you want to.

Reflective Audit 2015 2