Healthwatch Staffordshire – delivered by Support Staffordshire – is an independent champion for people who use health and social care services across the county.
The organisation – funded via central government and commissioned by local authorities – works to make sure everyone has the opportunity to share their experiences, have their voice heard and help shape the services they use and rely on. It’s all about making sure people’s experiences lead to better health and social care for everyone.
A team of five supported by volunteers, Healthwatch Staffordshire – which covers eight districts in the county excluding Stoke-on-Trent – is a vital link between local people and the organisations responsible for delivering health and social care and can help people find reliable information and advice, while using its independent voice to raise concerns with local NHS and social care leaders to encourage improvements in the quality, accessibility and responsiveness of services.
This includes local voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) groups, visits to healthcare settings and attending community events. People can also provide feedback via the organisation’s enquiry line to share their experiences and the feedback then forms the basis which enables Healthcare Staffordshire to identify opportunities to improve care in the future.
Alongside this, the organisation undertakes larger research projects and smaller, focused studies to explore particular services or the experiences of specific groups.
So, by working with health and care providers, government bodies and voluntary organisations, Healthwatch Staffordshire helps to ensure public feedback informs service development and drives meaningful change.
Its deep dive on mental health provision following discharge form formal services highlighted the number of services across the county that people were not aware they could access. Healthwatch Staffordshire then shared the report so people could become aware of the services they could access.
Healthwatch Staffordshire has also highlighted wider issues affecting people across the country, including the slow pace of improvements to NHS dentistry, the distress caused by poor NHS administration, and concerns about NHS trusts meeting their responsibilities to support people who need help accessing services.
As a result, it produced a report called ‘Dental Services Explained ‘ which acted as a guide for patients to navigate them towards the services they required. This was translated into several languages including BSL.
Collaboration with organisations such as Support Staffordshire is an important part of reaching communities, understanding local needs and ensuring that people’s experiences are not overlooked.
Sharing insight, building relationships and connecting people with the right support can help identify gaps in services, influence decision-makers and contribute to better outcomes for communities across Staffordshire.
Have your say
What’s important is that everyone’s experience matters. Whether you have had a positive experience of health or social care or feel that something needs to improve, sharing your feedback can help make a difference for others.
Healthwatch Staffordshire wants to hear from people who use health and care services, as well as those who support them. By speaking up and working together, we can help ensure that local services listen, learn and respond to the needs of the communities they serve.
More information is available here: https://tinyurl.com/5n7pmj4j