Useful Info

Healthwatch Highlights Good Practice in Residential Care

Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire (HWERY), the independent watchdog for health and social care services in the East Riding, has conducted research into Residential Care Homes in the East Riding. From this research HWERY has been able to identify some best practice that is being carried out.

During Enter & View Visits HWERY have seen positive examples of good practice in Care Homes under the following headings

• Arrival and change 
• What matters to me?
• Community engagement 
• Collective living
• Healthy lifestyle
• Leading from the front

By sharing the good practice that HWERY found across the East Riding it is hoped that this can have a positive influence on driving up the standard of care in the region.

Healthwatch will share a copy of the Good Practice Guide with all care homes in the East Riding of Yorkshire and invite them to share best practice with other Residential Care homes that can disseminate this information accordingly.

Delivery Manager at HWERY, Matthew Fawcett, said:
“This is a great chance for East Riding residents to take a look at some of the good practice that is happening in Residential Care.”
“We would really like to encourage people to share the best practice shown in the report. The public often only hear about the negative stories that happen in Residential Care and we wanted to highlight some of the good work that goes on.

East Riding Council is committed to using the information that we find to improve residential care services in the region.

Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire (HWERY) conducted research with children and young people from July 2017 through to September 2017 to find out which health and social care priorities are important in their lives.

The priorities covered a range of areas between physical and mental health. They were from national and local trends and areas highlighted from HWERY’s previous engagement and outreach with young people. The results will enable HWERY to have a clear understanding of what is important to children and young people across the East Riding to stay healthy.

The 10 areas chosen were:
  Mental Health
  Diet/Nutrition
  Able to see a GP
  Exercise
  Drinking Water
  Being Happy
  Time with family and friends
  Sleep
  Healthy Teeth
  Leisure Time

The results from the report will help influence the work plan for HWERY for the next year.
HWERY is the voice of the public and as such need to consider public opinions when deciding on future areas of work and/or investigation.
The key findings from the report are:

  Mental health was identified as the highest priority overall
  Emotional health and wellbeing areas had over half of all votes
  Healthy teeth were seen as the least important area over all 3 age groups

Matthew Fawcett, Delivery Manager of Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire said “This piece of work is crucial as it is important that Healthwatch understand the needs of young people across the region. These priorities will help shape the work we look at in the coming year and highlight key themes for local services.”

The full report can be found below

This report examines working age male’s views of local health and social care services and their access to them. The investigation examines what the working age male demographic think about local services, the stigma surrounding mental health and how locally things could be improved. The survey also asked what particular difficulties there are in accessing health and social care services.

Methodology

The methodology used to collect the data was by;

• Surveys
• Face to face interviews
• Meetings with local providers
• Local organisations sharing the survey with their employees 
• Production of a leaflet centred on men’s health with a link to our survey attached.

Findings

Perception around the lack of flexibility of health and social care appointments for working age males was a repeated statement. Participants want more flexibility to tie in with their working week. Respondents were generally confident about accessing information and Health and Social Care services.

The stigma of men’s mental health issues was highlighted frequently throughout the research and it is seen as a sign of weakness for men to discuss it. HWERY (Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire) gave an opportunity for respondents to tell us of any other issues affecting the wellbeing of men in the East Riding. Some responses were critical of mental health services and access to them. The comments show an awareness of mental health issues and how it affects individuals. The comments interestingly highlight individual problems such as the stress, lack of support from the workplace and lack of service clarity.

Welcome to our fourth annual report!
 
We have great pleasure in publishing our Annual Report for the period April 2016 to March 2017. The report highlights some of the work we have been doing in this, our fourth year of operation. It has been our busiest year yet and we have achieved a great deal.
 
We could not have done so without the support of our partners and I would like to take this opportunity to thank them all for working with us over the past year.

Have a look at our annual report to find out more. It details, all about Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire, our statutory activities, about engaging with the public, the role of volunteers and more.

Stress among main priorities for East Riding residents

Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire (HWERY) have produced a report which highlights stress levels at work or in education to be the main health & social care  priority for residents of the East Riding.

As part of the consultation HWERY spoke with 1156 people across the East Riding. The residents we spoke to had to place one token into one of ten jars all of which represented different subjects. From this consultation HWERY identified the key priorities of not only the overall population but 5 different age groups. These age groups included:
• Under 16s
• 16 – 25
• 26 – 45
• 46 – 65
• Over 65s

The report provides a comprehensive breakdown of all the priorities and the priorities according to age demographic.

“This piece of work is about highlighting the needs of the public. Not only is it important that we demonstrate the priorities of the wider East Riding community, but breaking down the priorities by age group is equally important because health and social care needs differ as people transition through life. The hope is this report will allow us to inform the professional stakeholders we work with about the needs of the East Riding community” Delivery Manager, Matthew Fawcett

The priorities report will help shape the work HWERY do over the next twelve months by taking into account the themes from this piece of work.

The full report can be downloaded below

A survey by Healthwatch in the Humber region into the experience of being discharged from hospital has found that communication was the biggest issue. It also recommended that the use of  “patient passports” should be considered to help make medical staff aware of patients’ pre-existing conditions.

A total of 98 patients and 26 care providers took part in the research, which covered Hull, East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire, in a joint project by Healthwatch teams in all three areas. The decision to investigate the regional picture followed national studies since 2015 by Healthwatch England and the Health Service Ombudsman into the discharge process and subsequent social care service. 

In this region, two surveys were conducted during the winter of 2016/7 – one for patients and the other for care providers. The survey was also complemented by “Enter and View” visits to the discharge lounges at Hull Royal Infirmary and Scunthorpe General Hospital, where Healthwatch gathered feedback from users and staff, as well as observed the environment and experience.

In all, 80% of respondents felt the process was OK, good or very good.

A number of recommendations have been made based on the report’s findings. This includes the need for better communication, including patients being made aware of delays, the reasons for them, and the stage they are at in the process.  Care providers felt a better awareness of the timing of arrangements would help them achieve a smooth transfer.

The use of “patient passports” is cited as useful in sharing information between hospitals and care providers, particularly where patients have dementia or other cognitive difficulties.

Trusts are being asked to consider fast-tracking the supply of medication upon discharge so that patients can be served by pharmacy staff as quickly as possible.

The use of a bedded discharge area, as at Hull Royal Infirmary, is also suggested. 

Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire Delivery Manager, Matthew Fawcett says: “The survey asked about the positive and negative aspects of the discharge process and, while the findings reflect the national research, we are pleased that the majority felt the process was working at least OK. There’s always a need for improvement and these suggestions will be submitted to the Trusts.” 

Health and social care providers often use abbreviations & acronyms to describe processes, procedures and departments. We have identified the most frequently used and provided a brief explanation for each. If you require any further information about any of the abbreviations or acronyms used, please contact us using the details in this leaflet.

In October Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire (HWERY) sent out a 360 survey to their stakeholders inviting them to express their views on the achievements and challenges of HWERY.
Also a workshop with Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire and 16 stakeholder/organisations was held on 09/12/2016 to agree findings and actions based on these survey responses

Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire (HWERY) has published its report about the what knowledge and perception young people have of self-harm. 
The report contains information and views from members of the public about their experiences and their perception of self-harm.
 
The views, opinions and statements made in this report are those of the public, specifically young people. This report is about highlighting what local young people know about self-harm and what are their perceptions of local services. This perception may not fully or accurately reflect all the work being carried out in the local area. Nevertheless, it is the perception from the information we have collected.

In December 2016, Healthwatch were invited to participate in the Beverley Christmas Festival. One of the attractions for the festival was a Christmas tree display that would take place in Beverley Minster.
Participants were encouraged to think of unique ways to decorate their trees for the public to see over the weekend. Healthwatch decided to make the tree interactive and decorate it with blank pieces of paper and pens.

The public who passed the tree over the next few days were asked to write down their Christmas Wish for the NHS and hang it back on the tree.

Wishes came from people of all ages, genders and backgrounds and covered a wide range of issues and topics.

The key themes were:

• For the NHS to prosper and remain free at the point of use (15%)
• Positive messages and support for frontline staff (23%)
• More funding (16%)
• Innovate and join up services (6%)
• Don’t privatise (4%)
• Responsible use of services (2%)
• Improve access to services; keep services open (12%)
• Cure disease and/or that people will get better (15%)
• General well wishes (7%)

Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire publishes Residential Care Home quality report.

Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire (HWERY) has published a report examining the quality of Residential Care Homes in the region. This final report follows on from an interim report, which HWERY published in August 2015.     
Over an eighteen month period, HWERY visited twenty five Care Homes across the East Riding of Yorkshire area. These included a wide variety of providers, from small independent family businesses to large national providers, and had a large geographical spread. 
Overall, HWERY found high levels of satisfaction from residents with staff receiving much praise. HWERY volunteers, who conducted the visits, were particular impressed by the quality of care for residents with dementia and by the amount of personalisation that was available in most homes. 
However, HWERY also found that some homes, particularly those using older building, struggled with storage and décor issues. There were also concerns regarding poor communication with other health and social care organisations.  
Delivery Manager at HWERY, Linsay Cunningham, said:

“We are pleased that levels of resident satisfaction in the Care Homes we visited appear to be high and hope that other providers of residential care will take on board some of the good practice we found.

“However, a lack of coordination between different health and social care organisations is still causing unnecessary problems and/or delays for some older people in the East Riding. We would like to work with Hull and East Yorkshire Hospital Trust and local health commissioners to ensure all of East Riding’s care home residents get the best care.”

“Healthwatch is currently seeking views from people who have been discharged from hospital in the past 18 months. If you have a story to tell; good, bad or in between, please get in touch and share your experiences.”

Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire (HWERY) has today published a report examining patients’ experiences of Minor Injuries Units in the region.
The report details a three month investigation during which Healthwatch representatives visited all six Minor Injuries Units in the East Riding at Beverley, Bridlington, Driffield, Goole, Hornsea, and Withernsea and spoke to patients about their experiences.
Overall, HWERY found very high levels of satisfaction from patients with 98% saying that they had received good or excellent treatment. Staff received high praise from the public and it was clear that the people HWERY spoke to value the service, which they described as “local” and “convenient”.
However, the report also highlighted some areas where improvements could be made to the services, which included improved signage, longer opening hours and better access to refreshments. The investigation also highlighted concern with the complexity of the current setup with each of the units having different opening hours and providing certain services at some times of the day but not at others. HWERY also found that some units receive very few patients on a daily basis.

Delivery Manager at HWERY, Linsay Cunningham, said:

“We carried out this investigation in order to find out what local people think of their Minor Injuries Units. We are pleased that levels of patient satisfaction are high and in particular that patients reported that the quality of care given by staff was excellent.”

The report has been submitted to East Riding of Yorkshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) to consider as part of their consultation on urgent care provision. We would like to encourage the public to get involved and have their say on the CCG’s future plans for urgent care. Further information about the consultation will be posted on our website when it is available.”

Sustainability and Transformation Plans Factsheet

Sustainability and Transformation Plans (STPs) are plans to implement the NHS Five Year Forward View.

The NHS Five Year Forward View is a document from NHS England. It sets out the challenges which face the health and social care system, and how we can rise to these challenges.

The three main categories of challenges are:
1. Closing the health and wellbeing gap
2. Closing the care quality gap
3. Closing the funding gap

But we need to find a way to face these challenges locally.
Which is where STPs come in!

Local Voices: What are the public saying about health and care in Humber, Coast and Vale?
A joint report from local Healthwatch to help shape the Humber Coast and Vale Sustainability and Transformation Plan (HCV STP)

Over the past 12 months, Healthwatch in the Humber, Coast and Vale footprint have interacted with an estimated 20,000 members of the public in a wide variety of ways. As a result, we have a wealth of information collectively about the views and experiences of people living within this area in relation to the provision of health and care services.

Since Healthwatch came into existence in 2013, we have carried out many reviews and investigations of services in the HCV area and published a number of reports into the key STP themes. We hope that the information contained in this report will be fed into the STP planning process to ensure the voices of patients and the public in Humber, Coast and Vale are reflected in the drafting of the plan. We have produced this report to provide a helpful starting point for further public engagement, which will be essential throughout the whole planning process. Local Healthwatch are well-placed and willing to be partners in this process to ensure genuine public engagement is at the heart of future health and care planning for our area and look forward to working in partnership with the STP team to ensure that local voices are at the forefront when it comes to planning future health and care services

Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire publishes report on Home Care services in the East Riding

Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire (HWERY) has today published a report examining the quality of Domiciliary Care (also known as Home Care) services in the region.
With the assistance of East Riding of Yorkshire Council, Healthwatch sent out 600 questionnaires to people currently receiving care services in their homes and received 226 replies. From the results of the survey, Healthwatch identified four things that were most important to those currently receiving care:

• Long enough visits
• Friendly care workers
• Continuity of care (i.e. seeing the same carer all the time)
• Punctuality

Healthwatch were delighted that overall, 96% of those we spoke to were either satisfied or very satisfied with the care they receive. There were, however, some areas for improvement identified and Healthwatch has made recommendations to East Riding Council (who commission home care) and the agencies who provide home care. Areas for improvement include:

• Improving the communication between home care agencies and people receiving care;
• Ensuring greater continuity of care (one respondent to the survey told Healthwatch they had been visited by seven different carers in one week);
• Making more time for social interaction with care workers who are often rushing around trying to finish all the tasks before moving onto their next client.

Have a look at our 3rd annual report to find out more. It details, all about Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire, our statutory activities, about engaging with the public, the role of volunteers and more.

Mental Health and Wellbeing in East Riding of Yorkshire Directory Issue 1 2016

We all have mental health. Just like our bodies, our minds can become unwell. At times we can struggle and our mental health is not as good as it should be. Help is at hand.

Following the recent publication of our Mental Health Services report, Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire’s Information Service has undertaken extensive mapping of local and national services and support for mental health and wellbeing for a new Directory of Mental Health and Wellbeing in East Riding of Yorkshire.

This free Directory references useful guidance and resources on what you can do to look after yourself and where to get help.

The A-Z Section includes details of local services and support organisation and how to access them.

Connect, Be active, Take notice, Learn and Give
The subject coverage is broad and includes mental health problems, services and support groups and also a range of organisations which help people to develop and maintain a sense of wellbeing.
Topics include:
• Abuse
• Activity and Social Groups
• Adult Learning
• Alcohol and Drugs
• Alcohol and Drugs – Advice for family, carers and children affected
• Anxiety and Depression
• Benefits, Debts & Finance
• Bereavement
• Caring and Support
• Dementia
• Dementia – Information Guidance and Standards
• Eating Habits
• Gambling
• General Wellbeing
• Having Your Say and Advocacy
• Hearing Voices, Visions and Unusual Beliefs
• Homeless Prevention Services & Housing Support in East Riding of Yorkshire
• LGBT
• Local mental health organisations that provide help and treatment
• Mindfulness and Meditation
• National Mental Health websites & phone numbers
• Offenders and Ex-Offenders
• Pregnancy and after -  Mental Health
• Relationships & families
• Retirement Age Plus
• Self-Harm
• Self Help & Stress Management
• Specific Illnesses and Conditions
• Veterans
• Work, Volunteering, Training & Support
• Young People

There is also a section about recent reports on mental health services and NICE guidance on mental health care.

Gillian Perry, Information & Signposting Officer at HWERY says:
“In the course of compiling this Directory I have contacted over one hundred local organisations who provide mental health services and support general wellbeing in some way.
This illustrates that there is a lot of support for those who feel they are struggling or alone. I hope this Directory will connect those in need to that support and inspire others to find new ways to maintain their mental health and wellbeing.”

Sharon Watts, Public Health Lead at East Riding of Yorkshire Council, said:
“I would like to congratulate Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire for producing the Mental Health and Wellbeing directory of advice, help and support. It is a fantastic resource for all East Riding residents and includes what they can do to look after themselves and where they can go to get help and support.”
Further information can be found by visiting East Riding of Yorkshire Council’s Families Information Service Hub (FISH) website:
www.fish.eastriding.gov.uk
and the Connect to Support East Riding website: www.connecttosupport.org/eastriding

Print copies of the Directory are now available free from a range of organisations, including East Riding of Yorkshire Libraries, Customer Service Centres and Citizens Advice Bureau.

Contact Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire’s Information Service for a full list of distribution points. Tel: 01482 665684

Raising Awareness of Mental Health in the East Riding: Healthwatch publishes Mental Health Services report

As part of Mental Health Awareness Week, Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire (HWERY) has today published a report examining the quality of mental health services in the region.
HWERY spoke to people experiencing mental health issues, and their carers, in Bridlington, Beverley, Hessle, and Goole in order to get their views on the quality of the treatment they had received.
The report concluded that an effective level of treatment does exist across the region, especially when groups such as Mind and Rethink are involved, but that there is a variability in treatment quality, and in the understanding of the needs of people experiencing mental health issues, amongst GPs and other care providers, which needs to be addressed
The report also highlighted the importance of voluntary and community groups in the treatment of mental health problems and called for these services to receive greater support.
Delivery Manager at HWERY, Linsay Cunningham, said:

“Mental health services are often seen as the ‘poor relation’ to physical health needs. This should not be the case and the two are often linked.

We are pleased with the comments we received from the people we spoke to, however a number of areas of improvement were also brought to our attention and we hope these will be dealt with swiftly.”

Mental Health Awareness week runs from the 16th-22nd May and further information can be found at:  www.mentalhealth.org.uk

The full text of the report is available below or can be downloaded from: www.healthwatcheastridingofyorkshire.co.uk/reports

The challenge for Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire is two fold

Firstly, we are aware of many local and national issues facing the providers and commissioners of health and social care in the East Riding. We are also aware of many issues facing users of health and social care services in the East Riding. There will of course, also be many issues of which we are yet unaware which will provide real challenges in the future.

Secondly, we will continue to review our priorities and processes to ensure we work within our budget and to maximum effect.

As a demonstration of our transparency, our strategic plan is a public document and is shared and on our website.

House of Commons Library.  The structure of the NHS in England (Briefing Paper Number CBP 07206), HCL, 10 March 2016
Available online from: http://researchbriefings.parliament.uk/ResearchBriefing/Summary/CBP-7206
 
Major reforms to the structure of the health service in England were introduced by the Health and Social Care Act 2012, with a large number of new organisations established on 1 April 2013. This Library briefing provides an overview of the funding and accountability relationships under the new system, and an introduction to the roles of key organisations.

The briefing also highlights some of the key health policy issues for the current Parliament, including patient safety, funding, and the integration of health and social care and includes developments since the 2012 Act.

East Riding Youngsters Smiling About Their Dentists

Healthwatch Report Highlights Positive Experiences 

Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire (HWERY) recently carried out a survey which aimed to investigate if young people who live in the East Riding had access to an NHS dentist and what they felt the service was like. We asked young people to contribute to the investigation through social media, surveys and public engagement. Overall we had a staggering response with over 600 young people participating in one form or another and nearly a third of that number contributing to our survey and data collection.

The report showed that nearly 66% of young people are getting access to their dentist twice a year and 88% seeing their dentist at least once a year, which is the national guideline for young people under the age of 18. The report also highlighted that over 50% wouldn’t change anything about the service they receive and most others suggested only making minor changes to the physical environment or attitude of staff.

Overall young people think very highly of their dental services and that services in the East Riding, as a whole, are doing well in helping our young people access oral care.

Matt Fawcett, Healthwatch East Riding Children and Young People’s Officer, said:

“It’s great to see that by and large young people in the East Riding are able to access dental services, and more importantly, that their experiences of those services are mostly positive.

“We would like to thank all the young people who participated in the survey and engagement for their enthusiasm in sharing their stories with us.

“We will be sharing the report with NHS England and dental practices across the East Riding. We encourage individual dental practices to respond to the comments made in the report so they can continue to improve the service they offer to younger people so that everyone’s experience can be a positive one.”

Health Literacy report

Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire has published a report about their recent pilot health literacy programme, which was run for Health Practice Champions at Brough Surgery during September and October 2015. The report explores the definitions and component skills of health literacy, examines its importance as a key determinant of good health and details the programme’s objectives, content and lessons learned.

Participant’s feedback was positive and it is hoped that the complete training programme will be run with Information Champions at other GP Practices or as a combination of modules on particular health and social care themes to suit different audiences and groups in East Yorkshire. The full report can be seen below

When local Healthwatch were established by the Health and Social Care Act 2012, a new statutory function was introduced - “[To] provide information and advice to the public about accessing health and social care services and choice in relation to aspects of those services.”

At Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire (HWERY), our Information Service aims:

• To provide information as outlined above and
• To enable the public to access information on health and social care, with the aim of facilitating better, informed choices and reducing health inequalities.

We, thus, seek to actively promote digital health literacy and during September and October 2015, the Service ran a pilot series of 5 Health Literacy Workshops for Practice Health Champions and staff based at The Ridings Medical Group’s Brough Surgery.

The Workshops were designed to familiarise Champions with the necessary skills to find and use information about health and social care services. With these information skills Champions are empowered to look after their own health and to support someone who needs their care. They can also provide information and signposting to others in their community.

Champions learnt how to use the NHS Choices website in depth, including how to set up an account and how to use the Information Prescription Service.

They also used the UK Online Centres Learn My Way e-learning platform which features modules on Being Healthy using NHS Choices and On-Line GP Services. Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire’s Information Service is part of The Tinder Foundation’s UK Onlinecentres™ Network. The network is made up of 5,000 local centres, helping people make the most of technology and widening digital inclusion among the most socially excluded in the UK.

The final health literacy Workshop looked at developing the local Information resource about the services provided by the GP Practice and about wider health and social care support in the locality. Champions started to plan for the launch of their Information Booth, which they hope to launch at Brough Surgery in February 2016 and Health East Riding of Yorkshire’s Information Service will continue to support this exciting new initiative.

What is Health Literacy?

The World Health Organisation explains that:

‘Health literacy is linked to literacy and entails people’s knowledge, motivation and competences to access, understand, appraise and apply health information in order to make judgements and take decisions in everyday life concerning health care, disease prevention and health promotion to maintain or improve quality of life during the life course.’
Source:  World Health Organisation, Health Literacy: the solid facts. WHO, 2013.

Health Literacy can contribute to the reduction of health inequalities and, therefore, has benefits for both the public and service providers.

Please contact the Information Service on 01482 665684 if you would like to know more about the Health Literacy training we can provide.

Healthwatch East Riding of Yorkshire (HWERY) published a report examining the appointments systems in place at GP surgeries in the region. 

This latest report provides a follow-up to a report HWERY published in March 2015 and its purpose was to investigate whether recommendations made in the earlier report had been followed and to see if it has gotten any easier for East Riding residents to get an appointment with their local GP.