Seventy-five local HealthWatch pathfinders have been announced today. The pathfinders will pioneer plans ahead of the full establishment of local HealthWatch across the country in October 2012.
They will champion patients’ views and experiences, promote the integration of local services and improve choice for patients through advice and access to information.
Local HealthWatch will provide a collective voice for patients and carers, and advise the new clinical commissioning groups on the shape of local services to ensure they are informed by the views of the local community.
Visiting a new HealthWatch pathfinder in Cambridgeshire, Health Secretary Andrew Lansley said: ‘Putting patients and the public at the very heart of the health service is central to our vision of modernising the NHS and today is huge step forward.
‘The network of Local HealthWatch will give patients and carers a real say over how their local health service is run. They will act as patient champions, drive local involvement in the community and ensure patients understand the choices available to them.’
HealthWatch England, a national body, will also be established in October 2012. It will enable the collective views of the people who use NHS and adult social care services to influence national policy, advice and guidance.
The HealthWatch pathfinders are:
Barnsley
Bath and North East Somerset
Bedford
Bexley
Blackburn with Darwen
Blackpool
Bradford
Cambridgeshire
Central Bedfordshire
Cheshire East
City of London
Cornwall
Coventry City
Croydon
Cumbria
Derby City
Devon
Doncaster
East Sussex
Enfield
Essex
Gateshead
Gloucestershire
Hartlepool
Herefordshire
Hertfordshire
Isles of Scilly
Kent
Kensington & Chelsea and Hammersmith & Fulham
Kingston upon Thames
Lambeth
Leeds
Leicester City
Leicestershire
Lewisham
Lincolnshire
Liverpool City
Newham
Norfolk
North East Lincolnshire
North Lincolnshire Council & LINk
Northamptonshire
Northumberland
Oldham
Oxfordshire
Peterborough
Plymouth
Redbridge
Richmond upon Thames
Sheffield
Shropshire
South Gloucestershire and Bristol
Southampton, Hampshire, Isle of Wight and Portsmouth (SHIP)
Southend on Sea
Staffordshire
Stockport
Suffolk
Sutton
Telford and Wrekin
Thurrock
Torbay
Tower Hamlets
Trafford
Wakefield
Walsall
Waltham Forest
Wandsworth
Warrington
Warwickshire
West Berkshire
Westminster
Wigan
Wolverhampton
Worcestershire
York
As the new role for Healthwatch mirrors the existing one for PCT PALS with the PCT PALS funding transferring to LA in October 2012. No mention or clarification has been made about the PALS staff to-date, will advice be published in the near future?
I agree clarification on this issue is needed so that proper planning can go ahead. If Healthwatch is to take on this work then funding for proper training will be needed unless it is proposed that the PCT PALS staff will be transfered over.
Also where te PCT covers two boroughs how are te staff going to be allocatedif they are to be transferred over. Proper guidance please.
The consultation document on Allocation Options for distribution of additional funding to local authorities for: Local HealthWatch, NHS Complaints Advocacy, PCT Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards sets out the policy for the signposting function for Local HealthWatch – responses to the consultation should be sent by following the instructions in the document.
In addition, the Human Resources Transition Framework, published on 6 July 2011, provides the general principles for NHS staff in transition and you may find this information helpful.
Kasey Chan
Implementation Lead for Public and Patient Engagement – HealthWatch policy
In the absence of funding for the Pathfinders can someone explain how these Pathfinders are going towork especially where a LINk had its funding cut. Initially LINks were told that limited funding was available. To then be told that you have ben awarded Pathfindr but you have to fund the proposal yourself is self defeating.
The Pathfinder should be a period of exploration, positive and motivated discussion so that we can all build on successes as LINk approach HealthWatch.
Yes I agree, how can this happen when under current legisltation LINk still has a responsibility to deliver its statutroy functions (business as usual) but on less funding creating limited resources. Time and resources for Pathfinders are coming from – Where!
A new report from the National Children’s Bureau raises concerns that HealthWatch will struggle to represent children and young people in their work, as many LINks have, unless more action is taken to build on best practice to ensure children’s views are listened to.
NCB LINks’ involvement of children and young people report: http://www.ncb.org.uk/vss/links__healthwatch.aspx
NCB training for LINks staff and members: http://www.ncb.org.uk/vss/training__events/links_training.aspx
Thanks for highlighting the NCB’s report. It sets out some of the challenges and barriers to engaging children and young people – and not just for LINks – as well as giving details of success stories from LINks that have made real progress in this area.
We are very pleased that the NCB will continue to work with and provide advice and training to LINks during the transition to HealthWatch. In developing learning networks for LINks we will explore how best to make this information and advice more widely available.
I attended the AGM of the National Association of LINks Members (NALM) on 30th September when I facilitated a workshop on (some of) the PALS functions that will be transferring to LHWs in October 2012. The workshop was entitled ‘Developing skills and capacity in LHW: Information, signposting and advice services.’
The most important issue identified by attendees was the need to bring some clarity to government expectations in this regard. To quote from the report drawn up after the workshop:
1. There is an urgent need for clarity about the signposting/information/advice role that is proposed for LHWs and how this relates to existing PALS services.
2. LINks/PALS have an opportunity to work much more closely together during the transition to LHW and afterwards.
3. The threats to this role need to be clearly identified and addressed such as legal liability for advice/information, employment issues relating to current PALS staff e.g. TUPE
4. Risk of gaps in service to patients and the public during the transition.
It would be very good to know how the Pathfinders are tackling this. Are there any early indications of how this is going?
Just returned from the Healthwatch Pathfinder event at the Oval today. Fantastic work being done all over the country, let’s keep sharing best practice. Excellent attitudes and models to work with.