Posted by Anne Cater - BCVS
on 28/7/2009, 9:12 am
Message modified by board administrator 28/7/2009, 9:17 am
As you will be aware, the Nottinghamshire County LINk has been asking people to let them know what they think is good and bad about the health and social care services in their community.
Around 50 issues have been referred to the LINk so far, and an Issues Panel has been meeting to plan a schedule for looking at those issues. The Panel has prioritised the following pieces of work, and we now need to form a Task and Finish Group for each of these:
1. Disabled access to GP surgeries across the county
This is a piece of work which was started by the Patient and Public Involvement Forums that existed before the LINk began. The work is being carried forward by the LINk. Letters have been sent to the Primary Care Trust to find out what progress has been made with this issue and a Task and Finish
Group will continue the work.
2. Respite services for carers
This is a newly prioritised piece of work around the lack of respite services currently available for carers in Nottinghamshire. If you are interested in carers, then this would be a good opportunity to work with other organisations already doing some work around the topic.
3. Newark Strategy
Participants of Nottinghamshire County LINk and Lincolnshire LINk will be working together to put forward their views on NHS Nottinghamshire County’s review of health and social care delivery in Newark town. This is a major review of services and a great opportunity to work jointly with Lincolnshire
LINk. A meeting in Newark will be held in the very near future regarding this issue, so if you are interested, please let us know as soon as possible.
4. Dentistry provision for people with a Learning Disability
This issue relates to the length of time that patients with a learning disability who require general anaesthetic for dental work have to wait before receiving treatment. We have sent a letter to the organisations that commission and provide these services, so that we can find out initially what services
are already being provided. We are currently arranging to work on a review of these services in partnership with NHS Nottinghamshire County and Sherwood Forest Hospitals Foundation Trust. It is likely that this Task and Finish group will be writing a questionnaire which will be sent out to people who have a learning disability or care for someone with a learning disability.
5. Shortage of Health Visitors for people with young children in Bassetlaw
We have already written to the people who are responsible for providing Health Visitors in Bassetlaw. We know that there is a shortage of Health Visitors throughout the county but we are hoping that by asking the groups around the county that work with children or groups in small rural
communities, we can work out a better way of using the number of Health Visitors that we already have in the area.
6. Hospital Discharge Schemes
The LINk is carrying out research relating to this through a LINk consultation and the Nottinghamshire Listens Citizens Panel Survey. Results from this survey will be available in July. Following research by Nottinghamshire County Council, a proposal for improving hospital discharge schemes across the county and launching a hospital discharge scheme in Newark and Sherwood has been made to Joint Commissioning. The LINk has submitted a report of the comments we have had so far relating to hospital discharge schemes in support of this proposal. The main part of this work will begin after the results of the surveys are complete in July.
7. Access / Barriers to services
The issue of people struggling to access services has been raised a number of times. Initial research is being undertaken through a LINk consultation and the Nottinghamshire Listens Citizens Panel Survey to find out what the general public of Nottinghamshire think are the barriers to accessing health and social care services in the County. Results from this survey will also be available in July and will shape future LINk work surrounding this issue. The main part of this work will begin after the results of the surveys are complete in July.
8. Consultation Coordination Group
This group will be responsible for making sure that the LINk is involved in all relevant consultations. They will work closely with the LINk Support Team’s Researcher to coordinate responses to consultations. This group will be meeting regularly to do this work, as well as liaising via email or phone.
If you are interested in any of these issues, we would like you to get involved. Please contact the LINk Support Team on 0115 975 4647 or by the contact details above. (Please note that joining a Task and Finish group does not necessarily mean a big commitment – this will depend on how involved you would like to become.)
If you do not want to join the Task and Finish Group, but are aware of information relating to the issue, please let us know.
Once the Task and Finish Group is formed, it will decide how to carry out the work, when and where to do the work and how much time to allocate to it. For example, you may wish to have meetings close to your home.
The LINk Support Team will be available to support this work and your expenses, such as travel, will be refunded.
Your support is vital to ensure that we can make a positive change in your community. Thank you in advance for your support.
Yours faithfully,
Shirley Inskip,
Chair of the Executive Board
on behalf of the Nottinghamshire County LINk
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