MORE than 100,000 contributions have already been made to the biggest conversation ever about improving the NHS and now health bosses across the North West are urging people to have their say on some of the early ideas for change.
There have been more than 1.5 million visits to the change.nhs.uk portal since it launched last October, with people sharing their views and experiences of the health service.
The first phase of engagement has focused on three ‘shifts’ that are needed to deliver improvements across the NHS: moving more services from hospitals to the community; moving the focus to preventing sickness, not just treating it; and making better use of technology by switching from analogue to digital.
Now, to help finalise the new 10 Year Health Plan, views are being sought from NHS staff, patients and the wider public on the emerging ideas from the engagement so far, with the chance for people to share their priorities for change.
Clare Duggan, Regional Strategic Director Strategy and Transformation at NHS England – North West, said: “We know that change is needed and many of the solutions we need are already here, working somewhere in the NHS today.
“People’s views, experiences, and ideas will shape immediate steps and long-term changes and I’d encourage everyone, including those who have already come forward and had their say, to take the opportunity to review some of the emerging ideas from the conversation so far and give their views.”
In addition to the portal, staff and public in the North West have been able to get involved in the Change NHS conversation through a mix of online and virtual events. Last month, more than 80 NHS staff including GPs, nurses, optometrists, consultants, porters, pharmacists took part in a 10 Year Health Plan event in Liverpool to share their solutions about the challenges the NHS currently faces and their ideas for change that will benefit patients and staff.
During the event, NHS England’s Primary Care Medical Director, Dr Claire Fuller, Chief Nursing Officer for England Duncan Burton and Dr Paula Cowan, Medical Director for Primary Care in the North West, saw the shifts to prevention and care closer to home already in action when they visited the Tiny Teeth dental project at the Life Bank Nursery at Kensington Children’s Centre in Liverpool.
The initiative, which is delivered by Beyond, NHS Cheshire and Merseyside’s children and young people’s transformation programme, in partnership with Koala Northwest and City Healthcare Partnerships CIC, supports local families to understand the importance of dental care and teaches pre-school children how to brush their teeth twice daily through sessions at more than 30 community locations.
People can get have their say at Project: Your priorities for change | Change NHS until Monday, 14 April.
