Healthwatch City of London Priorities for 2016-18

WORK PLAN 2016-2018

Our previous strategic priorities focussed on engagement with as wider section of the City Community as possible, including younger people and City workers.

Going forward we are looking to extend our community engagement work, and continue to consult and represent the views of City people to improve their health and social care experience. We will continue to focus on older people, young people and the hard to reach groups resident in the City.

We are also looking to continue our work supporting the implementation of the Care Act, with its greater emphasis on Safeguarding Adults and Children, throughout the City.

We are currently working towards supporting the following priorities:

Continued provision of our online directory CityHealth – The Health Directory (www.city-health.org.uk/), and our review of the 446 services to ensure they are relevant and up to date. We are aiming to improve the website and make it easier to use, ensuring it is a key source of information for anyone looking for City health and social care related services.

St Bartholomew’s is the only hospital located in the City. As such we will continue our support and input including with the newly established Patients Forum. We will continue to input to the patient engagement and experience strategy for Barts NHS Trust to ensure that the patient voice is heard.

Feedback and consultation with various groups through our first three years has also highlighted two particular groups of City residents which require support to access and best utilise services. We are aiming to extend our work with these residents during the next two years, and will be focusing on the following:

Carers – reaching carers, understanding their experience of social care provision in the City and helping them to maximise the value they get from the services in the City. Carers could be residents, workers or younger people.

Residents and workers with mental health needs – With new services offered by the East London Foundation Trust available to City people, Healthwatch City of London will facilitate a workshop on the City Mental Health Strategy, during Mental Health Week in October 2016. We will work in partnership with the City of London Corporation on delivering the City’s Mental Health Action Plan.