Get involved

Our Patient and Public Involvement Group was established in April 2021.  The group is an enthusiastic mix of patients, carers, volunteers, staff, our Patient Voice representative from the Board as well as representatives from external organisations.

The purpose of the group is to ensure that the voices and views of patients, carers, and the public are heard throughout the organisation. The group also has an important role in promoting partnership working between the community and Wiltshire Health and Care Carer Forum.

We currently meet every other month to discuss current and planned engagement work, developing the action plan for patient and public involvement and setting priorities which align to WHC’s Delivery Plan.

If you would like to find out more, please contact Lina Middleton, Patient and Public Involvement Officer at lina.middleton1@nhs.net.

It is important that the information we are sharing is readable, accessible and clear.  We would like a group of volunteers that are able to review information that is aimed at our patients and service users such as patient information leaflets, posters as well as our website.

Our patient information leaflets go through an approval process and we would like a review panel to become part of this process.

If you would like more information or would like to take part, please email Lina Middleton, Patient and Public Involvement Officer at lina.middleton1@nhs.net.

We are in the process of developing our Family and Carer Strategy with those who have experience and knowledge of being a carer.  The strategy will define our purpose, aims and priorities and most importantly be a comprehensive plan with clear goals and measurable outcomes.

The forum meets quarterly and usually last 1.5 hours.  To ensure the meeting is accessible please tell  us what you may need to make the meeting work for you, such as time of day or access to a computer to attend virtually.  For more information or to join please email Anne-Marie Nuth at whc.askhrwhc@nhs.net

• BSW Long Covid Service Forum – ongoing service review and development of a newly established service that supports patients experiencing symptoms from Long Covid. An initial survey was sent to all patients to understand what was working well and which areas require some improvement. Following on from an intial patient survey, we created a Long Covid Service Forum for patients, family members and carers to join for  more in-depth discussions about the service.
• NCEPOD study – we supported NCEPOD to gather views on the process of the transition of young people with complex chronic conditions from child to adult services. Phase 1 was to ask our clinicians across our services who work with young people aged 13 – 24 for their input. Phase 2 asked children and young adult, their family members and/or carers for their views. The results from this study due in June 2023 will inform the engagement work we carry forward within WHC, particularly with children and young adults.
• Patient Initiated Follow Up (PIFU) – WHC is in the process of implementing PIFU pathways to some of our outpatient services. Your clinician will discuss with you if you are suitable for a PIFU pathway and what this means.  Patients with a stable, long-term condition that are placed on a PIFU pathway can contact the service for advice or request a follow up appointment should an exasperation of their symptoms occur, rather than at a predetermined point.  This aims to give our patients and service users more control over their care and personalised care when they need it. We will be carrying out engagement with patients to ensure that they understand they have been placed on a PIFU pathway, that they know what to do and who to contact if their symptoms exacerbate.
• Virtual Appointment review - we are keen to understand what our patients like or don’t like about having their medical appointments online or over the telephone. The COVID-19 pandemic created a situation where we were able to continue offering appointments virtually. We want to hear what our patients think about how we deliver appointments for our services.

We believe it is important to listen to the people who use our services.  Members of the board really value the opportunity to hear our patients’ experience and views first-hand.  Our quarterly Board meeting opens with a ‘Patient Story’ whereby a patient, family member or carer can share their experience including what they felt worked well or what requires improvement.

We have recently heard from:

• A patient who was referred to the BSW Long Covid Service and described the service as a ‘life-line’ and the benefits of seeing a multi-disciplinary team under one service. The patient also providing useful suggestions on how GPs could be better informed on the referral process to the service.
• The wife of a patient gave a summary of her husband’s experience of the Early Support Discharge Service. They felt the care was outstanding, highlighting particular the benefits of consistency of personnel in terms of building relationships and the support and signposting for carer support. In discussion, it was recognised that this was a good example of taking learning from when things went right.

Members of the service team are encouraged to join the meeting too to support their patient and to put context around the patient’s experience from an operations perspective too.

If you wish to share your experience with the member of the Board please email Lina Middleton, Patient and Public Involvement Officer at lina.middleton1@nhs.net.

View our Board Members here

We often have patients that would like to give feedback but either don’t know how or are unable to.  Some of our volunteers that work on our inpatient wards at our community hospitals provide a listening ear and offer ways in which the patient, their family or their carer can give feedback.

Sometimes a patient might need some support completing a Friends and Family Test.  Other times, our volunteers can explain how raising a concern or a complaint can be done through the PALS team.

If you would like to volunteer, please email whc.volunteers@nhs.net of find out more information on our volunteer pages.  Lina Middleton the Patient and Public Involvement Officer will provide training on the different ways we can receive feedback.