Minutes

Apologies, Welcomes and Introductions.

Conflicts of Interests

•      Emergency Services – WMAS

•      Deep Dives

•      Share for better care – HWE campaign

•      Cross Border – Mental Health Services

•      Non-Urgent Patient Transport – ERS

•      Healthwatch survey – Over 55’s

BT Gave updates on current HW work Programme.

Emergency Services – WMAS

•      HW is currently working on a deep dive into WMAS and Cat 2 and Cat 3 calls being consistently missed.

•      Healthwatch and Health Care and Overview Scrutiny Committee are due to do a joint visit at WMAS call centre on 30^th May.

•      We have been out to consultation with members of the public on their experiences. And so far, received over 360 responses. We have shared our early findings with WMAS and talked through how we expect our report to look. Most of the issues are to do with long delays and handover times. More residents have complained from the Moorlands as those living in rural areas are affected the most. The feedback on paramedics is good.

Deep Dives – Updates given to committee and public on HW priorities:

1. 1. The 999 Ambulance Service  (Jan – June 24)
   2. Admissions Avoidance Schemes (June – Oct 24)
   3. Hospital Discharges (Nov – March 25)

Share for better care – HWE campaign

•      HWS will be supporting the HWE new campaign, which focuses on gathering more feedback from people from minority ethnic backgrounds and lower-income communities.

•      #ShareForBetterCare is a joint campaign with the Care Quality Commission and is being run in collaboration with the Race Equality Foundation, National Dignity Council and Royal Association for Deaf. 

Cross Border – Mental Health Services

·         In a previous article from the Express and Star it was recorded at a South Staffs Wellbeing Select Committee session. 

·         “Cross-border services has been an issue for a very long time because we haven’t got a hospital in South Staffs. When we use the services in Wolverhampton and in Dudley, when patients get discharged or require services that come from outside the area, they’re often lacking, and patients get quite distraught about the lack of communication that seems to occur”.

•      Cross border agreements in place and their effectiveness

•      Level of information across professionals

•      Contract changes

•      Travel times

•      Public transport

Non-Urgent Patient Transport – ERS

·         Non-Urgent Patient Transport – ERS patient experiences have been raised with Healthwatch about Non-Urgent Patient Transport. The key areas on concerns raised were around:

•      4-6 hours to return patients.

•      Uncertainty on pick up times.

•      Waiting time, post dialysis exceeding guidelines.

•      Excessive time on Transport (journey time exhaustion).

•      Drivers are not always aware of the most efficient routes.

Healthwatch survey – Over 55’s survey is on HW website

Any sensitive issues/concerns/safeguarding etc.

HW future funding