Healthwatch City of London Bulletin 52
GP appointments
You’ll have seen on the news over the past few days that the number of face-to-face GP appointments is still only 58% nationally compared to 80% pre pandemic. Patients have also complained of long wait times on the telephone to book appointments.
The Government has pledged a £250m funding plan for GPs as part of the extra £5bn Covid fund announced last month to help the NHS through the winter. It comes on top of the £12bn set aside for GP services this year.
Alongside locum doctors - doctors who stand in for others temporarily - GP practices will be able to use the money to recruit other temporary staff such as physios and podiatrists. Pharmacists are also being encouraged to see people with minor illness to relieve the pressure on GPs.
We have asked the Neaman Practice to tell us the number of face-to-face appointments they are currently providing.
If you have had difficulty booking a face-to-face appointment or have had a long wait time getting through to book, please let us know via email info@healthwatchcityoflondon.org.uk
Our upcoming webinars
Healthwatch City of London have an exciting series of webinars booked for your interest and information over the next few months. The webinars are run alongside our regular events. Please see the details and how to join below.
East London Cardiovascular Disease Prevention (ELoPE) group webinar
Wednesday 10th November 6pm – 7pm
Join Healthwatch City of London and the team at Barts Health to hear about the ELoPE project. The aim of the project is to reduce cardiovascular disease risk in our local community, working in partnership with the British Heart Foundation.
East London has some of the highest levels of childhood obesity and diabetes in the country and they are part of an effort from the local healthcare community to address a problem reaching epidemic levels.
They are working with schools, local businesses and the public to ensure a healthier future for our area. To find out more about their work and how you can benefit join our webinar on 10th November between 6pm -7pm. We’ll hear from Dr Riyaz Patel, Professor or Cardiology and Consultant Cardiologist, who will give an overview of the project and will be answering your questions.
You can submit a question for the team and register here
Healthwatch City of London Annual Public Meeting
Friday 10th December 3pm – 5pm
Our Annual Public Meeting will be held on Friday 10th December, our key speakers will be Tracey Fletcher, Chief Executive of Homerton University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Dame Alwen Williams DBE, Group Chief Executive, Barts Health NHS Trust. Tracey and Alwen will be talking about patient engagement and enabling your voice to be heard during the reconfiguration of services and the development of the Integrated Care Partnership, In addition they will tell us how their Trusts are tackling the waiting lists. They will take questions from attendees, and we will let you know more about that as we get nearer the date.
Hopefully, we will be able to hold the meeting in person, we are currently looking for a suitable space, but for now we have set up a zoom call. We’ll let you know if we are able to find a suitable venue.
You can submit a question for the panel and register here
Dr David Collier, William Harvey Research Institute Webinar
Thursday 20th January 6pm – 7pm
Dr David Collier, Joint Clinical Director at the William Harvey Research Institute will be joining us on Thursday 20th January to talk about the William Harvey Research Institute. Dr Collier will talk about the remit of the Institute, how it links with Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, the current projects being undertaken and the research of the team.
You can submit a question for Dr Collier and register here
Listening to City Carers
Join us for our Listening to City Carers group on Friday 22nd October between 11am – 12. We’ll be joined by Ian Jarman from City of London Corporation who will give an update on the Homecare contract.
Link to join: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/85823840940?pwd=cWYyZ1pWeDkrSXNWanMzWGorVE9yUT09
Meeting ID: 858 2384 0940 Passcode: 855067
NHS Waiting Times Survey
The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in many people having their operations, treatment and appointments delayed. A record number of people - more than 5.45 million - are waiting for NHS hospital treatment in England. We want to find out how this is affecting you.
All Healthwatches across the North East of London are carrying out a survey to learn about the impact of delays on people, how they are coping while they wait and what support they think would help them better manage their health.
Please complete the survey below to let us know of your experiences.
https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/HWWaitingtimes
Old Street Roundabout and impact on access to the Homerton Hospital
We’ve had numerous contacts from residents concerned about the additional time it now takes to reach Homerton Hospital following the development of the Old Street roundabout. The traffic flow of the roundabout was changed to reduce pollution and support Covid distancing. However, we have had reports that it can now take over an hour to reach Homerton due to the new set up.
We raised this issue at the City of London’s Health and Wellbeing Board and will be working closely with partners to identify solutions.
In the coming months we will be carrying out a survey on access to services, this will include access to the Homerton. In the meantime, if you’ve experienced any delays, or would like to voice your concerns please contact us on info@healthwatchcityoflondon.org.uk
Where would you like to have your COVID booster vaccination?
City and Hackney CCG are using Bocking street as one of their two local vaccination hubs, the other is John Scott Health Centre. We would like your opinion on how convenient and accessible Bocking street is. Please let us know by completing our poll
Healthwatch City of London events
See below for the next scheduled dates for our regular ‘Listening to City Carers’ events and our Mental Health and Wellbeing focus groups.
As a result of listening to you, we have enabled a carer to receive their COVID vaccination in their home, enabled another resident to access the ELFT mental health team, given a voice for carers in the retendering process by the Corporation of London of their home care contract.
Listening to City Carers
Overview: An opportunity for Carer’s to provide feedback on their experience of Health and Social Care.
Date: Friday 22nd October
Time: 11am – 12noon
Link to join: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/85823840940?pwd=cWYyZ1pWeDkrSXNWanMzWGorVE9yUT09
Meeting ID: 858 2384 0940 Passcode: 855067
Mental Health and Wellbeing focus group
Overview: The event is open to everyone, and we will be discussing mental health provision in the City of London, identifying access issues and any gaps in the services provided to you. We will be joined by colleagues from MIND, East London Foundation Trust and City Connections.
Date: Thursday 18th November
Time: 3pm – 4pm
Link to join: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82400703243?pwd=Q0N4THRkTEVzNzZWbUYzQ0lkc2VtZz09
Meeting ID: 824 0070 3243 Passcode: 390856
Listening to City Carers
Overview: An opportunity for Carer’s to provide feedback on their experience of Health and Social Care.
Date: Friday 26th November
Time: 2pm – 3pm
Link to join: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81897762127?pwd=ZUFsdVMxS2lETmczZy8rdHlDWUl4Zz09
Meeting ID: 818 9776 2127 Passcode: 575751
Beyond Shakespeare
Get back out an enjoy the City; Beyond Shakespeare are doing a re-construction of the 1621 Lord Mayor’s show on Friday 29th October 2021 for full details and times go to beyondshakespeare.org
Latest Covid-19 statistics for the City of London
The joint City and Hackney Public Health Intelligence Team produce regular statistics on Covid-19 levels and vaccination uptake data in the City. The site is updated regularly and accessible at https://hackney.gov.uk/coronavirus-data
Keep up to date with the latest advice
HWCoL are constantly updating our advice and information pages. Please make sure you visit them regularly. https://www.healthwatchcityoflondon.org.uk/advice-and-information
Get in touch with Healthwatch City of London
Visit our website for more information, news and events, have your say about your care, and spread the word about Healthwatch City of London. www.healthwatchcityoflondon.org.uk email: info@healthwatchcityoflondon.org.uk Tel: 020 3745 9563 Facebook: facebook.com/CoLHealthwatch Twitter: @HealthwatchCoL
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