Healthwatch City of London March Newsletter
Chat from our Chair
Welcome to our March newsletter, and what a busy time it’s been. We are so proud to be working on your behalf and making things happen in the City of London and its good when we can report progress. As you can see our General Manager, Rachel Cleave, and her small team have been pulling out the stops over the last two months.
The launch of our Digital Apps report has been really well received by service providers, and we are planning a patient panel to launch the report to you where we will be joined by those shaping the digital strategy in North East London. They were really excited by the prospect and are looking forward to hearing from you. So, watch this space.
Our next report on PALS, we hope, will have the same impact. Patient Advice and Liaison Services weren’t quite as easy to locate online or in person as we had hoped but more on that soon.
The Mela or festival in Portsoken was a really great event and something we will be following up on very soon. Making sure we reach all parts of our community is very important to us and something we will be working harder on throughout the year.
As you can see below our Enter and View at the Neaman practice took place in February and follows on from an Enter and View in the Goodman’s Fields practice in Tower Hamlets, a practice used by those living in the East of the City. The report will be shared widely and there will be chance to ask questions both of us and the Neaman practice at an upcoming Patient Panel.
Our Falls Prevention Patient Panel and ongoing work with the City and Hackney Public Health Team puts you at the forefront of shaping the new services and similarly making sure you have your say on the availability and accessibility of pharmacy services is something we are working on with local commissioners and planners of services. Making sure those in the driving seat are listening and responding to you is a large part of our work but we can only do this with your support.
This month we have our Patient Panel on Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation training with the London Ambulance Service, it is currently fully booked, but if you would like to be waitlisted, please email info@healthwatchcityoflondon.org.uk. We will be doing more of these important training sessions, so please keep a look out on our website.
We are now reviewing our objectives and priorities for the year and ensuring that each one works towards improving the services that you use and that your voice is heard by those planning and delivering services. It is important for us that we are acting on what matters to you. To share your views and what you think we should be focusing on, email us at info@healthwatchcityoflondon.org.uk
A good way to help us help you is by attending a board meeting and hearing about what we do and raising concerns or issues that you are aware of. Our next Board meeting is Friday the 14th March. Please do join us, we would love to see you there.
Finally, we wish everyone celebrating Ramadan a Ramadan filled with peace, reflection, and happiness, we have included information on how to fast during Ramadan for those who are diabetic.
Gail
Chair, Healthwatch City of London
Join us for our next Board meeting in Public
Our board meetings in public are an ideal opportunity to hear about our work and find out more about getting involved in what we do.
Our next one is on Friday, 14 March from 11am to 12:30pm on zoom, you’ll get to hear about the projects the team are working on and our priorities, plans and events for the next few months. We know that for those who work this isn’t an ideal time so we do try to mix things up so that more of you can attend.
Register here: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/XbeldYDXTTqIQc2CMVFzlw
Not able to come to a board meeting? then subscribe to our newsletter or email us with your thoughts and views on local services to info@healthwatchcityoflondon.org.uk
The Launch of our Digi Apps Report
In the last few months, our team along with some of our local residents has been working on our Digi Apps project, investigating how people in the City are impacted by the increase in digitisation of health care. We explored what was on offer to patients in the local area, how they worked and whether they were easy for you to use.
Our report highlights that local residents find that accessing digital apps can prove difficult and confusing. Our findings and recommendations focus on what needs to be improved to reduce the issues and barriers that patients and carers are facing.
We launched our report in February at an event for service providers where we were delighted to have as our guest speaker Professor Julia Manning, Dean of Education at the Royal Society of Medicine, and an Honorary Professor of Practice in Computer Science at UCL. Julia has long championed the use of technology but is mindful of accessibility, and the pitfalls of limiting access to digital only.
We were joined by Chief Information Officers and Digital leads from the NHS including from the Integrated Care Board (the commissioners of services), Homerton University Hospital and the Primary Care Network to discuss the findings in our report and to explore what we can do locally to make access easier for all not just those who are technologically savvy and for whom English is a first language..
As the NHS continues to digitise, the key to success will be creating systems that are clear, accessible, and supportive of all patients, regardless of their digital literacy or physical limitations. By focusing on clear communication, simplifying sign-up processes, improving accessibility, and building trust, the use of digitisation can benefit everyone and work to improve patient care. We will be working with local leaders to ensure that as they work on their digital strategy there is greater public involvement in those plans
We have also shared the report with Healthwatch England research and policy team who will use it alongside similar studies nationally to influence feedback to the NHS and Government policy. The report, ‘Digital Apps: A help or hindrance? Understanding and accessing digital healthcare apps’, has been published onto our website, www.healthwatchcityoflondon.org.uk and if you would like to have a paper copy, please email info@healthwatchcityoflondon.org.uk and our team will organise that for you.
We would like to thank all of those involved in our research, including those who took time to answer the questionnaire and those who joined our focus groups, with your valuable feedback and input we have been able to understand the barriers you have experienced and work to improve the access to your healthcare.
Our Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) Project
Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) in hospitals used by city residents has also come under our scrutiny. PALS is a service mandated within the NHS. Each NHS trust is required to have a PALS that provide help with health-related questions, help to resolve concerns or problems when using the NHS and to provide information on how to get more involved in one’s own healthcare. We know that some of you have found it hard to access and were keen to follow up for you to see what the landscape looked like.
Our team carried out desk-based research looking at how accessible and easy to find the online information on PALS, and what information was available. We found that the level of information is vastly different between the hospitals.
The team also visited each hospital to physically see the PALS offering at each hospital, again we found the information varied, some hospitals have external signage pointing to the PALS office, whilst others had none. This can also be said of the staff knowledge of PALS and its location.
In our report we have listed out our recommendations, which surround improving the current accessibility and communication that PALS provides, such as, improving the PALS web page to enhance its accessibility features and improving ways patients are able to get in touch with PALS. It is also essential that hospital staff are aware of PALS, where it is located and how patients and family members can access the service.
We want to hear your experiences, have you used PALS, was it helpful, how could it be improved? Let us know by emailing us at info@healthwatchcityoflondon.org.uk
Update on our Enter and View at the Neaman Practice
One of Healthwatch City of London’s statutory functions is to carry out Enter and View visits to health and social care service providers. It allows local Healthwatch Authorised Representatives to observe service delivery in premises such as hospitals, residential homes, GP practices, dental surgeries, optometrists and pharmacies.
During visits, we observe service delivery and talk with service users, their families, and carers. We also interview management and staff regarding their views of the service provided. The aim is to get an impartial view of how the service is operated and being experienced.
Following the visits, our official ‘Enter and View Report,’ will be shared with the service provider, local commissioners and regulators outlining what has worked well, and give recommendations
We would like to thank the Neaman Practice for welcoming us and look forward to continuing to work together.
Having your say on the City and Hackney Falls Prevention Pathway
Since we heard about the change in service provision around falls prevention last October, we have been working on your behalf to make sure that you can have our say about the development of new services. Our concerns have been listened to, and we are pleased to say we are working closely with those planning and delivering the service to make that happen.
We raised the proposed termination of the Staying Steady classes directly with the Health and Wellbeing Board and the City and Hackney Public Health Team, who commission the services.
As a result, we have been able to hold a successful Patient Panel exploring the Falls Pathway within City and Hackney. We were joined by the City and Hackney Public Health team who shared with attendees the current service provision and pathway, highlighting the services available to City residents.
We are also conducting a survey for you to let us know what your concerns are around falling, what services you have used or are currently using to prevent further falls and what you would like to see.
We’ve visited AGE UK City of London group this week, and gained some first-hand feedback on the service, and will be attending the Older Peoples Reference Group open meeting later in the month to again, hear your feedback.
The results of this engagement will be used to feedback to the City and Hackney Public Health team to inform their decisions on the future provisions in the Falls Prevention pathway and of course you.
If you haven’t had your say please complete our survey, if you’re unable to access this online, or want a little help please email us info@healthwatchcityoflondon.org.uk. Here is the link to the survey https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/MRSStayingSteady/
City and Hackney Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment Public Survey
London Borough of Hackney and the City of London are required to undertake a pharmaceutical needs assessment (PNA) every three years. This enables the ICB to determine if there are enough pharmacies offering enough services to local people. The team review access, including opening hours and public transport routes to ensure everyone can easily access pharmacy services. They also lo look at out of hours provision. The PNA will include your experiences and views around your local pharmacy, and how you may be currently using it. Our Chair, Gail Beer is on the Steering Group overseeing this work.
The responses that you provide will help to inform decisions on future applications for new pharmacies, or considerations for changes or adaptations at your current pharmacy. Your input will help to shape the future of pharmacy services in your local area.
You can complete the survey here https://forms.office.com/e/5Drkzb3pRm
Have your say on the City Advice Service
Toynbee Hall run the City Advice service who offer information and advice regarding benefits, debt, housing, employment law and many other subjects. The service is for City residents, workers, students and tenants living on City of London Corporation housing estates. The contract will be ending in Autumn, and a new contract must be advertised by law.
The City of London Corporation want to hear from you on what you would like from the service and your experiences of the current service.
You can access the survey here https://forms.office.com/e/3bQ8pjc5H6
City’s new Adult Social Care Group
The City of London Corporation want your help to shape the future of your Adult Social Care services. If you are a user Adult Social Care services, you will have received in the post an invitation to complete their annual survey and also information on the newly formed Adult Social Care engagement group.
The group, which Healthwatch is facilitating, will talk to service users to gain valuable insight and experiences of the service provided by the Adult Social Care Team, it will also discuss strategy changes and ask your opinion on changes to service provision. If you’re interested in being involved, please email us at ascadvisory@healthwatchcityoflondon.org.uk or call 020 3745 9563.
Government announces COVID-19 Day of Reflection 2025
The Government has recently announced a UK-wide Day of Reflection for COVID-19 on Sunday 9 March 2025. The COVID-19 Day of Reflection is one of the ten recommendations set out by the UK Commission on Covid Commemoration and to mark the fifth anniversary of the pandemic, people across the UK are invited to come together to remember and reflect on this unique period of our history as well as their own experiences.
During the pandemic years HWCoL worked to ensure that our community in the City of London were informed and kept up to date with all the relevant factual information at the time that cut through the misinformation that was readily available on the web. HWCoL received thousands of hit to the website on a weekly basis to read this information compiled into a weekly newsletter. When the country and City reopened, we worked with a team from the Homerton University Hospital on service provision to help Long Covid sufferers.
We welcome this day, which will be an opportunity for the everyone to remember and commemorate those who lost their lives during the pandemic, reflect on the sacrifices made and the impact on our daily lives, and pay tribute to the work of health and social care staff, frontline workers, researchers and all those who volunteered and showed acts of kindness during this unprecedented time.
Recent Portsoken Mela event
In February, NHS North East London in partnership with Healthwatch City of London and Healthwatch Hackney held a Health Mela event at the Portsoken Community Centre to promote staying well and warm in winter primarily in our Bangladeshi community.
HWCoL were proud to attend and help host the event, along with other health service providers and organisations working to help residents of the City, it was a great event filled with lots of fun for the whole family, with health advice, the food pantry, vaccine information, blood pressure checks as well as fun activities, such as prizes and giveaways and henna.
As a result of this event we were able to meet lots of local residents and volunteer groups as well as court of common councillors. We will be following up on the event with some more activities specifically for the residents in this part of the city.
Ramadan and Diabetes: Managing Your Health During Fasting
Ramadan started on Friday, 28 February and we wish everyone a peaceful month. For those with diabetes, fasting requires extra care to manage blood sugar levels, hydration, and overall health.
For information on how to observe the fast while prioritising your health and wellbeing, visit our website: https://www.healthwatchcityoflondon.org.uk/advice-and-information/2025-02-27/ramadan-and-diabetes-managing-your-health-during-fasting
Family Lives wellbeing service for City of London parents and their families
Are you finding parenting stressful? Family Lives wellbeing service for City of London parents and their families can help you.
Family Lives provides individual and group parenting support to parents and carers and their families experiencing emotional and mental health challenges.
The family support worker works across the borough on Mondays and Tuesdays and will be able to:
- provide a listening ear
- help you to understand what’s going on for you and your family
- help you find your way through your challenges
- signpost or refer you to other support agencies such as CAMHS
A service for parents of children and young people aged 0-18 (0-25 for children with SEND) In partnership with Early Help, Aldgate School and Aldgate Child & Family Centre
If you or your child are struggling with emotional health, please call or message Gill Whitehead on 07702 954891 or email gillw@familylives.org.uk for more information about this service.
www.familylives.org.uk
Get in touch with us!
Visit our website for more information, news and events, have your say about your care www.healthwatchcityoflondon.org.uk email: info@healthwatchcityoflondon.org.uk
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