Are you satisfied with health and social care in Newham? What can be done to improve services after the Covid-19 crisis?

These are the key questions being asked by Healthwatch Newham, which helps residents to get the most out of their health and social care services.

We collect feedback from residents and pass it on to those making decisions about health and social care services. Our aim is to ensure that the voices of residents are heard by decision-makers, so that you have a say in the services you receive.

We work closely with a range of organisations and boards, such as the Health and Wellbeing Board and the Newham Clinical Commissioning Group, to influence decision making and deliver the best outcomes for the people of Newham.

We are a small but dedicated team. We have previously completed projects looking at the experiences of carers and people experiencing homelessness, we review services at Newham University Hospital, local GPs and supported living homes. We have also collected the views of residents on dental services.

Not surprisingly, the health pandemic has been a top priority in recent months and we recently conducted a survey to understand the impact of Covid-19 on Newham residents and their families.

The survey highlighted some of the health inequalities that affect our residents and how Covid-19 has disproportionately impacted more on some of our communities (Please find the full report here).

You can also find general up-to-date information about Covid-19 here.

We are now working in partnership with other Healthwatch teams in east London to follow up on these findings and get residents’ views on how services should look like post Covid-19. We hope to engage with as many residents as possible, as this will help us better understand health and social care needs for the future. Feedback matters to us, so we would like everyone to get involved.

Keep an eye out for our next article in Newham Voices, where we will outline how you can get involved. Details will also be published on our website.

There are many ways you can get in touch with us to share your experiences of health and social care services. For feedback and comments:

Use our online form: www.healthwatchnewham.co.uk/feedback
Email us at: info@healthwatchnewham.co.uk
Call us on: 020 3866 2969

People can also visit our website for more information on our work and services, including our advocacy service, at www.healthwatchnewham.co.uk

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