News and reports

Healthwatch Sandwell listen to what people say about their health and care services.
We tell health and care services what people said and how they can make things better.

NHS health and social care services care are legally required to follow the Accessible Information Standard 2016. This includes doctors, dentists, hospitals, pharmacies and social workers. The Standard sets out a specific, consistent approach to identifying, recording, flagging, sharing and meeting the information and communication support needs of patients, service users, carers and parents with a disability, impairment or sensory loss. Healthwatch Sandwell have explored with people with disabilities, sensory loss, or impairments
whether health and social care services are meeting their information and communication needs as required under the Accessible Information Standard 2016.

Healthwatch Sandwell have worked directly with residents with disabilities, impairments or sensory loss, families, carers, and local community support organisations to look at and identify the key issues where services are failing to meet people’s accessible information and communication needs and provides guidance and suggestions on what could work to better meet needs.

Do you want to contribute to maintaining the standards of excellence in local health and social care? Apply to become a Healthwatch Sandwell Health Advisory Board Member.

Healthwatch Sandwell have a legal power (Health and Social Care Act 2012) for Authorised Representatives to visit health and social care services and see them in action. This power to Enter and View services offers a way for Healthwatch to meet some of their statutory functions and allows them to identify what is working well with services and where they could be improved.

The Pharmacy First service is available for patients registered with practices in the Black Country and West Birmingham.
If you are exempt from prescription charges then you can access this service which gives you over-the-counter medicines rather than you needing to see a GP to receive the medication on a free prescription.

Covid-19 and roll out of the vaccination programmes has impacted nationally on delivery of primary care services. Service changes have included minimisation of face-to-face patient engagement which effectively supported implementation of the NHS Long Term Plan 2019 “digital first”1 agenda for primary care. Sandwell is ranked as the 12th most deprived local authority area nationally for indices of multiple deprivation with a lower-than-average life expectancy and higher than average health inequalities and mortality rate in under 75-year olds.
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Digital skills levels, digital poverty, and an increasing ethnically diverse population
with some language barriers present challenges with access and receipt of
health and care which services need to consider.

Healthwatch Sandwell (HWS) frequently hear from Sandwell residents about frustrations with trying to access and obtain appointments at their G.P. practices, especially regarding phone queueing systems, and public perception that premises are no longer open for face-to-face services.
The HWS project aimed to:
• explore the issues for patients with access to G.P. practice
appointments
• gauge public awareness and uptake of other primary care service
options
• gather a picture on the operation of primary care services in
Sandwell.

Healthwatch Sandwell is your independent consumer champion for health and social care services in Sandwell. Our job is to champion the consumer interests of those using the services and give local people an opportunity to speak out about their concerns. We listen to views, concerns, and compliments about services to help shape and improve them so that people are accessing the most quality and appropriate care.

The purpose of the visit was to observe the environment and explore first-hand with customers their experiences of using Duggals Chemist.
HWS wanted to find out customers’ experiences of the pharmacy service, this included why they visit the pharmacy and what support they get from the pharmacy including and how they are treated.

Communication needs due to a disability, sensory loss or an impairment are covered under the Equality Act 2020 and the NHS Accessible Information Standard (2016) which states that NHS funded health and social care providers must meet the information and communication needs of people who access services. Communication should be undertaken in ways that meet identified needs and information should be provided in formats that are clear and easy to understand.

World AIDS Day
World AIDS Day brings together people from around the world to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS and demonstrate international solidarity in the face of the pandemic.

Today gives people the opportunity to spread awareness of the pandemic and and encourage progress in HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment and care.