Did you know that we manage and deliver Healthwatch Enfield?

Our Healthwatch Enfield services are delivered and managed locally by experienced teams of committed staff and volunteers, with support from our core Listen to Act team.

This was another exceptionally busy year for Healthwatch Enfield. We navigated multiple community challenges to ensure that local resident and patient voices were heard throughout the recent period of rising costs, strikes, and increased pressure on health services.

Our team is dedicated to finding out what matters to local people in Enfield about the health and care services in their area. Through surveys, focus groups and community events we share data and Insights with commissioners and those providing health and social care services to help them make Informed decisions to improve local services for all.

We also publish local advice and guidance, from GP guides to holding blood pressure events as part of our Healthy Hearts Programme. We partner with local charities and organisations to reach as many people to champion the views and experiences of patients, residents and carers In Enfield.

The projects we work on arise out of the concerns of residents, patients and carers and the priorities of local commissioners. This year, they included:

London Ambulance Service

We were commissioned by the London Ambulance Service to engage with local residents to find out what they think of their services. This will inform their 5-year plan.

Dental report

Due to the number of calls we were receiving and feedback from the public about accessing NHS dental care in Enfield, we conducted a review of the dentists in Enfield that were registering NHS dental patients and the impact this was having on the community.

Enter & View Programme

One of our statutory duties, as a Healthwatch is to enter and view premises where health and social care services are funded by the public purse. i.e., the NHS or local government. These could be Care Homes, GP practices, hospital wards, etc, with visits being patient-led. We carried out and reported on three care homes this year, including Bridgewood House, Nairn House, and Eliza House.

Annual Report

Our Annual Report was published in July 2023. From discussing how well NHS 111 services are working for local people, to exploring the health and social care priorities of residents in Edmonton, to improving dental care in the borough.

GP Access: Helping patients to understand their rights

As part of our GP access project we decided to provide a GP guide for local residents that explains how to register with a GP, the different roles and responsibilities at a surgery, patients’ rights and how to get additional support if needed. These booklets will be distributed to community areas in the borough.

Digital Inclusion Project: Care Quality Commission (CQC)

We were commissioned to find out if local residents are digitally excluded from feeding back to the Care Quality Commission (CQC). We spoke to a number of residents, held with people with learning difficulties, mental health conditions, and those who have English as a second language, to name a few.

Healthy Hearts Project

We have been commissioned by North Central London Integrated Care Board to inform local residents about how to reduce high blood pressure. We recruited and provided training and support to Community Connectors to inform their communities about healthy eating habits, causes of high blood pressure, and to take blood pressure readings.

Ophthalmology Project: North Central London Integrated Care Board

We were commissioned to collect the views about the proposed changes to Ophthalmology services. We gathered feedback and ideas on how the potential impact could be mitigated, with a particular focus on travel and transport, accessibility, communications, and support for patients with vulnerabilities and or their carers.

London Borough of Enfield

The Adult Social Care Department Invited us to collect feedback from residents about what it's like to use their integrated hospital discharge and equipment services. We developed a survey to collect this information to identify any gaps in the services, good practice, and the best ways of communicating with service users.

Reports

Reports on the mentioned projects can be found and downloaded on our Healthwatch Enfield website.

We are delighted to say that Listen to Act will be hosting the Healthwatch Enfield services for the next three years.

Volunteers Lunch

Our Volunteers lunch this year was a great hit! As a massive thank you, we celebrated Christmas with our volunteers, committee members, community connectors and team members. Our Healthwatch Enfield family has grown so much over the past year and we are immensely proud of the work we've done. Thank you to everyone for all your support.

How Enfield community members are shaping their local services