Local Healthwatch shortlisted for national award for outstanding work to improve care using your feedback
Project Manager Sarah Beckett has led the Reaching Communities Lottery-funded project over the past two and half years, aimed at improving health outcomes and reducing health inequalities for Gypsy Roma and Traveller (GRT) communities in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough through consistent community engagement and a bespoke programme of 17 cultural awareness workshops.
Feedback provided by healthcare professionals who have undertaken the Healthwatch training has highlighted how it has helped them communicate more effectively with members of the GRT communities, improve their working practices and shape internal policies.
Commenting on the news that they have made the shortlist, Jo McHattie, Business Development Manager of Healthwatch Cambridgeshire and Peterborough said:
“Our staff and volunteers work so hard to find out if health and care services are working for local people and, if they are not, to try and get services to fix the issues.
“To hear that our work has been shortlisted for a national award is great recognition for the impact of their efforts and real boost to us all. However, we can’t do anything without local people coming forward to share your views, so this is not just great news for us but also for everyone in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.
“I would also like to thank Heidi Haxeltine, Funding Officer at the Lottery Community Fund, for her ongoing support.”
Eighteen projects from across England are in the running for the National Healthwatch Impact Award.
The annual award highlights outstanding examples of where the views and experiences of local people has been used by their local Healthwatch to make care better. The finalist will be announced in March 2024.
Commenting on the news, Louise Ansari, Chief Executive of Healthwatch England, said:
“Over a million people a year either seek advice from Healthwatch or share their care experience. And, every year, there are thousands of examples of where this feedback has been used by services to make positive changes to health and care.
“Getting shortlisted for our national impact award is no mean feat. It means that your work has made a real difference for local communities, often amid ongoing challenges facing health and care services.”
Our staff and volunteers work so hard to find out if health and care services are working for local people and, if they are not, to try and get services to fix the issues.
