Agenda item

Report by Healthwatch East Sussex.

37.1     The Board considered a report on the Eastbourne Listening Tour carried out by Healthwatch East Sussex in October 2022. The report includes the findings and the recommendations made as a result of the work undertaken on the Listening Tour.

37.2     The Board noted the comments regarding access to GPs in the report and observed that it is important to keep people informed on the challenges facing GP practices and to give feedback to the public regarding improvements to, or developments in, the service.

37.3     The Board asked how the headline findings in the report, such as access to services and confidence in services, compare with other places.

37.4     John Routledge, Healthwatch East Sussex responded that generally concerns expressed about access to GPs and dentistry are similar to other areas. Some services such as dentistry attract more concerns because when you need to access dentistry services there are no alternatives. Over the last few years concerns about access have increased, including access to face to face appointments with GPs. The main concerns are about access rather than the service itself once people have been able to access treatment. Anna Hoad, Healthwatch East Sussex added that the report also contains links to more detailed reports that provide a further breakdown of the feedback received from the Listening Tour.

37.5     The Board asked if the responses reported from the listening tour were people’s direct experiences of services.

37.6     John Routledge clarified people were asked “in your experience, or someone you care for”, in order to capture people’s direct experience of services when asking for people’s views about services.

37.7     The Board asked if the Healthwatch report would lead to further action as the HWB was being asked to note the report.

37.8     Joe Chadwick-Bell, Chief Executive, East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust (ESHT) commented that it is right to look at services in detail, but it should be remembered that the Listening Tour was carried out during a difficult period for the NHS when there were pressures on services and staff, and the recovery from backlogs built up during the Covid pandemic. It is possible to demonstrate where people are accessing care, such as cancer referrals, and it is important that people are coming forward for the services they need.

37.9     Jessica Britton, Executive Director, NHS Sussex added that it is helpful to get the report and details of people’s experiences which focuses on areas of concern and access to services. It reflects areas where the NHS knows there is more work to do. The NHS will look at the recommendations to inform its work, and they will feed into work programmes to make improvements through the Health and Care Partnership.

37.10   Mark Stainton added that the report contained some really useful information, and the report covers areas where some research has already been undertaken and other areas that are new. He suggested the next steps would be to take the report to either the East Sussex Health and Care Partnership or to the East Sussex Health and Care Partnership Executive, to consider the recommendations for individual organisations and those for the broader health and care system.

37.11   Anna Hoad commented that Healthwatch would be happy to follow this up and provide more detailed reports where that would be helpful. The Chair added that it was a really helpful report and the next steps for the report would be to refer it to the East Sussex Health and Care Partnership.

37.12   The Board RESOLVED to:

1) Note the report; and

2) Refer the outcomes of the Healthwatch East Sussex, Eastbourne Listening Tour to the East Sussex Health and Care Partnership for their consideration.