Shaping services
While engagement groups
and committees are designed to incorporate the input of patients into
Southwark CCG's decision-making process, such representation naturally
only accounts for a fraction of patient and professional interaction
with the health services in the borough. To shape services most
effectively it is crucial that we talk to local people about their experience of services and understand their stories –
including individual interactions with physical and mental health
services and across all age groups.
Combining the lived
experience of doctors, nurses and other frontline health professionals
with that of service users helps Southwark CCG build a more accurate
picture of health services in the borough – as well as provide us with
the insight to most efficiently address the needs and concerns of users
and practitioner.
Our approach to shaping services in Southwark is to identify the major patient demographics and understand what most impacts on the health and wellbeing of local people:
Additionally, the fact that mental health issues affect each of these demographics indiscriminately requires us to develop an independent approach:
We also look at particular health conditions across age groups:
Furthermore, we look at how people access health services:
So far in our efforts to shape services in Southwark according to the lived experience of patients and professionals we have been piloting a new service since 2014 that gives patients and doctors more flexibility when booking appointments. We're interested to know how residents feel this service has worked for them so far.
