1. Patients to benefit from new multimillion-pound surgical hub

    Advice and Information -

    Healthwatch Kent are working in partnership with Maidstone Hospital who are developing an FAQ for patients thinking of using the Kent and Medway Orthopaedic Centre.

  2. Raising the voice of seldom heard communities to shape access equipment services

    Advice and Information -

    We continue our support of the NHS and Kent County Council in hearing from the public to codesign the future of their Integrated Community Equipment Services (ICES).

  3. Listening to public experience in hospitals and around how they access care

    Report -

    Across the end of 2022 and early 2023, Healthwatch Kent conducted ward visits to understand the traits that people valued from Allied Health Professionals to improve training for future healthcare workers.

  4. What to watch for in your health and community this month

    Advice and Information -

    Each September multiple awareness raising campaigns are running, some focused on specific weeks or days.

  5. Listening to seldom heard voices

    News -

    Last month we shared about how West Kent’s community larders continue to grow. The Shepway larder supports an average of 300 people and provides more than 500 bags of shopping a month. A second community larder now supports Park Wood.

  6. How Healthwatch support seldom heard voices

    News -

    We continue our support of the NHS and Kent County Council in hearing from the public to codesign the future of their Integrated Community Equipment Services (ICES).

  7. Supporting joined up and equal social and health care provision and access

    News -

    Healthwatch Kent works to improve the experience of being a Kent resident regarding social needs, health and wellbeing. To do this we support the Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) which are the NHS organisation form that replaced Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) in 2022.

  8. Understanding Care Homes near you

    Advice and Information -

    Having concluded our visits to 15 Care Homes across Kent & Medway talking to residents, their families and staff about the Enhanced Health in Care Home programme we have now completed our stakeholder facing report and have now shared our findings with Aging Well.

  9. What to watch for in your health and community this month - October

    Advice and Information -

    Each October multiple awareness raising campaigns are running, some focused on specific weeks or days.

  10. Helping you understand and shape your experience of Integrated Care

    Advice and Information -

    The ICB have published various priorities within their interim strategy.

  11. Addressing wider determinants of health

    Advice and Information -

    The wider determinants of health are a diverse range of social, economic and environmental factors which influence people’s mental and physical health.

  12. How Healthwatch addresses Health inequalities

    News -

    Healthwatch has adopted a more structured approach to help those most affected by differences in the provision of and access to health and social care.

  13. A wedge approach to tackling health inequalities: Women’s Health

    News -

    Earlier this year Healthwatch England published it’s position on Women’s Health. They outlined what they were calling for to improve and tackle health inequalities for women.

  14. How to stay well this winter

    Advice and Information -

    Tips to help you stay well this winter and get the care you need.

  15. What is menopause and what are the signs?

    Advice and Information -

    With more than thirty recognised symptoms of menopause and growing
    awareness of the impact on day-to-day life, knowing what to look out
    for and what support is available can help you.

  16. What is SAD, and how can you manage it?

    Advice and Information -

    Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a type of depression triggered by seasonal changes. One in twenty people in the UK are diagnosed with the condition, with men more likely to be diagnosed with SAD than women.

  17. What to watch for in your health and community this month - November

    Advice and Information -

    Each November multiple awareness raising campaigns are running, some focused on specific weeks or days.

  18. Stammer is one of the biggest challenges in accessing healthcare services. 

    News -

    People with stammers face a variety of challenges in accessing healthcare services. In the UK a survey showed 1.8% of people have stammer.

  19. Accessibility to healthcare can vary significantly based on the needs of the individual.

    News -

    Stammer is one of the biggest challenges in accessing healthcare services. 

  20. What barriers women report to experience when accessing healthcare?

    News -

    Women have a wide variety of experiences when accessing healthcare. However, a majority of women found that healthcare professionals were not listening or respecting them. There are several reasons that have been reported for these issues.

  21. Public consultation on Health Based Places of Safety

    News -

    In February 2023, Kent and Medway ICB and Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust (KMPT) launched a public consultation on Health Based Places of Safety. These are the facilities KMPT provides for adults needing emergency care and assessment under Section 136 of the Mental Health Act.

  22. Are you struggling to feel positive about Christmas? Are you going to be alone for Christmas? 

    Advice and Information -

    While for many of us Christmas is a time for celebration and spending time with our loved ones, sadly that is not the case for all of us.

  23. What have we heard at "Big day out event"?

    Report -

    Healthwatch Kent were honoured to be a part of BeYou’s ‘Big Day Out’ event in Maidstone last year.

  24. We continue our support of the NHS and Kent County Council in hearing from the public to codesign the future of their Integrated Community Equipment Services (ICES)

    News -

    ICES aims to maximise independence of Kent residents and enable them to carry out everyday activities at home.

  25. How Healthwatch making a difference ?

    News -

    Early this month a piece by Healthwatch England CEO Louise Ansari, explaining how Healthwatch helps the NHS engage with local people, was published in the Health Service Journal.

  26. What to watch for in your health and community this month - January

    Advice and Information -

    Each January multiple awareness raising campaigns are running, some focused on specific weeks or days.

  27. Cervical Cancer prevention week is held between the 22nd and 28th January 2024

    Advice and Information -

    This is a week to raise awareness of Cervical cancer, the screening programmes that currently take place and the vaccination programme designed to greatly reduce cases in the future.

  28. The team at Healthwatch Kent have been shortlisted for a national award for their work helping to improve care for local people.

    News -

    The National Healthwatch Impact Award recognises outstanding examples of where the views of local people have been used to make positive changes to local NHS and social care services.

  29. What to watch for in your health and community this month - February

    Advice and Information -

    Each February multiple awareness raising campaigns are running, some focused on specific weeks or days.

  30. Annual Recognition Awards evening is back this year

    News -

    Healthwatch Kent and Healthwatch Medway are pleased to announce the return of its annual Recognition Awards evening, now in its third year.

  31. Helping people to get health and care information the way they need it.

    Report -

    Over the last 5 years we’ve worked hard to work with Trusts to improve their support for people who have additional communication needs.

  32. Healthwatch Kent have been working alongside the NHS in Kent and Medway to improve referral services.

    Report -

    This report shows a summary of the main issues the public are facing with the current referral service, and what we hope the Electronic Optimisation Referral System (EROS) will address.

  33. Healthwatch Kent service receives national award for improving care

    News -

    Healthwatch Kent was recognised at the National Healthwatch Impact Awards this week for helping to improve care for local people. 

  34. Healthwatch Kent and Healthwatch Medway annual Recognition Awards evening return for the third year.

    News -

    This annual awards evening aims to recognise and celebrate the people, innovations and collaborations that listen to the public and deliver successful projects and programmes across Kent and Medway.

  35. Last summer we attended the Kent Parents and Carers Together (PACT) picnic event in Dartford.

    Report -

    Here we spoke to parents of children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND).

  36. what have we heard about how people are being supported with their mental health?

    Report -

    As many of you are aware we work closely with Mental Health Voice (MHV) and the 4 Local Mental Health Networks (LMHNs) based around each Health and Care Partnership area.

  37. The Accessible Information Standard - What you can expect from services

    Advice and Information -

    A year ago the Accessible Information Standard came into force. It requires any organisation providing NHS or social care to communicate in a way that everybody can understand. Here's a reminder of what you should expect.