1. Help decide what services should be offered at the new health centre in Edenbridge

    News -

    A new health centre is currently being built in Edenbridge.

  2. Have you used community navigators or social prescribers recently?

    News -

    Thousands of you across Kent & Medway have been supported by social prescribers or community navigators.

  3. How do I know if I have an eating disorder?

    Advice and Information -

    If you or people around you are worried that you have an unhealthy relationship with food, you could have an eating disorder.

  4. Is your work is affecting your health? Maybe it’s time to do something about it?

    Advice and Information -

    We all know that a work life balance is hard to achieve. But sometimes we need to take a moment to step back and consider what we can do to help ourselves.

  5. Pharmacies open this Easter Bank Holiday

    Advice and Information -

    Preparing for your pharmacy needs during the coming bank holiday

  6. Celebrating excellence at the Healthwatch Recognition Awards

    News -

    32 people and organisations were winners last night at the prestigious Healthwatch Recognition Awards in Ashford.

  7. Covid-19 spring booster vaccinations

    News -

    More than a million people will be eligible for a spring Covid-19 jab in the south east, as the NHS begins to roll out the next phase of the vaccination programme.

  8. Pharmacies open during May Bank Holiday

    Advice and Information -

    Preparing for your pharmacy needs during the coming bank holiday

  9. Support during pregnancy and when caring for those under 5years old

    News -

    The theme this month is about support during pregnancy and when caring for those under 5years old which you can download at the bottom of the page.

  10. Heroic individuals and organisations working within our Mental Health Community

    News -

    At the end of last month, organised by both Healthwatch Kent & Healthwatch Medway, 200 guests came together to celebrate the best in health & social care.

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

    Advice and Information -

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

     

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

    Advice and Information -

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

  13. New orthopaedic service being developed for all patients living in the Kent & Medway area

    News -

    A new orthopaedic service providing extra outpatient clinic appointments and operating theatres is being opened for all patients living in Kent & Medway.

  14. Have your say on the Kent and Medway Integrated Care Strategy

    News -

    The Integrated Care Board (ICB) are creating plans to improve health and care in Kent and Medway. NHS organisations, local councils, care organisations and the voluntary sector in Kent and Medway are working together to improve health and care for you.

  15. New smoke free services in Kent and Medway

    Advice and Information -

    Two new smoke free services are launching this year.

  16. Influence domestic violence support services

    Advice and Information -

    Influence domestic violence support services

  17. What have we achieved this year?

    News -

    35,316 people came to us for advice and information about topics such as mental health, accessing dentists and the cost-of-living crisis.

  18. What do you really know about Neurodiversity?

    Advice and Information -

    Increasing understanding of neurodiversity and autism.

  19. Understanding where you turn to when you have concerns about your health

    Advice and Information -

    Healthwatch Kent visited Maidstone town centre to find out who people speak to when they have a health concern.

  20. Improving access in Kent hospitals

    Advice and Information -

    Achieving change to improve your experience of health and social care is one of the main aims of Healthwatch.

  21. The voices of Windrush

    Advice and Information -

    A Windrush Day flag raising was hosted in Dartford to mark Windrush Day and the 75th anniversary of the arrival of the SSE Windrush. Organised by the North Kent Caribbean Network (NKCN) working in partnership with Cohesion Plus and Dartford Borough Council, the event took place on Monday 19th June.

  22. We run a signposting and information service, but what difference does it make and how do we support people?

    Report -

    1167 people contacted our information and signposting service in the past year. 243 of these people across Kent and Medway told us how they had been impacted by our information and signposting service.

  23. What people have told us about dentistry

    Report -

    This report summarises the feedback received from people via Healthwatch Kent, Healthwatch Medway and Kent and Medway Voice about their experiences of primary care dentistry from November 2022 to April 2023. This includes 34 separate pieces of feedback.

  24. What people have told us about general practice

    Report -

    This report presents the feedback received from people via Healthwatch Kent, Healthwatch Medway and Kent and Medway Voice about their experiences of general practice from November 2022 to April 2023.

  25. What people have told us about pharmacy

    Report -

    This report summarises the feedback received from people via Healthwatch Kent, Healthwatch Medway and Kent and Medway Voice about their experiences of pharmacies from November 2022 to April 2023.

  26. Primary care work

    News -

    In May, Healthwatch England shared their initial response to the Government's Primary Care recovery plan and what it would mean for you and your loved ones.

  27. Improving training for future healthcare workers

    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.

  28. Pharmacies open during August Bank Holiday

    Advice and Information -

    Preparing for your pharmacy needs during the coming bank holiday

  29. Our impact in dentistry

    News -

    In June we released out Annual report, which you can download at the bottom of this page. It shows the various ways Healthwatch continues its efforts to ensure the public experience is heard.

  30. Influence domestic violence support services

    Advice and Information -

    People over the age of 55 are less likely to use specialist services to support them if they are in an abusive relationship.

  31. Mental health together

    Advice and Information -

    A new NHS service called Mental Health Together will soon be available to patients in East Kent in the latest phase of its roll-out across Kent and Medway.

  32. Have you used non-urgent patient transport to get to a healthcare service or appointment?

    Advice and Information -

    Even if you are likely to access this transport facility, it is important you are aware of planned changes.

  33. 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.

  34. 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).

  35. 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.

  36. 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.

  37. 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.

  38. 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).

  39. 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.

  40. 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.

  41. 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.

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

    Advice and Information -

    The ICB have published various priorities within their interim strategy.

  43. 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.

  44. 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.

  45. 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.

  46. How to stay well this winter

    Advice and Information -

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

  47. 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.

  48. 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.

  49. 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.

  50. 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.