Baroness Masham of Ilton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Masham of Ilton on 2014-06-11.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what practical steps are being taken to ensure that the experiences and interests of children with fetal valproate syndrome and their families are represented as an integral part of patient involvement at every level of the reformed National Health Service.
Earl Howe
NHS England has developed a delivery model which sets out a systematic approach to the way that it works. Each aspect of its work is underpinned by a commitment to increase patient experience, engagement and participation. This is reflected in their business plan 2014-15 to 2016-17.
In September 2013, it launched a package of measures designed to ensure that the voices of patients, their carers and the public are at the centre of healthcare services.
‘Transforming Participation in Health and Care – The NHS belongs to us all’ has been developed by NHS England with a wide range of stakeholders and partners. Its purpose is to support commissioners to improve individual and public participation and to better understand and respond to the needs of the communities they serve.
It supports two legal duties requiring clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and commissioners in NHS England to enable:
– patients and carers to participate in planning, managing and making decisions about their care and treatment, through the services they commission; and
– the effective participation of the public in the commissioning process itself, so that services provided reflect the needs of local people.
The guidance highlights a range of ways in which National Health Service commissioners can fulfil their statutory responsibilities and seize the opportunity to deliver personalised and responsive care to all. It includes a wide range of tools, resources and case studies that commissioners will find useful when developing their own responses.
The guidance is a starting point and NHS England will be working with partners to develop further resources to support commissioners to develop their approaches to both individual and public participation.
The reforms to the health and social care system set out in the Health and Social Care Act have also emphasised the need for integration. Central to these reforms is the establishment of statutory health and wellbeing boards to encourage local authorities to take a more strategic approach to providing integrated health and local government services. The boards are intended to bring together bodies from the NHS, public and local government, including Healthwatch as the patient’s voice, jointly to plan how best to meet local health and care needs, and to commission services accordingly.
