Island residents are being invited to help shape the priorities for local health care services in their area over the next 5 years.
Hampshire and Isle of Wight Healthcare, a new NHS Foundation Trust formed on 1 October 2024, to deliver community, mental health and learning disability services in the area, is looking to work with its local communities to develop its Trust strategy and priorities for 2025-2030.
Over the last 2 years, the emerging organisation has received a wide range of valuable feedback about the hopes and concerns people have in relation to its services.
In particular, people have said the new trust should:
- Deliver local, joined up care, close to homes and tailored to the needs of individuals and communities
- Deliver more consistent care across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, to reduce the ‘postcode lottery’ of access, experience and outcomes
Now the trust is asking ‘what matters most” and feedback will help hone their list of priorities in their 5-year plan.
Alex Heritage, Chief of Strategy and Transformation for the new Trust said:
“We want our strategy to be developed with our service users, their families and carers, as well as our staff, partners and our local communities, so it focuses on the things that matter most.
“We want to hear from as broad and diverse group of people as possible to help us work towards delivering a shared vision for providing outstanding care that supports people on the Isle of Wight to live their best and healthiest lives.”
Over the next 2 months, there will be a number of opportunities for people to share their views including:
- Via the Shaping our Future Survey which runs from now until midnight on 6 November 2024
- Joining a community conversation
- Sharing their views via email to [email protected]
- Registering their interest in taking part in a workshop in late November via [email protected]
The Trust will also review its clinical information, health population statistics and national government, local authority and health partners’ plans.
It will then bring all the information and feedback together into a series of workshops in late November/early December involving staff, partners and those with lived experience of using its services, to help develop a list of priorities. A smaller representative group will then produce a draft strategy to be published ahead of a decision at the trust board’s meeting in March 2025.
Alex added:
“This is about the future of your community, mental health and learning disability services on the Island, so I would urge everyone to get involved and share your views about what matters most to you.”
We all pay N.I and Council tax etc
Yet our local NHS does not provide all the
services people need on the island and
many patients have to attend mainland hospitals
at their own expense.
Such costs should be FREE
The NHS is funded from a combination of general taxation and a smaller pot of NI contributions. Around 40% of that revenue goes to service the PFI debt ONLY…that is to the hands of private corporations and not into clinical treatments or staff wages. It’s a bit like having bought the building on a credit card but only ever making the minimum interest-only payment, and because of that, cannot afford to run it. That should stop eventually, as this government intends to not renew the contracts to PFI contractors. It will take a while and in the meantime I suggest you, and everyone else, engages with the conversation and tell them exactly what service improvements you need. Also, those on lower incomes, OAPs etc CAN get travel costs reimbursed, but you have to apply as it’s not automatic. Keep receipts.
Thanks for ‘asking us NHS’ . However will you actually listen to the public?
The IOW is nothing like the mainland and those remodelling services should ensure that they take account of that
Survival rates on the mainland are much better
Better quality Doctors and Nurses on the mainland.
Smoke and mirrors, make us feel part of it but they still do as they want.
I couldn’t agree more.