Ways to Have Your Say…

We are seeing many changes in the way that health and social care services are organised and provided both locally and across Tayside. Sometimes we feel that we have no say in this but in fact there are arrangements which allow us to have our say, to make our views, opinions and concerns known. There is also a procedure via the NHS Tayside website “Give us Feedback” and the independent online CareOpinion where you can leave comments, compliments or concerns. The most local arrangement is the PPG. This is the Patient Participation Group which is concerned specifically with the medical practices, in our case Brechin and Edzell. As the name suggests, PPGs are open to any patients of the practice. Two members of the BHG attend the Brechin PPG. The North East Locality Improvement Group, NELIG, covers health and social care services for adults in the North East of Angus ie, Montrose, Brechin, Edzell and landward areas as far as Aberlemno. Among others, there are GPs, nurses, Allied Health Professionals (AHPs), care providers, and the voluntary sector as well as public participants. Two members of BHG sit on this group. Then there is the NHS Tayside Public Partners group. These are members of the public from across Tayside who are interested in health and health related issues and who participate in a number of activities that are related to the improvement of a range of services; patient information leaflets, hospital food, signage at Ninewells, to name but a few. Anyone can apply to be a Public Partner via Getting Involved on the NHSTayside website. One BHG member is a public partner. Recently there have been sessions where senior medical personnel from NHS Tayside have listened to what members of the public have to say about what matters to them and what would make a difference, for there is research which shows the difference in priorities between the public and the professionals. They acknowledge the need to engage more fully with the public. Indeed a similar network in Oxford states that they will “listen to, and act on, what patients, carers and the public say about their experience and involvement in care, research and innovation” As members of the public, we need to continue to make our voices heard, to support those who say they have to do things differently, to ensure that “differently” means more accessible, more appropriate and more effective.  – Moira Robertson